Malheur Experiment Station Information for Sustainable Agriculture

2008 Winter Elite Wheat trial

Lamont D. Saunders and Clinton C. Shock

Malheur Experiment Station

Oregon State University

Ontario, OR

Introduction

Malheur Experiment Station provides one location for the Oregon State University Statewide Winter Elite Wheat variety testing program. The Ontario location compares soft white winter wheat variety performance in a furrow-irrigated, high-yield-potential environment. Plant breeders can use information on variety performance to compare advanced lines with released cultivars. Growers can use this information to make decisions about which soft white winter wheat varieties may perform best in their fields.

Methods

The trial was grown on Owyhee silt loam where the previous crop was sweet corn. After harvest, the corn stalks were flailed, the field was disked, and the soil was sampled and analyzed. Analysis showed ph at 8.0, low available nitrogen (N) (nitrate plus ammonium) at 9 ppm, low sulfates at 12 ppm, low manganese (Mn) at 4 ppm and very low iron (Fe) at 6 ppm. Based on soil analyses, 50 lb N, 30 lb phosphate (P₂O₅), 46 lb sulfate-S, 100 lb elemental sulfur (S), 5 lb zinc (Zn), 6 lb manganese (Mn) and 2 lb boron (B) were broadcast on September 28, 2007. The soil was deep ripped, plowed, and ground hogged to prepare the seedbed. The field was corrugated into 30-inch rows.

The Winter Elite Wheat Trial comprised 38 soft white winter (SWW) wheat varieties and lines, and two club wheats. Seed was treated with Dividend^® XL fungicide at 6 ml/1 kg of seed. The experimental design was a randomized complete block with three replications. Grain was planted on October 16, 2007 with a small-plot grain drill in plots 5 by 20 ft, and the field was recorrugated. Seed was planted at 30 live seed/ft², corresponding to approximately 110 lb/acre.

On April 15, 100 pounds N/acre was broadcast. Broadleaf weeds were controlled with Bronate^® Advanced^™ herbicide at 24 oz/acre applied on May 2. Alleys were cut with a sickle bar mower on June 30. The dates of heading and plant height at maturity wererecorded prior to harvest. The date of 50 percent heading was when half of the culms had extended the peduncle above the collar of the flag leaf. The lengths of the plots were measured on July 17. The grain was harvested on July 21 with a Wintersteiger plot combine.

Results

In 2008, the heading date ranged from May 19 (day of year 140) for ORSS-1757, ID99-435, BU6W00-523, 'Goetze' (ORH010920), 'Westbred 528', 'Salute', OR2040726, ORH010837, and OSUPOP-35-2CL to May 30 (day of year 151) for 'Masami' (Table 1). Height at maturity ranged from 32.3 inches for 'Gene' to 39.3 inches for ID99-435. No lodging was observed in any of the varieties. Test weights ranged from 56.2 lb/bu for 'Xerpha' to 61.3 lb/bu for 'Westbred 528'. Protein content of the grain ranged from 8.2 percent for OR2050301, ORH010837, and OR9901619 to 9.8 percent for ORCF-101.

Yields ranged from 110.7 bu/acre for ORCF-101 to 146.6 bu/acre for OSUPOP-35-2CL. Among the highest yielding wheat varieties in 2008 were the top 27 lines in the trial from OSUPOP-35-2CL to OR2050299 as shown in Table 2. 'Stephens' continues to show excellent performance, yielding among the top varieties in the trial at 136.5 bu/acre.

Yield and test weight differences were compared using ANOVA and least significant differences at the 5 percent probability level, LSD (0.05). Differences in yield or test weight between varieties should be equal to or greater than the corresponding LSD (0.05) value before any variety is considered different from another in this trial. Information on previous wheat trials at Malheur Experiment Station is available on the web at http://cropinfo.net. Information on the performance of the varieties in this trial at other Oregon locations is available on the web at http://cropandsoil.oregonstate.edu/wheat/state_performance_data.htm.

Table 1. Winter Elite Wheat Trial data on market class, test weight, percent moisture, protein, plant height, and 50 percent heading date, Malheur Experiment Station, Oregon State University, Ontario, OR, 2008.

Table 2. Winter Elite Wheat Trial market class, yield ranked by 2008 productivity, and 2-year and 3-year average yields. All yields are at 12 percent moisture. Grain yields shaded in gray are not significantly different from the highest yield at this site. Malheur Experiment Station, Oregon State University, Ontario, OR, 2008.

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Last updated  Tuesday June 28, 2011.