|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
 |
|
|
|
 |
|||
|
Bigg Red: ‘Unmatched’ Scab Tolerance; Must be managed for leaf rust and standability By Tracy Sayler Bigg Red is a new spring wheat variety that promises to have excellent tolerance to scab, although if you grow it, plan on managing it for leaf rust and standability. Greg Fox, WestBred LLC, Fargo, N.D., developed the variety, which includes Russ, 2375, and Sumai #3 in its lineage. Although public evaluation data on the variety is limited, Fox has been evaluating it for about five years. He stops short of rating the variety as an “R” for resistant to scab – one never knows how a variety might respond to severe scab pressure or in some environments. “But I’m confident in saying it’s a strong ‘MR’ (moderately resistant) “In the field, I’ve never seen scab in it.” Alsen is the only spring wheat variety currently available that is rated by North Dakota State University as MR. But Fox says Bigg Red has better yield potential than Alsen. He notes that Bigg Red seems to have a phenotypic relationship between its kernel color and the variety’s scab resistance. In other words, there seems to be a genetic link in that the same gene or genes responsible for kernel color are also involved with scab resistance in this variety. However, Fox has been hesitant to release the variety, since it is susceptible to leaf rust (similar to 2375) and since Westbred as a company is moving away from tall varieties. “It’s a tall, but I think it still stands well for a tall,” he says. Fillbrandt’s Bigg Dogg Agg, Inc of Felton, MN saw value in the variety’s ability to stand up against scab, and expressed interest in marketing it. The company is an Opti-Crop franchise that focuses on intensive wheat management. Fox saw merit in the production of that variety under that type of managed system, and so WestBred worked out an arrangement with Fillbrandt’s, which has exclusive marketing rights of the variety. Mark Fillbrandt, general manager of Fillbrandt’s Bigg Dogg Agg, says Bigg Red will be available in 2006 only to Opti-Crop clients, and will be available for wider release in 2007. Fillbrandt notes that in one field plot this year, a stand of Bigg Red was left standing 30 days later than when it should have been harvested, in a wet area in northwest MN, to see how quality might be affected. Kernel evaluation showed a DON level of 1.5 ppm, but a test weight of 59 lbs. “This was still a #1 wheat weight-wise, even 30 days after you’d want it to be out there.” Here’s how Fillbrandt’s company summarizes the PVP-pending variety in its sales literature: “Bigg Red is a very high yielding HRSW with unmatched scab resistance. It has a moderate to high tillering habit and produces extremely high test weight seed with medium levels of protein. Bigg Red is a medium tall variety, 1 to 2 inches taller than 2375 but with slightly better standability. It is medium maturity, 1-2 days later to head than 2375. Bigg Red has a MS-S reaction to leaf rust, R-MR to stem rust, and MS to foliar disease. It’s shattering resistance is a little better than 2375. Bigg Red must be managed for leaf rust and standability. However, under proper management, Bigg Red can achieve excellent yields of high test weight seed in severely impacted scab areas.” Fillbrandt’s company outlines the following management strategies for growing the variety:
|
|||