Performance and Variability of Some Agronomical Traits of Hulless
Winter Barley Genotypes under NARDI Fundulea Growing Conditions

Liliana Vasilescu¹, Eugen-Iulian Petcu ¹, Lidia Cană¹, Alexandrina Sîrbu²,
Lenuța Iuliana Epure³, Andreea D. Ona⁴, Vasile Silviu Vasilescu¹ 

¹National Agricultural Research and Development Institute Fundulea
²“Constantin Brâncoveanu” University of Pitești
³University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest
⁴University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Cluj-Napoca

Keywords: barley two-row genotype, hulless and hulled grain, yield, TKW, protein and starch content.

Abstract: Barley can help regulate or decrease blood glucose levels, thereby lowering the risk of diabetes. According to the European Food Safety Authority, three health claims related to the beta-glucan content in barley have been approved: maintaining normal blood LDL-cholesterol levels (at least 1 g per meal), reducing postprandial glycaemic response (dose >4 g per 30 g of available carbohydrate), and lowering blood cholesterol (daily intake of 3 g).
This paper presents the results of a five-year study examining the performance and variability of certain quantitative and qualitative parameters in a set of 20 hulless winter two-row barley genotypes under different climatic growing conditions. Four agronomical traits of the hulless barley genotypes were considered: yield, grain weight, protein content, and starch content. Analysis of variance revealed a significant impact of year, genotype, and the interaction between year and genotype on these parameters (p < 0.01).
Due to their potential, the hulless winter barley two-row lines included in this study could be used to develop new varieties specifically tailored for foods with high nutritional value. The lines studied possess genotypic potential for creating better barley breeding materials intended for nutritious foods such as flakes, pasta, flatbreads, and muffins.