Oakes Irrigation Research Site
Carrington Research Extension CenterNorth Dakota State University
P.O. Box 531, Oakes, ND 58474-0531, Voice: (701) 742-2744, FAX: (701) 742-2700, E-mail: Walter.Albus@ndsu.edu

HARD RED SPRING WHEAT VARIETY TRIAL

W. Albus, L. Besemann and H. Eslinger

 

Results summary

Table 1.  Yield and agronomic characteristics in an irrigated hard red spring wheat variety trial.

 

Many of the acres historically planted to hard red spring wheat (HRSW) in Southeastern ND have been replaced by corn and soybeans over the last 10 years.  Soybeans have been the dominant crop to replace wheat in rotations.  The rapid and near universal acceptance of Roundup ready soybean varieties has accelerated this decline in wheat acres.  During this same time frame, a number of wet, humid cropping seasons resulted in a significant reduction in wheat yields due to disease, especially head scab.  Whereas wheat yields in ND seemed to have reached a plateau, corn and soybean yields were increasing.  Despite this scenario, several researchers and producers using intensive management in wheat are having different results.  In intensive management, all areas of production from plant population, seeding depth, fungicide applications, nitrogen rate and time of application, weed control, etc, are closely monitored.  Healthy wheat plants that lodge less, result in higher yields and grain protein content.  Current prices for wheat show a potential for high economic returns.

           The objective of this trial was to test HRSW varieties for yield and other agronomic parameters grown with intensive management in an irrigated environment.

 

 

MATERIALS AND METHODS

 

 

Soil:

Maddock sandy loam and Hecla sandy loam; pH=7.1; 1.9% organic matter; soil‑P was very high, soil-K was medium and soil-S was high.

Previous crop:

2006 – sugar beet; 2005 - field corn; 2004 - cabbage, carrot, edible bean, field pea, mustard, millet, soybean, sweet corn and wheat.

Seedbed Preparation:

Fall disk and coulter chisel.  Multiweed (field cultivate) April 18 to smooth the seedbed.

Planting:

Planted on April 19.  Planting rate was 1.7 bu/acre (1,500,000 seeds/acre).

Plots:

Plots were 68 ft long by 7 ft wide.  There were four reps.

Fertilizer:

November 2006, broadcast 9 lbs N/acre, 43 lbs P2O5/acre, 101 lbs K2O/acre and 13.5 lbs S/acre as 11-52-0, 0-0-60 and 90% elemental sulfur.  Side dress 60 lbs N/acre on May 7 and 50 lbs N/acre on May 22 as 32-0-0.

Irrigation:

Overhead sprinkler irrigation as needed.

Pest control:

Apply Wolf Pak (1.35 pt/acre) on May 7, Axial (8.2 oz/acre) + Adigor (9.6 oz/acre) on May 23.  Apply Headline (6 oz/acre) on May 22, Tilt (4 oz/acre) on June 4 and Folicur (2 oz/acre) + Proline (2 oz/acre) on June 15, June 16 and June 18.

Harvest:

Harvested on August 10 with a Hege plot combine.  Harvest area was a five-foot section from the middle of the plot 68 feet long.

 

RESULTS

 

Yield, test weight, kernel weight, grain protein, height, and heading date were significantly different among varieties.  Yield, test weight and grain protein averaged 57.0 bu/acre, 59.1 lb/bu and 14.1 percent.  Lodging, which is usually yield limiting at this site under irrigation, was not a factor in 2007.

 

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Table 1.  Yield and agronomic characteristics in an irrigated hard red spring wheat variety trial at the Oakes Irrigation Research Site at Oakes, ND in 2007.

Variety

Yield

TW

Kernal wt.

Protein

Height

Heading date

bu/ac

lb/bu

gm/1000

%

inches

 

Bigg Red

61.5

60.7

34.0

13.8

37

June 15

Faller

60.4

58.5

38.0

13.9

33

June 14

Freyr

51.8

57.1

31.1

14.3

33

June 14

Glenn

51.1

61.9

32.3

14.7

35

June 11

Howard

59.5

60.7

35.3

14.2

32

June 11

Kuntz

58.6

58.9

30.7

14.1

30

June 14

Traverse

55.8

55.9

31.7

13.8

35

June 12

 

MEAN

57.0

59.1

33.3

14.1

33

June 13

C.V. (%)

5.6

1.2

3.0

1.7

2.4

 

LSD (0.05)

4.7

1.1

1.5

0.3

1.2

 

 

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