Last year was a particularly challenging time for the plant breeders, with the main foliar diseases of Septoria tritici, yellow rust and brown rust all presenting enormous pressure on crops. Cracks are starting to appear in some mainstream UK varieties, and as ‘parents’, this is evident in the lower disease scores seen in some of the new introductions.
The autumn seems some way away. However, considering the changes in performance, it is worth reviewing some new varieties you might like to consider. Agrii tested almost all of the latest varieties in its national network of trials. Based on this information and performance in AHDB trials, the following varieties look the most promising, both in terms of yield and their all-around agronomic characteristics.
KWS Solitaire
Group 3 Biscuit,
Potential Distilling and Export
Parentage: LG Sundance x Shabras
The highest-yielding biscuit-wheat, being just ahead of Bamford in yield. At this stage, it is classed as ‘High’ for distilling and is of a quality that has export potential too. The grain is not quite as bold as Bamford, and its Hagberg is not as high as other biscuit types, so these factors could sway uptake of the variety. However, its disease resistance looks strong with good scores for Septoria tritici and yellow rust, but average brown rust and eyespot will need attention, especially if sown as a second cereal.
It has Skyscraper-type straw strength, so a robust fungicide programme will be required, especially on more fertile sites. Unlike Bamford, it has orange wheat blossom midge resistance, which many growers will welcome.
RGT Hexton
Group 4 Soft Feed,
Potential Distilling and Export
Parentage: Graham x RGT Universe
RGT Hexton is a high-yielding soft wheat with excellent performance across the UK, especially in the North. As a Graham-type plant, it has shown good potential for early drilling, albeit based on limited AHDB data. It is rated ‘Medium’ for distilling, has export potential and reasonable physical grain quality with a high Hagberg.
Like Graham, it shows strong Septoria resistance but suffers the same weakness against yellow rust. Its brown rust is a bit weak but better than Champion and LG Beowulf. Eyespot needs to be considered in second wheat situations. It has reasonable straw characteristics and similar maturity to others in the group.
KWS Vibe
Group 1 Bread-type
Parentage: Bernstein x Zyatt
KWS Vibe offers a significant improvement in overall disease resistance, especially against yellow rust, albeit its yields are between those of KWS Zyatt and Skyfall. It is welcome news for milling-wheat growers who are currently battling to control foliar diseases, and it brings improved eyespot resistance, important in second wheat situations, compared with SY Cheer. It appears consistent across soil types, drilling dates and regions.
Like all good milling wheats, it has a bold grain and high Hagberg. It is also a step up in quality compared with either KWS Zyatt or Skyfall, with grain protein content similar to Crusoe and consistently exceeding the 13.2% target. Its straw characteristics are good too, with a medium rating for maturity. With good all-round disease resistance, it has the highest untreated yield of any group 1 variety.
RGT Goldfinch
Group 2 Potential
Parentage: (Arezzo x Rubisko sib)
x RGT Illustrious BC2
A BYDV and midge-resistant variety that offers insecticide-free opportunities for growers under the Sustainable Farming Initiative. While it comes with a 10% yield penalty against KWS Extase, it has good bold grain and achieves the target of 13% protein in milling wheat trials. The Group 2 market is more fragmented, but buy-backs may be available from some end-users.
It is a clean variety with good disease scores and high untreated yields, so it may also attract farmers who want to reduce their fungicide inputs. However, eyespot needs attention when grown as a second wheat. It also has weak straw but remains very responsive to growth regulators, so it should receive a highly robust programme.
