Crop breeders are interested in knowing the buffering capacity of genotypes to select those exhibiting low genotype‐by‐environment interaction (G × E) since genotypes possessing good buffering capacity are considered desirable. Accordingly, a multienvironment trial (MET) was conducted in six environments to evaluate the performance and stability of food barley genotypes for possible release for the highland barley‐growing areas of Ethiopia. A randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications was employed for the experiment. Yield and related traits were recorded. Most useful component traits had moderate ranges of mean values, indicating substantial variability among food barley genotypes. Moderate to high levels of heritability were found for all measured traits except thousand kernel weight, providing a good opportunity for selection as a large proportion of the observed variation was due to genetic factors. Combined analysis of variance showed highly significant variation ( p < 0.001) among genotypes (G), environments (E), and their interaction (G × E) for all measured traits, necessitating the need to do stability analysis in grain yield. The genotype main effect plus genotype‐by‐environment interaction (GGE) biplot analysis and the cultivar superiority measure (Pi) for grain yield indicated that G‐6 was found superior and desirable. In addition, this genotype possesses an acceptable level of disease resistance and lodging tolerance. Notably, G‐6 is an early‐maturing six‐rowed genotype suitable for frost‐prone areas and double cropping. With these merits, the noted genotype has officially been released with the name “ Zina ” for the major barley‐growing areas of the Amhara region, as well as similar agroecologies.
Berie et al. (Thu,) studied this question.