"What's With Wheat"

Bringing new technology to Ontario's golden crop. Anyone who has received an email from Peter Johnson, may have had it signed with the moniker www. It doesn't stand for "What's With Wheat" but it's a good fill-in.

No sooner have we got the 2003 crop off the field and in the bin, that we have to quickly consider what to plant for the 2004 crop. As well, we need to decide on projects to answer outstanding questions on wheat agronomy. Through this past season, we have worked on a number of wheat projects, thanks to funding from the Wheat Board. This funding was for one year only, but projects need 2-3 years of investigation to have confidence that the conclusions are sound. The results of this year's agronomy trials are being summarized and will be presented later in the year.

For the fall planting season we want to highlight several wheat projects that you might find interesting to conduct on your farms, either individually or as part of a local or regional project. If you have interest in any of these projects, the full protocol for each is located on the OSCIA website under the "Field Projects & Protocols" tab. On the OSCIA website we are trying to build projects that have straightforward, clear and standardized protocols. The advantage of these are that everyone has access to the same protocols, the format is standardized so that data from multiple sites can be combined for interpretation and reporting, and that the exercise builds consistency and organization into the system.

The wheat projects for the fall of 2003 are:

1. Winter Wheat Variety Trials - There is always something to learn when comparing varieties. See the website for the protocol of variety trial setup that will give you the best information. Ones to look at this year include those indicated in Peter's wheat article in this Crop Talk.
2. Seeding Rate by Soil Type Interaction - There have been some questions raised, with many growers planting high populations. Based on seeds/lb that is listed on the seed tag, we want to compare the impact of seeding rates of 1.2, 1.5, 1.8 an 2.1 million seeds/ac planting rates, especially on clay and sandy soils. This project fits in areas that have these extremes in soil types. Two replications in each plot are required.
3. Seeding Depth by Seeding Date Interaction - Last year we experienced wide seeding date windows based on the fall weather at seeding time. Since the later we plant the cooler the soils and the shorter the time for seedling establishment, there is interest in understanding the role of seeding depth when seeding date varies widely. Here we are looking at target planting dates of Sep. 25, Oct. 12, and Oct. 30. Seeding depth should be 0.25, 1.0 and 2 inches.
4. Dwarf Bunt Control - dwarf bunt primarily occurs in the counties bordering Georgian Bay and Lake Huron where snow cover is deep and persistent in late winter and early spring. In severe years, some fields have had over 50% bunt. We have a dwarf bunt project under way and are looking for additional people to participate. In the geography where dwarf bunt can be a problem, a test comparing untreated, Vitaflo and various rates of Dividend are being investigated. If you are interested in this project, please contact Albert Tenuta, OMAF Pathologist, who is organizing the project. The seed all needs to come from the same lot and be treated with the appropriate rates of fungicide under controlled conditions to ensure consistency of application.
5. Phosphorus on Wheat - Although this project is essentially complete, individuals may wish to continue experimentation on their own farms. The purpose of the phosphorus application with the sowing of wheat is to enhance fall establishment of the wheat. The phosphorus promotes early growth and root development.
6. Fall Control of Volunteer Canola in Winter Wheat Seedings - Where wheat is being grown following canola harvest, when should the volunteer canola be controlled? Canola grows rapidly and is very aggressive. If control options are ignored, are we loosing yield.
7. Fusarium in Wheat Rotations following Sweet or Silage Corn - There are many questions about the impact on potential Fusarium infection where wheat follows sweet or silage corn. With sweet corn there is residue left on the surface but the crop is harvested at such an immature stage relative to grain corn. Some think that this reduces the potential for there to be pools of Fusarium inoculum around for the fall seeded wheat crop. With silage corn, one assumes that because we take most of the above ground portion of the crop off the field, that the inoculum pressure is greatly reduced. For this project we want to investigate with side by side comparisons of more susceptible verses more resistant lines of winter wheat. Therefore the comparisons should be either Vienna vs. 25R49 or Wonder vs. Webster. In each case, the plots should be repeated 2 times and planted in a field where the sweet corn or silage corn was harvested in a short period of time.
8. Cover Crops Following Wheat - With Nutrient Management, Green Houses Gases, Economics, and various other issues facing farming these days, maybe its time to take a more serious look at cover crops. The theory is that cover crops reduce erosion, trap free nitrogen, suppress weeds, build organic matter, trap snow, and is an all around good thing to do. Well, lets see if the theory fits for Ontario on wheat stubble.

If you decide to go forward with any of these projects, please let Peter Johnson and/or Ian McDonald know. This will allow us to know how many of each project and the geography of them. It lets us potentially get out and view the fields sites and know where to call to get data as we summarize projects. By all working together we can provide a much stronger picture of the answers to these important agronomic questions.

For more information, visit the OSCIA website, and click on theField Projects & Protocols tab.

Related Links

• Ontario Soil & Crop Improvement Association

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