Like much of Montana, the areas surrounding the Western Triangle Ag Research Center are environmentally diverse, particularly in rainfall, temperature, and soil types. The WTARC sits at the western edge of the “Golden Triangle” where cereal grains are the predominant crops. Spring wheat production in the Golden Triangle was 22% of the total spring wheat production in the state in the 2021 field season. One of the most beneficial activities we can perform for producers is to evaluate crop cultivars in multiple off station locations which allows us to provide environmentally relevant cultivar data that will serve to help inform cultivar choice, planting, and management. The importance of these trials makes it a yearly primary objective of the WTARC to conduct as many evaluations as budgets and resources allow.
Off-station spring wheat cultivar evaluations were planned for 3 locations outside of the cities of Brady, Cutbank, and Floweree, MT. Brady and Cutbank sites were to be standard evaluations and the Floweree site was known to have lower than average pH. Unfortunately, the Cutbank site was abandoned early in the season due to planter malfunctions and therefore the only standard site represented in this report is the Brady site. The Floweree data is presented in a separate report.
There were 25 entries in the evaluation which were provided by the Montana State University spring wheat breeder, Dr. Jason Cook. The entries were seeded into four-row plots that were 4-ft x 12-ft with 12-inch spacing between rows and 18-inch spacing between plots. Data collected through the growing season included maturity date and plant height. The maturity date was visually estimated as the average amount of chloroplast pigmentation in the peduncle over each plot. Plant height was measured from the soil surface to the top of the head, excluding awns.
At harvest, each plot was trimmed to a straight edge and plot lengths were manually measured with a measuring tape. Each plot was harvested using a Wintersteiger Classic plot combine. The grains were cleaned, and a Perten 9500 Grain Analyzer was used to determine grain moisture, protein, test weight.
At the Knees Church Road site, spring wheat seed yield averaged approximately 50 bu/ac (Table 1). The breeding line MT1203/MT1234 yielded the highest at 62.66 bu/ac and the top-yielding released variety was Vida at 53.19 bu/ac. Dagmar had the lowest yield of the 25 entries at 42.71 bu/ac. There was high variation and no detectable significant difference in the yields. Plant height was highly correlated with variety at this location. Plant height varied by about five inches across varieties with the average plant height being 26.03 inches. NS Presser CLP was the tallest at 28.33 inches while SY Soren was the shortest at 23.33 inches. Protein content values ranged between 16.50% (MT1316/Egan) and 14.10% (Corben). The average protein content was 15.02%. Test weights ranged from 60.50 (Alum) and 55.57 (MT1316/Egan). The average test weight was 58.84 lb/bu.
No significant differences were detected for heading date or seed moisture content. All recorded heading dates took place within 2 days of one another. All moisture content readings were recorded between 9.20% and 9.57%.
This report was originally planned to include two sites (north of Cutbank and west of Brady) but we were forced to abandon the Cutbank site due to planting issues. The trial west of Brady had timely rainfall throughout the season which allowed for average growth and yield for the area. This was in stark contrast to much of the rest of the state. This trial was planted on fallow ground and surrounded with a canola crop. The soil at this location seemed above average with a high integrated residue and high soil moisture content. This site supports many farmers in the Brady area as they experience conditions and have soils that can vary greatly from those at the WTARC. We plan to have off-station trials in this general area again in 2022. Also, in 2022 we will attempt to add 2 additional off-station locations spread out across the counties serviced by the WTARC.
This work was not possible without local area producers, the Western Triangle Agricultural Research Center Advisory Council, and assistance of the following seasonal employees: Alysha Miller, Caden Huntsinger, Lakota Becker, Landon Omdahl, and Roper Mycke.