Variety Selection Montana Small Grain Guide

Variety Selection n Use of “Adapted Varieties” –unadapted can lead to loss of 20% yield n Study data from 3 years or more n Agriculture Experiment Station –summaries released yearly n Private Companies n 8-10 years for variety development, 2-3 more for commercial production

Variety Selection n What to look for: –maturity –winter hardiness –disease resistance –insect tolerance –shattering –lodging –yield –quality

Agronomic Quality Characteristics n Value of crop may be more important than yield n malting barley n sawfly resistance n protein

Certified Seed Production n Seed Classes: Breeder, Foundation, Registered, Certified n Breeder: developed by the breeder n Foundation: released by experiment station or breeders to certified seed producers n Registered: grown from foundation seed n Certified: marketed to the commercial grower

Certified Seed n Certified Seed Tag: –no more than 5 seeds of common weeds/lb... –free of noxious weeds –germination of 90% or better –no more than 3 seeds/lb... of other crop n Law protects owners of new varieties for 18 years