In this work, we studied the impact of harvesting time on Fusarium mycotoxin occurrence in spring wheat and the effect of mycotoxin contamination on the quality of these grains. The spring wheat grains (Triticum aestivum L.) were collected in 2016–2018 when the crop had reached full maturity, 10 ± 2 days and 17 ± 3 days after full maturity. The grain samples were analyzed for Fusarium infection and co-contamination with mycotoxins deoxynivalenol (DON), zearalenone (ZEA), and T-2 toxin (T-2), as well as the quality of the wheat grains (mass per hectolitre, contents of protein, starch, ash and fat, particle size index (PSI), falling number, sedimentation, wet gluten content, and gluten index). The occurrence of Fusarium spp. fungi and the mycotoxins produced by them in the grains was mostly influenced by the harvesting time and meteorological conditions. The correlations between Fusarium species and the mycotoxins produced by them in the grains of spring wheat showed F. graminearum to be a dominant species, and as a result, higher concentrations of DON and ZEA were determined. The co-occurrence of all the three mycotoxins analyzed (deoxynivalenol, zearalenone, and T-2 toxin) was identified in wheat. In rainy years, a delay in harvesting resulted in diminished grain quality of spring wheat, as indicated by grain mass per hectolitre and falling number. Negative correlations were found in highly contaminated grains between mycotoxins (DON, ZEA, and T-2) and falling number and grain mass per hectolitre values.

Waxy starch with a modified amylose-to-amylopectin ratio is desired for a range of applications in food and non-food industries; however, yield performance and grain quality characteristics of waxy wheat cultivars are usually inferior in comparison to advanced non-waxy cultivars. In this study, we compared waxy (‘Eldija’, ‘Sarta’) and non-waxy (‘Skagen’, ‘Suleva DS’) winter wheat cultivars grown under high and low-input farming systems over two cropping seasons by evaluating their yield and grain quality, including flour, dough, and starch physicochemical properties. The yield of waxy cv. ‘Sarta’ was significantly lower compared to the non-waxy cultivars across all trials; however, waxy cv. ‘Eldija’ had a similar yield as non-waxy cultivars (except under high-input conditions cv. ‘Skagen’). Moreover, no significant differences were observed between protein and gluten content of waxy and non-waxy cultivars. Low amylose content typical for waxy wheat cultivars highly correlated (r ≥ 0.8) with lower falling number, flour yield and sedimentation values, lower nitrogen % used for grain, higher flour water absorption and flour particle size index. In general, properties dependent on starch structure demonstrated consistent and significant differences between both starch types. The prevailing heat waves during the grain filling period decreased grain test weight but increased protein and gluten content and caused gluten to be weaker. Dough development time at these conditions became longer, dough softening lowered and starch content decreased, but A-starch, starch peak and final viscosity values increased. Low-input farming had a negative effect on grain yield, grain nitrogen uptake and grain test weight but increased phosphorus content in grain. The unique dough mixing properties of waxy cultivar ‘Eldija’ suggest that it could be used in mixtures along with non-waxy wheat for dough quality improvement.

Fusarium head blight is a devastating wheat disease that causes yield reduction and mycotoxins contamination, leading to multiple negative consequences for the economy, health, and food safety. Despite the tremendous efforts that have been undertaken over the last several decades to harness the disease, the problem remains a challenging issue. Due to global warming, its impact has become increasingly severe in Baltic and Nordic countries. The improvement of wheat resistance is hampered by complicated genetic inheritance, the scarcity of adapted resistant breeding materials, and difficulties in obtaining accurate and reproducible data due to the high interaction and dependency of the disease development on the environment. In this study, the resistance of 335 genotypes, 9 of which were of exotic origin and the remainder of which were adapted to the environments of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, or Norway, was studied in 8 trials using spray and point inoculation with spore suspensions and grain spawn inoculation under field and/or greenhouse conditions. The best linear unbiased estimates (BLUEs) of each genotype within the individual trials and the adjusted means across the trials were determined to reduce the environmental effects. Genotypes that exhibited excellent Type I or Type II resistance and overall resistance were identified.

Genetic improvement of wheat resistance to the devastating disease Fusarium head blight (FHB) is the most effective strategy to prevent economic, health, and food safety issues, and is also an environmentally friendly approach for disease control. However, wheat breeding for FHB resistance is hampered by complex resistance, which is controlled by multiple loci with minor effects and limited availability of resistance sources. Globally, sources of FHB resistance primarily stem from Asian wheat; however, excellent resistance has also been noted in European spring wheat cultivars and breeding lines. The success of breeding for the improvement of wheat resistance to FHB relies on the availability of a genetic pool that is adapted to local environments, possesses desirable agronomic traits, and includes a sufficient number of effective QTL for wheat resistance to FHB. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) was performed using a panel of 332 spring wheat genotypes including 181 from Baltic, Nordic countries (65), Central and Western Europe (76) and exotic genotypes (10), employing a 25 K single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array. The objectives of this study were to identify SNPs significantly associated with wheat resistance, determine QTL with approximate regions, and identify candidate genes within these QTL by exploring a panel of wheat genotypes adapted to the Baltic and Nordic countries. A total of 65 significant marker-trait associations (MTAs) with FHB resistance were identified using GWAS. Resistance loci were distributed across 15 wheat chromosomes and three genomes. Furthermore, 55 QTL were identified, 10 of which had phenotypic variation explained (R²) values above 10%. QFHB-2AL.1 and QFHB-2BL.1 were stably detected in 11 trials. An overall total of 52 candidate genes was identified by analyzing QTL regions in combination with published transcriptome data. This study demonstrated that a substantial number of QTL can be found in European spring wheat germplasm. Pyramiding of major effects along with small-effect QTL resulted in a positive additive effect on wheat resistance. Elite breeding lines with multiple resistance alleles were identified and could be used as valuable sources in wheat breeding for FHB resistance.

Accurate and robust methods are needed to monitor crop growth and predict grain yield and quality in breeding programs, particularly under variable agrometeorological conditions. Field experiments were conducted during two successive cropping seasons (2021, 2022) at four trial locations (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway). The focus was on assessment of the grain yield (GY), grain protein content (GPC), and UAV-derived NDVI measured at different plant growth stages. The performance and stability of 16 selected spring wheat genotypes were assessed under two N application rates (75, 150 kg N ha⁻¹) and across different agrometeorological conditions. Quantitative relationships between agronomic traits and UAV-derived variables were determined. None of the traits exhibited a significant (p < 0.05) genotype-by-nitrogen interaction. High-yielding and high-protein genotypes were detected with a high WAASB stability, specifically under high and low N rates. This study highlights the significant effect of an NDVI analysis at GS55 and GS75 as key linear predictors, especially concerning spring wheat GYs. However, the effectiveness of these indices depends on the specific growing conditions in different, geospatially distant locations, limiting their universal utility.