Preliminary Report:

2001 Wheat, Barley and Oat Variety Performance in Minnesota

Preface by Jochum Wiersma

What a difference a year can make! While 2000 was a year with an early spring and near record yields across the state, 2001 proved to be a difficult year for small grains. During the last week of April, most of northern Minnesota received snow and low temperatures around 25 degrees.  It was the second wettest month of April on record. On April 29, only 1% of the spring wheat and barley acres had been planted. This compared to 50% planted just the year before, and roughly 25% for the 5-year average.  Oat planting was even more behind, with only 4% planted on April 29 compared to 70% the year before and approximately 50% for a 5-year average. Very little progress was made until the third week of May. On May 22, parts of northern Minnesota again received snow and the cold and wet conditions delayed both planting and germination.  At the end of May, only 75% of the spring wheat acreage had been planted.  Probably close to a quarter of a million acres were not planted with the majority of those acres located in Kittson and Marshall counties, which had seen very dry conditions during planting the previous year.

The wet and cold May was followed by a cool June, which allowed for excellent development of the wheat, barley and oat crop. Both tillering and head initiation were excellent for the earlier planted acres and the yield potential, despite the late planting date of the crop looked excellent.  The cool and generally dry conditions in June also provided conditions too dry for any disease development. Temperatures sharply rose in July and ultimately shortened the growing season of the crop as daytime highs soared well above 85°F.  Because of the late planting date, the high temperatures shortened grain fill and grain yield and test weights declined sharply due to the heat stress at the end of July. The high temperatures, rainfall and high humidity sparked a late development of foliar diseases and Fusarium Head Blight that contributed to some of the yield losses.

The state average yield for spring wheat was 44 bushels per acre – down 5 bushels from the previous year.  The downward trend in barley acres in the state continued this past year.  Only 145,000 acres of barley were harvested, the lowest level since 1881. Prevented planting likely contributed to this decline, but poor prices and the inability to attain malting grade also explain the continued decrease in acreage across the state. Oat acreage also reached historical lows as 210,000 acres were harvested for grain, the lowest level since 1867.

Introduction
Successful small grain production is to a considerable extent a function of selecting the best varieties for a particular farm or field. For that reason, varieties are compared in trial plots on the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES) at St. Paul, Rosemount, Waseca, Lamberton, Morris, Crookston and Grand Rapids.  In addition to the six MAES locations, the same trials are also planted with a number of farm cooperators. These plots are handled such that the factors affecting yield and performance are as nearly the same for all entries at each locations as is possible.

Variety Classifications
The varieties of each of the three crops are ranked by maturity. No distinction or classification is used to group varieties.  Seed of tested varieties can be eligible for certification, and use of certified seed is encouraged.  However, certification does not imply a recommendation. Registered and certified seed is available from seed dealers or from growers listed in the “Minnesota Registered and Certified Seed Directory for 2001 Planting.”

Interpretation of the Data
The presented data are the preliminary variety trial information for single (2001) and multiple year (1998-2001) comparisons in Minnesota. The yields are reported as a percentage of the location mean, with over actual mean listed below. Two-year and especially one-year data are less reliable and should be interpreted with caution.  Similarly, averages across multiple environments, whether they are different years and/or locations, provide a better estimate of mean performance. The least significant difference or LSD is a statistical method to determine whether the observed yield differences between two varieties is due to true, genetic differences between the varieties or to interactions with other variables such as a difference in soil fertility. If the difference in yield between two varieties equals or exceeds the LSD value, the higher yielding one was indeed superior in yield. If the difference is less, the yield difference may have been due to environmental interactions rather than genetic differences, and we are unable to distinguish between the two. The 5% unit indicates that with 95% confidence, the observed difference is indeed a true difference in performance. Lowering this confidence level will allow more varieties to appear different from each other, but also increases the chances that false conclusions are drawn.

The Authors and Contributors
This report is compiled and edited by Dr. Jochum Wiersma, Small Grains Specialist.  The contributing authors are: Dr. James Anderson, Wheat Breeder, Department of Agronomy & Plant Genetics, Dr. Kevin Smith, Barley Breeder, Department of Agronomy & Plant Genetics; Dr. Deon Stuthman, Oat Breeder, Department of Agronomy & Plant Genetics; Dr. Ruth Dill-Macky, Department of Plant Pathology; Dr. Don McVey, USDA-ARS, Cereal Rust Laboratory, St. Paul; Mr. Gerald Ochocki, USDA-ARS, Cereal Disease Laboratory, St. Paul; and Dr. John Wiersma, Agronomist, Northwest Research & Outreach Station, Crookston.

In addition, Dr. Fred Kolb, University of Illinois contributed BYDV data for oats.

Fieldwork at the various sites was supervised by Edward Schiefelbein, Gary Linkert, Roger Caspers, Richard Halstead, Tom Hoverstad, David LeGare, Leann Matthiesen, Steve Quiring, and George Nelson.

Special thanks are due to all the producer/cooperators.