North Dakota State University Extension Service - Burke County
Burke County AgAlert
September 16, 2008
Winter Wheat Varieties - The recent moisture received
in parts of North central and Northwestern North Dakota has created an
excellent situation for the establishment of winter wheat and many producers
are looking to capitalize on this situation. The question of variety
selection is often raised and unfortunately does not necessarily have a
definitive clear-cut answer. Like most crops, a one-variety fits all
scenario does not exist in winter wheat and many factors come into play when
selecting a winter wheat variety. Winter hardiness is a very important
consideration especially if the crop will be sown on ground with limited
cover such as fallow or following a low-residue crop such as field pea,
lentil, etc. Of course, yield potential is always a big part of the decision
along with other agronomic characteristics such as plant height, lodging,
disease resistance, and overall quality. North Dakota State University no
longer has a winter wheat breeding program which leaves producers in this
state reliant on other public and private breeding programs to develop the
products that will work for them. Fortunately, these programs have developed
a number of varieties that have been tested in North Dakota with positive
results.
2008 data are becoming available and results indicate that relative variety
performance is similar to past seasons. Using data from 2008 and previous
years, Jeremy Pederson, area extension agronomist, has developed a list of
varieties that seem to provide consistent performance in the testing
environments. Listed below are a number of winter wheat varieties that may
fit well in North central and Northwestern North Dakota. There are many
other varieties that are not listed here that may also work well in your
area and perhaps some of those listed have not or will not work well in your
area.
Jerry, CDC Falcon, and CDC Buteo, are some of the varieties that provide the
best relative winter hardines
s
as measured by visual winter survival ratings. The list of “winter hardy”
varieties is certainly not limited to these three, but these are three that
provide a very good combination of winter hardiness and yield.
Jerry (NDSU 2001) is a good all-around variety which has been grown
in North Dakota for many years with a proven track record of performance.
Jerry is medium to late maturity and provided good genetic protection to
fungal leaf diseases for many years. Due to mutations and changes in fungal
races Jerry has begun to exhibit a more susceptible reaction to current leaf
rust races. The overall quality is good relative to other winter wheat
varieties and the straw strength is good despite being quite tall. The
fusarium head blight (scab) rating of Jerry is moderately susceptible.
CDC Falcon (Can/WB 2000) is much shorter than Jerry, with average
quality and medium-strong straw. The maturity of Falcon is rated very
similar to Jerry. This variety does not like hot, dry conditions and may
give up yield and test weight sooner than varieties developed further south.
Leaf disease can be a problem as it is rated as MS to leaf rust.
CDC Buteo (Can/WB 2004) is much like CDC Falcon in regard to winter
hardiness, yield, quality, leaf disease rating, and maturity. Both CDC Buteo
and Falcon are rated as susceptible to scab. The biggest difference between
CDC Buteo and CDC Falcon is height with CDD Buteo being much taller than CDC
Falcon (4-6 inches as measured in performance trials). The straw strength of
CDC Buteo is rated as medium.
Yellowstone (MT 2005) is another winter hardy variety that provides
good yield potential, but its
Susceptibility to stem rust is a cause of concern for production in many
areas of North Dakota. Yellowstone is also very susceptible to scab.
There are several other varieties that have performed well in North Dakota
tests despite being rated as slightly less winter hardy than varieties like
Jerry, CDC Falcon, or CDC Buteo. Varieties that fit this description would
include, but are certainly not limited to Wesley, Millennium, Overland,
Darrell, and Jagalene. Some of these varieties may be inherently less winter
hardy or have not been tested enough to be properly characterized.
Darrell (SD 2006) has been tested in North Dakota for two years with
strong overall performance. Darrell is rated as having strong straw, medium
height and maturity, and average overall quality. The disease package of
Darrell includes a rating of moderately resistant for leaf rust, resistant
to stem rust, and very susceptible to scab.
Jagalene (AgriPro 2002) is a variety with limited winter hardiness,
but has been grown successfully in North Dakota under proper management and
environmental conditions. Jagalene provides early maturity, short plant
height and strong straw along with good overall quality. The disease ratings
of Jagalene include susceptibility to leaf rust, moderate resistance to stem
rust, and very susceptible to scab.
Some new varieties that should be watched include Accipiter (Can), Lyman
(SD), and Hawken (AgriPro). These varieties have only a year or two of
statewide testing, but have shown promising results in initial tests.
Break the Green Bridge If Planting Winter Wheat - Wheat streak mosaic
virus is a disease often seen in areas where winter wheat is grown. The
disease is vectored by the wheat curl mite, which needs green plant tissue
to survive. The mites can survive on any grass plants: wheat, weeds, corn,
etc. Once the mite has transmitted the virus to a winter wheat plant, the
virus will remain viable in that plant overwinter. Research has shown that
controlling the mite is not an effective means of managing the spread of the
virus. The best management plan for wheat streak mosaic virus is to “break
the green bridge” prior to planting winter wheat in the fall. This can be
done with either herbicides or tillage, and is most effective if done on an
area wide basis. There needs to be a minimum of 2-weeks where there is no
green tissue for the mite to survive on. Risk is also reduced by planting
winter wheat later (mid-September) when mites are less active; and avoiding
planting adjacent to corn or late seeded wheat. These are crucial management
strategies as there is no “rescue” treatment for wheat streak mosaic virus.
Further information on the biology of the virus and wheat curl mite is
available at http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/plantsci/smgrains/pp646w.htm.
Fall Harvest Management of Alfalfa – In response to the rainfall
received in some areas since the later part of July, some of the alfalfa has
re-grown nicely. With hay in short supply, there have been some questions on
the fall harvest management of alfalfa.
Late summer to early fall is important in the life cycle of an alfalfa
plant. The plant must store food reserves to develop cold resistance, supply
overwintering respiration, and to initiate growth during the spring. If
alfalfa goes into the winter with a low level of food reserves, it is more
subject to winter injury or winterkill.
Many experiments have evaluated effects of fall harvest on forage yield and
stand survival within North Dakota. Basically what these studies have found
is that in short-term, rotational alfalfa stands (three to four productive
years), taking a fall harvest does slightly increase the risk of winter
injury/kill. However, the additional productivity that the fall harvest
supplies in most years more than offsets this increased risk. Harvest before
or about August 20 or wait for mid to late September as several management
experiments suggest that alfalfa should not be harvested during late August
or early September.
If you plan to maintain the stand for five plus years, alfalfa should
probably not be harvested for hay from about September 1 until it is stopped
for the year by frost. Three consecutive nights with temperatures at 26
degrees or less is generally considered a killing frost for alfalfa.
If you do take a fall harvest on alfalfa, consider leaving uncut barriers 1
to 2 feet wide every 30 to 40 feet across the field, perpendicular to the
prevailing winter wind, or leave more stubble to catch and hold an
insulating layer of snow above the alfalfa crowns.
Dan Folske
Extension Agent/Burke County
Soil Conservation Technology Specialist
PO Box 280
Bowbells, North Dakota 58721
dan.folske@ndsu.edu
701-377-2927