Issue 82
Prairie Grains

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Prairie Grains is the official publication of the Minnesota Association of Wheat Growers, North Dakota Grain Growers Association, Montana Grain Growers Association and South Dakota Wheat, Inc.

Copyright Prairie Grains Magazine
January 2007

AgriPro Wheat Kelby Available for ’07; Kuntz, AP604 CL for ‘08

AgriPro Wheat has released a new spring wheat variety named Kelby, available to growers in the Northern Plains for the upcoming planting season.

Kelby is an early maturing, short semi-dwarf variety with excellent straw strength, high test weight and an average protein above 15%. The variety contains the Sumai-3 genetic scab tolerance found in Freyr and Glenn. 

In three-year AgriPro Wheat research trials, Kelby exhibits yield potential equal to other high yielding spring wheat varieties. “The easiest comparison for Kelby is with the SDSU variety Briggs,” notes AgriPro Wheat Northern Plains Manager David Boehm.

Across all environments, Kelby has almost identical yield, protein, test weight, and maturity.  Boehm says growers who plant Briggs talk about its two weaknesses, straw strength and scab susceptibility.  According to Boehm, Kelby is shorter with great standability, and has the best available scab tolerant rating.  Like Glenn, Traverse, and Alsen, and Bigg Red, Kelby is rated by NDSU as ‘MR’ – moderately resistant to scab; Briggs is rated by NDSU as ‘S’ for susceptible to scab. Kelby is currently available through AgriPro Associates as certified seed.   

AgriPro has also made the decision to pre-release two additional spring wheat varieties. The variety Kuntz is named after the late Bill Kuntz, who was with the N.D. State Seed Department for many years before becoming AgriPro Wheat’s National Marketing Manager. 

Boehm notes that Kuntz has both the highest-yielding and strongest straw strength of any experimental or released line in AgriPro’s program.  The other variety has been named AP604 CL and fits into the Clearfield Tolerant herbicide system. These new varieties will be available as certified seed available in 2008.

AgriPro Wheat, North America’s largest wheat breeding program, has been developing varieties in the Northern Plains for over 30 years.  More information and a listing of AgriPro Associates can be found at            www.agriprowheat.com or by calling 866-YieldAP.   

Kelby
A field of Kelby hard red spring wheat.