Differences in Stripe Rust ( <i>Puccinia striiformis</i> f. sp. <i>tritici</i> ) Resistance and Their Impact on Key Agronomic Traits Among 49 Synthetic Hexaploid Wheat Accessions Across Diverse Environmental Conditions in Western China

ABSTRACT This study focused on 49 synthetic hexaploid wheat accessions, systematically evaluating the response to stripe rust and its impact on agronomic and kernel quality traits under three environmental conditions typical of western China, to identify outstanding synthetic hexaploid wheat accessions. Fourteen accessions exhibited high resistance at all three test sites, while five accessions showed significant differences in their reaction types across different test sites. The 2 + 13 t glutenin subunit was detected among the accessions that exhibited resistance to stripe rust. Cluster analysis revealed that the 49 synthetic hexaploid wheat accessions could be divided into 10 major groups. Among them, the quality traits of the accessions belonging to Groups II, III and V exhibited excellent performance, while the accessions with outstanding yield‐related traits were concentrated in Groups VI and VII. Using the grey relational analysis in combination with the performance of important agronomic traits, a comprehensive analysis found that accessions 10, 11, 18, 28, 37 and 38 demonstrated the most superior overall performance and could serve as important germplasm resources for utilization in breeding programmes.