This is Dr. Nathan Mueller, your local agronomist with Nebraska Extension for Dodge and Washington counties. Wheat is the fourth most grown crop falling behind corn, soybean, and alfalfa in eastern Nebraska. Roughly 50,000 acres of winter wheat is grown in the three eastern Nebraska crop reporting districts.
I worked with 10 farmers in 2019 that were part of my Winter Wheat Works Initiative in which I provided tissue sampling, scouting, and other services for free. If you are growing wheat in Colfax, Dodge, Washington, Stanton, Cuming, or Burt counties, please contact me to get on my list for these local services for 2020.
Winter wheat variety selection is the most critical management factor driving yield in eastern Nebraska, in the order of an 18 bu/ac difference. My 3 keys steps to variety selection include proven yield history, traits need for my production practices, and grain quality.
First, utilize third-party variety trial results, including 2-year and 3-year regional averages, to determine proven yield history. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln conducts 5 winter wheat variety trials in eastern Nebraska and the results are posted online at cropwatch.unl.edu. Depending on the number of acres you produce, selecting two to three varieties is ideal to mitigate risk. However, many growers plant only 1 to 2 fields in areas, thus picking one consistent performing variety it critical.
Second, assess variety traits desired for your production practices among those top yield performing varieties. Select a variety for better Fusarium head blight resistance if you are planting after seed corn versus soybeans. If you are growing wheat in an organic production system, select a variety with a strong disease resistance package given limitations on using foliar fungicides.
Third, quality of the grain including test weight, protein, and milling and baking quality should be a priority depending on your local elevators dockage schedule. It is not uncommon for a variety that ranked 3rd for yield in a trial to produce the most revenue per acre once test weight and protein are accounted for at your elevator.
We have a dedicated webpage at croptechcafe.org with resources for current and future wheat growers including a 2019 digital tour of recommended and promising varieties. To get more information on winter wheat management for eastern Nebraska, visit our website at croptechcafe.org or give me a call at 727-2775. Know your crop, know your tech, know your bottom line. This is Dr. Nathan Mueller, your local agronomist for Nebraska Extension on KTIC radio.
