Productivity and grain quality of hulled and hulles oat varieties in the middle Volga Region

Along with hulled oats, hulles oats are increasingly used in the processing industries, both for feed and food purposes without preliminary hulling. In the Middle Volga region, in the conditions of a sharply continental climate, the cultivation of oats for feed and food purposes is difficult, therefore, breeding of highly productive oat varieties with grain quality for a specific area of use is promising. The purpose of the current study was to estimate productivity and grain quality of hulled and hulles oat varieties in the Middle Volga region. There has been found that during the years of study, hulled oat varieties produced the highest grain yield of 29.2 hwt/ha (a mean value among the varieties). The maximum grain yield was obtained in 2022 with 41.6–42.4 hwt/ha due to productive tillering (r = +0.72 at p < 0.05) and 1000-grain weight (r = +0.82 at p < 0.05). The variety ‘Sapsan’ was the best one in the group of hulled varieties with the best indicators of protein 14.6 %, starch 40.2 %, oil 5.3 % and grain nature weight 470 g/l with the lowest value of grain husk content; these oat varieties are preferable to grow for the production of feed and feed mixtures. In the group of hulles varieties, the mean productivity among the varieties varied at the level of the standard variety ‘Persheron’ and was 16.8 hwt/ha. The largest productivity was formed by the varieties in 2023 with 24.6-24.7 hwt/ha and it was due to productive tillering (r = +0.68 at p < 0.05) and grain weight per ear (r = +0.80 at p < 0.05). Hulles oat varieties with a high content of protein 18.7 %, starch 53.0 %, oil 6.4 %, low amylolytic activity of grain 323 s and grain nature weight 597 g/l, corresponding to the requirements of GOST 28673-2019 are suitable for food purposes (groats production, functional products, bakery).