14607 S. Haven Road, Haven, KS 67543, USA.
Kevin Goertzen, seedstocks; Sid Perry, breeder; and Dana Shellberg, technician.
1994-95 season. Late
frost and excessive rains combined to produce poor yield potential
conditions in south central Kansas. Disease pressure and poor
grain fill resulted in extremely low test weights. Average location
yields ranged from 35 bu/acre at Nickerson, KS, to 20 bu/acre
at Winfield, KS. CV's were unacceptable in many experiments.
Good selection pressure for disease and grain fill was available
in breeding populations. Western locations benefited greatly from
the higher than normal precipitation. Southern locations suffered
from the late frost damage, and some were discarded entirely.
Dryland yields ranged from 83 bu/acre at Woodrow, CO, to 55 bu/acre
at Cheyenne Wells, CO.
Breeding program. Goertzen
Seed Research will utilize the Haven, KS, location as its main
breeding location. The Fort Collins location will continue to
be used for greenhouse work and field seed increases. Germplasm
development will be focused on adaptation to the Southern Plains
and material for the Northern Corn Belt.
Identity-Preserved program. Contract
acreage doubled over the previous season. Bringing the different
components of an Identity-Preserved program together will continue
to be a challenge, and the necessary changes required probably
will evolve slowly.
P.O. Box 662, Tamworth, NSW 2340, Australia.
Peter Wilson and David Bonnett.
Higher grain prices have resulted in an increased
interest in wheat production in Australia and this has stimulated
demand for hybrid wheat seed. Production targets will be increased
substantially to try and meet the increased demand for hybrid
wheat seed.
Seed of the three new releases - `Hybrid
Apollo' (CH27), `Hybrid Mercury'
(CH30), and `Hybrid Gemini' (CH31) -
was produced on a commercial scale during the 1995 season. All
seed of the three new hybrids is already sold for planting in
the 1996 season.
The University of Sydney has appointed David Bonnett,
who recently completed his Ph.D. at that University, to continue
research into the improvement of hybrid wheat. He will work with
germplasm developed in the former Cargill Seeds' program.
David will concentrate on the further improvement of fertility
restorer lines for the timopheevi cytoplasm, particularly
in relation to yield, combining ability, and crossability.
Courtaboeuf, France.
Alain Gervais.
`Hyno-Precia',
Hybrinova's first wheat hybrid was launched successfully
onto the French seed market. Hybrid seed was produced and certified
on 100 Ha (female area), over a diversified geographical area.
A total of 9,500 doses (750,000 seed/dose) were sold to French
farmers.
Northern Breeding Station, 60.
Stephen D. Sunderwirth.
1994-1995 season.
An exceptionally mild and wet winter in northen France favored
wheat tillering and pest development. Powdery mildew (Erysiphe
graminis) and Septoria tritici were present all winter
in the trials and nursery. A small but active aphid population
persisted in several late sown fields, thus causing a very homogenous
barley yellow dwarf virus epidemic. Losses reached 20 Qx/ha. Uninfected
plots yielded 100 Qx/ha.
Varietal development.
Hybrid `Hyno-Rista' was registered in the fall
of 1995. This semihard red winter wheat has excellent breadmaking
quality and good field resistance to stripe rust (Puccinia
striiformis), leaf rust (Puccinia recondita), powdery
mildew, and Septoria nodorum.
Two hybrid wheats, HA534.68 and HA808.53, successfully
entered their second year of official trials (1995-96) with
yields of 106.9 % and 108.6 % of checks, respectively. HA534.68
has excellent breadmaking quality and good overall disease resistance.
HA808.53 combines high yield with good winter hardiness.
Two new wheats for northern France entered registration
in the fall of 1995. Hybrid `HA534.53' combines
excellent breadmaking quality with high yield. `HADM702'
is a double haploid line with high yield potential.
Triticale `Indiana' was registered
in the fall of 1995. Indiana has good lodging resistance and is
resistant to the prevelant races of stripe rust, leaf rust, and
powdery mildew. This triticale is best-suited for Brittany region
of France.
One new Triticale, `HA87909',
entered registration in the fall of 1995. A Triticale hybrid project
is now under way with 120 top crosses programmed for 1996.
Development in northern Europe.
The total number of hybrids being tested in Austria, England,
and Germany went from 94 in 1995 to 230 in 1996.
Southern Breeding Station, 32.
Christian Quandalle.
1994-1995 season.
An exceptionally mild winter favored the growth of the semi-winter
and alternative wheats. In the spring, extremes in heading dates
were observed, thus causing major differences in plot maturity.
Septoria tritici and leaf rust were present all winter
in the field. A leaf rust epidemic developed after heading, causing
major losses.
Varietal development.
Hybrid `Hyno-Prima' (HA654.80) was registered
for southern France in the fall of 1995. This soft red winter
wheat yielded 116 % and 106 % of checks (with and without fungicide,
respectively) in official registration trials in 1993-95.
Hyno-Prima is resistant to major diseases in southern France.
Two new wheats for southern France entered registration
in the fall of 1995. Hybrid `HA865.14' and
double haploid inbred `HAES667' both have high
yield potential.
`Ardennois',
the first hybrid durum wheat, was registered in France in the
fall of 1995 by UCASP with the use of Hybrinova's CHA Croissor.
The hybrid durum wheat breeding program was sizeably increased
last year and has become a major objective for southern Europe.
Development in southern Europe.
Wheat hybrids were made and are being tested in Italy, Greece,
Hungry, Spain, and Portugual.
Double haploid Laboratory.
In 1995, the laboratory delivered 13,000 dihaploid lines in the
form of seeds to the breeders. Of these lines, 3,000 were barley
and the rest were wheat.
Windmill Avenue, Woolpit, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, IP30 9UP,
United Kingdom.
W J Angus, R E Granger, and I Foot.
The consolidation of wheat activities at a `new'
location at Woolpit, Suffolk, was completed; all major selection
work now is carried out at this location. An additional disease
testing resource is available at Rothwell, Lincolnshire, under
the control of pathologist Paul Fenwick.
Following the relocation of seed production activities
from Norfolk, all purification work now is carried out at Woolpit.
Cultivars being commercialized now include `Spark'
(a high-quality breadmaking cultivar); `Zodia',
`Dynamo', and `Buster' (all
hard-milling feed wheats); and `Flame' (a hard-milling
cultivar with some breadmaking/intervention qualities). Dynamo
is unusual in having very high levels of resistance to all the
foliar diseases combined with a very high level of resistance
to eyespot.
For 1996 harvest, three cultivars currently are being
evaluated in the National Institute of Agricultural Botany Recommended
List Trials. These cultivars are the winter wheat `Crofter'
(a soft-milling biscuit/distilling/feed wheat) and the spring
wheats `Imp' and `Fry' (both breadmaking
cultivars).
The integration within Groupe Limagrain has afforded
the program the opportunity to utilize the biotechnology resource
within the Group and pursue programs on molecular markers and
wheat transformation.
The occurrence in 1995 of a yellow rust race that
can overcome resistance conferred by Yr17 (from `VPM/Rendezvous')
has alerted breeders to the narrow base of resistance currently
being utilized in the UK. Fortunately, inoculum was available
for some field/nursery screening prior to decisions made at harvest.
A new project to investigate varietal/genetic differences
in animal nutrition was initiated involving BOCM-PAULS (the
largest buyer of grain for feed in the UK), The University of
Nottingham, The John Innes Centre, and Nickerson Seeds. In addition
to this project, a number of smaller projects were initiated with
the John Innes Centre, including work on protein quality, disease
resistance, and germplasm screening.