NDSU wheat varieties dominate fields this season
By WHITNEY PANDIL-EATON Staff Writer wpandileaton@minotdailynews.comArticle Photos
Holding the No. 1 ranking in the nation for spring wheat and durum production and the No.2 ranking for overall wheat production North Dakota is known for its ability to produce quantity and, thanks to researchers and industry groups in the state, quality.
Supplementing the $8 million of state and federal funding for wheat research, the North Dakota Wheat Commission gave North Dakota State University more than $600,000 in 2008 for several of the university's breeding and end-quality programs, according to the organization's 2007-2008 annual report.
These public and private funds and research have helped North Dakota triple its production of wheat in less than 50 years and has enabled the state to become internationally renown for quality-sensitive wheat varieties like those that top the list of the leading wheat varieties for 2009, released by the North Dakota Field Office of the National Agriculture Statistics Service.
Glenn, released in 2005 by NDSU, is the leading spring wheat variety in the state for a third consecutive year, accounting for nearly one-quarter of the 6.7 million acres of spring wheat planted this year across the state. "Glenn is a beautiful variety that combines disease resistance, yield and quality," said Mahmoud Mergoum, a plant scientist at NDSU. "Quality is the No.1 concern for spring wheat and for several years Glenn has been the industry standard."
In fact, he said wheat groups send samples of the top varieties grown in the United States to several foreign countries each year to be tested and ranked. For the last three years, Glenn has ranked No. 1 worldwide.
Mergoum said Glenn provides the most resistance to Fusarium head blight and other diseases among common varieties, has excellent protein levels of 14 to 15 percent, has the highest test weight of any variety, and has outstanding milling properties in terms of flour extraction, water absorption and gluten strength.
Although Glenn may reign supreme in most categories, Faller, a 2007 NDSU release, holds the yield title. The second-ranked variety with 17 percent of acreage in the state, Faller routinely gets 80 bushels per acre or more, depending on the region grown.
"Faller has the highest yield of all varieties grown, which is what we (NDSU) pushed for," Mergoum said,"but when you push yield, you have to pay for it somewhere, and with Faller that is lower protein."
Compared to Glenn, Faller's protein levels average one or two percent lower and has a lower test weight, averaging 60 pounds per bushel. Even so, Mergoum said good milling properties and overall quality make it an ideal variety for areas in eastern North Dakota and parts of Minnesota where rains tend to be more predictable.
Jumping four spots from 2008, Divide, a 2005 release by NDSU, is the leading durum variety this year, accounting for nearly 21 percent of the 1.7 million acres planted statewide. Previously, Divide accounted for only 7.6 percent last year and 1.7 percent in 2007.
"Just being released in 2005, it takes time for a variety to reach No. 1 or even No. 2, but this variety has probably the best qualities out there right now," said Elias Elias, a plant scientist at NDSU. "For a long time, Mountrail and Lebsock were the leading varieties and our goal with our recent variety releases (Divide, Alkabo and Grenora in 2005) was to replace Mountrail and Lebsock with varieties that have equal or better yields but higher quality."
NDSU researchers succeeded in their quest with Divide matching or exceeding Mountrail in terms of yield in many areas of the state with only a few areas, Minot included, that failed to reach Mountrail's yield levels. In terms of quality, however, Elias said Divide far outpaced Mountrail in terms of kernel size, test weight, gluten strength and average protein levels.
Although released at the same time, Alkabo only accounted for approximately 9 percent of this year's crop which Elias said was most likely due to seed supply and Divide's tolerance to Fusarium head blight, an attractive characteristic to any farmer.
"I believe these varieties will be the top varieties in the state in the next two to three years," Elias said. "Varieties are like humans. They are born and take time to grow before they level off and eventually die. Right now, these varieties are just reaching maturity."
Until then, Mountrail and Lebsock will remain staple varieties, shown by their tie for second place this year, accounting for approximately 17 percent, or 289,000 acres each in the state.
Although winter wheat acreage in the state ranks 22 nationally, it is becoming another increasingly popular option for farmers, shown by the relatively steady increase in acres from 245,000 acres in 2004 to 550,000 acres planted this year. Of those 2009 acres, Jerry, a 2001 release from NDSU, represented nearly half of all acres planted, followed by Jagalene and CDC Falcon, both made by private companies.
"When talking winter wheat, I always tell farmers to focus on winter hardiness. Jerry has good yield, good winter hardiness, relatively good quality, it's disease-resistant and there is a lot of seed available, which will make it popular," said Joel Ransom, extension agent. "I believe Jerry will be a workhorse for a long time.
Compared to the No. 2 and No. 3 ranked varieties, Jerry provides farmers with better resistance to diseases like scab, provides an average of 5 bushels more per acre and average protein levels are typically a half of one percent higher.
Of the 17 wheat varieties highlighted in the report, nearly two-thirds came from NDSU.
"NDSU breeding programs create materials that fit North Dakota specifically while other programs try to create broader-spectrum products," Ransom said," and the university has been doing this a lot longer than most other companies so it has an advantage."
