Sixty tetraploid wheat (Triticum turgidum L.) landrace agrotypes collected from the central highlands of Ethiopia and one commercial check cultivar (Boohai) were evaluated at Akaki experimental station for grain yield and 11 other component traits . The objectives were to estimate phenotypic (PCV) and genetic (GCV) coefficients of variation, broad-sense heritability (H) and genetic advance (GA), and to determine the interrelationships among the various traits . Genotypic differences among the agrotypes were highly significant for all the traits considered . Compared to Boohai, the landrace agrotypes were later in days-to-heading (DTH) and maturity (DTM), and had shorter grain filling period (GFP), lower fertility (KS) and lower 1000-kernel weight (TKW) . By contrast, they were superior to Boohai in tiller number (TN), biological yield (BY) and grain yield plant-' (GYP). Intermediate to high order estimate combinations of GCV, H and GA (as % of the mean) were observed for TN, GYP, number of kernels spike` (NKS), harvest index (HI) and TKW . GYP showed a moderate heritability which was higher than GFP, BY and Plant height (PHt) . DTH and DTM were strongly correlated, but both were negatively associated with the rest of the traits except PHt . The negative correlation of DTM with GYP was largely indirect via other characters . PHt had either a weak or negative association with the other traits. TN and TKW were positively correlated with GYP, and had high and intermediate direct effects, respectively. These two traits, however, were negatively correlated and showed a substantial counter-balance effect via one another . It appears that, for the short-term, improvement of the Ethiopian wheat landraces may be possible through indirect selection for TN and TKW or direct selection for grain yield per se. In the long-run, crossing programmes between indigenous and introduced germplasm may be necessary. Introductionturgidum L.) and hexaploid (T aestivum L .) species are grown. The former constitute more than twoWheat (Triticum spp .) is one of the most important thirds of the wheat area in the country and are usucereals cultivated in Ethiopia . Both tetraploid (T ally grown at elevations between 1800-2800 m.a .s .l.,

SummaryPurple-grain tetraploid wheats (Triticum turgidum L.) are widely cultivated in the Ethiopian highlands despite the claim that they have lower industrial quality properties and market prices than the white or red/brown seed-colour types. In an attempt to find a possible explanation for this, the three seed-colour groups were compared for grain yield, other 11 agronomic traits and protein content. Five traits displayed significant differences between seedcolour groups where the purple-seed was superior; earlier maturity, shorter height, and higher fertility, tillering capacity and harvest index. Most of these are important adaptive traits to waterlogging stress on dark-clay soils (pellic vertisols) where the great bulk of the Ethiopian tetraploid wheats have been grown. Furthermore, among the three seed-colour groups, purple-seed wheat has the best malting quality for the preparation of arekie, a locally distilled spirituous liquor. It, therefore, appears that both natural and human selections have been reponsible for their continued cultivation. Hence, the notion that purple-seeded wheat is the "least preferred" should be interpreted carefully not to necessarily address the whole community in Ethiopia. As to their taxonomy, all tetraploid wheat taxa (T. turgidum L. sensu lato, 2n = 4x = 28) that are found in Ethiopia, with the possible exception of Z dicoccon Shrank (locally known as Adja), may possess the purple pericarp-colour, although in varying frequencies; very low in T. polonicum L., and high in T. carthlicum Nevski and T. durum Desf.

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