Wheat hardness index in relation to the other wheat quality parameters

Endosperm hardness is one of the most important quality characteristics of wheat and relates to the way the endosperm breaks down during milling of the grain. Single Kernel Characterization System (SKCS) is widely used method for hardness measuring. This is a crushing device that simultaneously records the kernel diameter, kernel weight and moisture content of a single kernel as well as the hardness index. The results of hardness index of 20 wheat samples (8 actual varieties in B&H: Marija, Liberta, Tina, Sana, Renesansa, Rusija, Pobeda and Evropa 90, in the 2 growing seasons: 2003 and 2004) were presented in this paper. The relation between hardness index and the other quality characteristics of wheat (test weight, 1000 kernels mass, vitreosity, protein content and SIDS sedimentation values) were studied. The results of t-test showed significant differences in hardness index between the varieties, while the differences related to growing seasons were not found. The best simple correlation was found between hardness index and vitreosity (r=0,699). The negative correlation was found between hardness index and 1000 kernels weight as well as between hardness index and test weight (r=-0,67 and r=-0,58 respectively).