SELECTION OF SUNFLOWER HYBRIDS BASED ON STABILITY ACROSS ENVIRONMENTS

Bearing in mind that the sunflower production in Serbia is extensive, it is very important to select a hybrid that will achieve stable and high seed and oil yields in different enviromental conditions. The objective of the study was to identify the most stable sunflower hybrids for seed and oil yield using AMMI model analysis. Nine newly developed early, medium early and medium late hybrids were tested. Hybrids were grown in different locations across Northern Serbia during two growing seasons (2013-2014). Selected locations are geographically close, but environmentally different in terms of soil, rainfalls and temperature, thus creating a specific microclimate conditions for sunflower growing. Pooled analysis of variance for seed and oil yield showed that the main effects of hybrids, environments and their interaction were highly significant. The agro-ecological environment E3 is most favourable for achieving high seed and oil yields, but E9 was the most stable. According to results of AMMI model, the most stable hybrids for the seed and oil yield, i.e. the lowest interaction with the enviroment, were NS2, NS8 and NS9. The obtained results indicate that hybrids can be recommended for production in different environments in Serbia; NS2 hybrid as early-growing, stable for oil yield; NS8 and NS9, medium-late hybrids, high productivity potential and suitable for all production systems.