Triticale

triticale

Wheat-rye hybrid that has a high yield and rich protein content. The first cross was reported in 1875, the first fertile cross in 1888. The name triticale first appeared in scientific literature in 1935 and is attributed to Erich Tschermak von Seysenegg. In favourable environmental conditions its yield equals that of wheat; under poor conditions its yield exceeds that of wheat. Its flour is not very suitable for breadmaking but can be blended with wheat flour. Major producers are Russia, the U.S., and Australia.

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triticale [′trid·ə‚kāl]

(agriculture)

A cereal derived from crossing wheat and rye and then doubling the number of chromosomes in the hybrid.

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Triticale 

a plant hybrid obtained by crossbreeding wheat (Triticum)—the maternal plant—with rye (Secale)—the paternal plant. The plants are amphidiploids and include two types: 56-chromosome and 42-chromosome. The large grain of winter triticales is winter-hardy and richer in protein than wheat grain. Winter triticales are important in the selective breeding of winter wheat in Siberia. The crossbreeding of heterochromosomal amphidiploids is promising for obtaining new highly productive forms.