Validation of elite lines and varieties of safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) in southern Sonora, Mexico

In Mexico, the main safflower-producing states in 2024 were Sinaloa, Sonora, and Tamaulipas. The safflower breeding program at the Norman E. Borlaug Experimental Station (CENEB) has focused its research on developing lines resistant to Ramularia leaf spot and of the oleic type. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate and identify elite lines with good yield and oil quality that could be candidates for commercial varieties. The experimental plot was established in block 910 of the Yaqui Valley, during the 2023-2024 fall-winter crop season at CENEB. Sowing was carried out in moist soil, on December 5, 2023, in a randomized block design with four replications. Six commercial varieties and eight advanced lines were evaluated. The variables measured in the field were days to flowering and to physiological maturity, plant height, grain yield (kg ha^-1), and quality (percentage of oil and oleic acid). The analysis of variance was performed using the SAS statistical package, and the LSD test (α = 0.05) for mean comparison. Significant differences in grain yield were found between treatments. The line with the highest yield was C-45-2-MOC with 2,971 kg ha^-1, which was statistically similar to the varieties S-323 and Huatson OL. The elite line M-CW-3268 had an oil percentage greater than 40, while the lines C-62-MOC and CC-1777-1-1-1-0Y had an oleic acid content of 79.78 and 79.56 %, respectively.