David Bouch, national seeds manager at Hutchinsons, highlights his wheat and barley recommendations for autumn drilling this year.
Crusoe and RGT Illustrious with the best untreated yield in the group 1’s will be millers’ preferred quality options in the milling wheat market, with reasonably tight supply within the marketplace for both.
Skyfall remains the market leader in milling varieties, offering a very wide drilling window and OWBM resistance. KWS Zyatt remains popular despite the threat from yellow rust.
KWS Extase will remain the market leader in the group 2 sector, whilst KWS Ultimatum from the same breeder offers potential in this sector for the North.
Whilst there are no outstanding new feed wheat considerations on the back of the very successful introduction of both KWS Dawsum and Champion last year, LG Redwald sets the new standard for yield as the highest yield potential currently on offer but needs considered management to utilise its significant potential.
Most of the other new arrivals onto the list offer very little by way of advancement over the previous year and it may be a case of ‘better the devil you know’. Gleam for one has not let anybody down to date, with remarkable consistency and Graham remains a very popular choice in the west.
For something new to consider in feed wheat then note should be taken of RGT Grouse which offers new genetics to enable significant benefits in BYDV and OWBM management. This should be a very serious consideration. Yield is in the main pack of group 4 wheats. It signals a step forward from previous options in this sector.
A candidate worth noting in the current trials is Bamford from Elsoms which will potentially have an impact in the autumn of 2024 offering yield, grain quality and sound agronomics.
Barley
New genetics mean that BYDV tolerant hybrid barley is for the first time commercially available in the guise of SY Harrier and SY Buzzard; this will be extremely limited for this coming season whilst at the same juncture providing a step change in BYDV management within the hybrid sector.
The Hyvido market share is likely to continue to be circa 30%, although we will see a greater challenge from the conventional 2-row barleys in the shape of both LG Caravelle and LG Capitol.
LG Caravelle has yield to match the best Hyvido varieties, and in the East outperforms both Hyvido and conventional barley. It also offers excellent grain quality. This will be backed up by the candidate variety LG Capitol, which currently offers similar if not slightly better yields. KW Tardis will undoubtedly remain a popular choice, having taken the market by storm in autumn 2022.
