| Summary: | Wheat yield is largely determined by the grains per spike, which in turn is related to the fertile floret development prior to anthesis. The aim of this study was to assess the physiological mechanism of exogenous 6-benzylaminopurine (6-BA) on fertile floret development and grain setting characteristics by foliar application in winter wheat. Field experiments were conducted during the 2016−2017 and 2017−2018 growing seasons in China. Two foliar spraying applications with water (S0) and 6-BA (S1) were applied to a large-spike variety (V1) and a multiple-spike variety (V2) 25 days after jointing. At anthesis, spike dry weight and soluble sugar, sucrose, auxin, and cytokinin were all positively correlated with the number of fertile florets and grains per spike. During the abortion stage of fertile florets, 6-BA application compared to the control reduced the auxin content, increased the cytokinin content and spike dry matter and transported more soluble sugar and sucrose from the non-spike organs to the spike. Exogenous 6-BA application increased the number of fertile florets (~1.84 to ~2.50) and number of grains (~2.83 to ~3.51) by primarily suppressing the number of degenerated and aborted florets. The results provide important evidence that 6-BA application has a positive effect on floret fertility and grain setting, which lead to a further increase in grain yield.
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