DOI: https://doi.org/10.21276/AATCCReview.2025.13.01.453

Abstract

Wheat (Triticum aestivum) is one of oldest and most widely cultivated cereal crops, serving
as a staple food worldwide. However, climate change significantly threatens its growth and
productivity. To improve productivity through varied cropping systems, we evaluated the
economic feasibility and profitability of five wheat varieties Raj-765, Raj-4120, HD-3226,
DBW-187, and DBW-222 under arid and high-temperature conditions. The study utilized a
split-plot design, with cropping systems designated as the main plots and wheat varieties as
the sub-plots, each replicated three times. Our findings show that DBW-222 in the cluster
bean-wheat system achieved the highest grain and straw yields, net returns (NR), and benefit-
cost ratio (BCR) over a two-year analysis. DBW-222, DBW-187, and Raj-4120 also showed
superior yields, NR, and BCR across various cropping systems, including fallow-wheat,
sesamum-wheat, cluster bean-wheat, green gram-wheat, and moth bean-wheat. Further, Raj-
3077 and Raj-3765 performed best in grain and straw yield, net returns (NR), and benefit-cost
ratio (BCR) in the groundnut-wheat system, achieving the highest wheat equivalent yield
(WEY). In contrast, DBW-222, DBW-187, and Raj-4120 excelled in WEY, WESY, NR, and
BCR across the fallow-wheat, sesamum-wheat, cluster bean-wheat, green gram-wheat, and
moth bean-wheat systems. However, when grown in the pearl millet-wheat system, Raj-3077
and Raj-3765 recorded significantly lower WEY, WESY, NR, and BCR compared to all other
varieties. These findings highlight the significant influence of cropping systems on the
performance of wheat varieties, stressing the importance of selecting suitable wheat varieties
and cropping systems to boost agricultural productivity and economic returns, particularly in
arid and hot climates worldwide.

Download this article as