Agricultural News
Wheat Varieties Begin to Show Their True Colors as Harvest Progresses
Mon, 21 May 2012 14:19:17 CDT
As test weights, yields and protein levels start to tell the tale on this year's wheat crop, OSU Extension Small Grains Specialist Dr. Jeff Edwards says he is surprised.
"I'm surprised at how good it looks given the year that we've had. We've had drought stress and every kind of stress you can think of and it still looks pretty good."
Edwards says he's looking especially closely at OSU-bred Duster since it is the most popular variety in the state this year. He said he is also paying close attention to its descendants which are exceeding expectations.
"Duster looks good. I don't think Duster is going to have the same year it did a couple of years ago, but I still think Duster will perform fairly well. We've got a couple of varieties out here I call sons of Duster; we've got Gallagher and Iba and both of those look really good.
"We went through a period there where, for me, it was hard to top Duster, but we've got some varieties out there in Gallagher and Iba that could do it. Gallagher-outstanding forage producer. It made nearly two tons per acre by December there in Stillwater at our forage trial. Great forage producer.
"Iba-widespread adaptation, good yield potential. Then you throw Garrison and Ruby Lee in there and I really think we have something. Ruby Lee I still think is going to have a good year, early maturing wheat great for intensive management situations. And Garrison, I kind of think of it as a little bit of an Endurance upgrade."
Edwards says even with the success of Duster and its successors, there will always be room for improvement. One example would be this year's late emergence of stripe rust as a problem.
"The stripe rust race shift took us by surprise and it's really been a game changer in how we think about varieties and how we think about foliar fungicides. We've got a lot of good varieties out there now that if we're talking about strip rust, you've just got to pull the trigger and spray the fungicide on them."
Weather conditions are turning out vastly different than last year and that means there will be a lot of difference in the amount of nitrogen carried over in the soil after this crop. With last year's drought, a lot of producers found they had a lot of residual nitrogen. After this year's heavy crop and lots of rain, Edward says nitrogen levels could be low.
"We don't have as much left this year as we did last year, but I'm usually surprised at how much nitrogen is left hanging around in the soil profile."
He said there is a lot of nitrogen in the tillers that didn't make it to harvest which will be returned to the soil as the residue breaks down, but he doesn't expect nitrogen levels to be anywhere near last year's.
He encouraged farmers to take the time to do thorough soil testing due to the vast changes from last year to this year and match inputs to what the test recommends.
"The only way to know is to pull a soil test. It's well worth your time," he said.
He also said producers should try a new variety or two this coming fall to increase the number of tools available for long-term success and profitability.
"If nothing else, plant ten or 20 acres of some new variety this fall to see how it performs on your farm and have that as your ace in the whole whenever something happens like a shift in stripe rust or a shift in leaf rust race. You have your 'go to' variety. You've already tried it out. You know it's going to perform. You know exactly where to go when that happens."
You can hear Dr. Edwards' full conversation with Ron Hays at the recent Lahoma Field Day by clicking on the LISTEN BAR below.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI
Top Agricultural News
More Headlines...
