Every cultivar released in Nebraska must have four characteristics: improve
d agronomic performance relative to existing cultivars, exceptional winterh
ardiness, resistance to Puccinia graminis (the causal agent of stem rust),
and acceptable end-use quality. This paper will discuss our strategy for br
eeding cultivars with acceptable end-use quality. All experimental lines ar
e derived from crosses with at least one or more parents with acceptable en
d-use quality. As soon as individual lines are identified (F-5) generation,
microquality analyses are conducted and approximately 10% are discarded on
the basis of poor end-use quality. In the F-6 and later generations, sampl
es are composited from three or more locations/year, milled on a Buhler Mil
l, and baked using 100 g of flour per loaf. Though genotype-by-environmenta
l interactions are large for end-use quality traits, composite samples are
satisfactory for determining the end-use quality when repeated over time. B
y using phenotypic selection, the program has released cultivars with accep
table quality involving known `poor' quality genes and chromosomes, such as
high-molecular weight (HMW) glutenin subunits 2+12 (Scout 66 and Lancota),
1BL.1RS (heterogeneous in Rawhide and homogeneous in Cougar), and 1AL.1RS
(heterogeneous in Nekota and Niobrara). Phenotypic selection is preferred t
o genotypic selection.