New wheat variety GBA Sapphire has outperformed high yielding benchmark varieties in a range of trials across Western Australia in 2003 and 2004.

It was recently awarded an AWB Hard (AH) classification in Western Australia, the highest pay grade for hard wheats in the state, after extensive testing and evaluation. 

Grain Biotech Australia General Manager and Principal Breeder, Paul Fox said GBA Sapphire possessed excellent milling and bread making properties that earned it AWB Prime Hard (APH) classification in eastern Australia’s Prime Hard wheat regions.

“GBA Sapphire has become known to growers as the quiet achiever. In the paddock, it’s not a spectacular looking variety, with more and smaller heads than some other varieties, however it shines through in terms of yield and adaptation,” Dr Fox said.

“AgriTech Crop Research determined dollar returns per hectare in Western Australia and southern New South Wales, and the Western Australia result showed it is particularly suited to the south coast of Western Australia, where its strong disease package and weather resistance are essential.

“Following South East Premium Wheatgrowers Association (SEPWA) trials in the Esperance region in 2004, SEPWA recommended GBA Sapphire for its wider adaptation across the coastal sandplain, where it out yielded all other varieties and advanced lines, and on inland mallee soils.” 

Beyond the Esperance area, GBA Sapphire outperformed the high yielding APW benchmark variety, Wyalkatchem in GBA trials at Goomalling, Grass Valley and Katanning in 2004 and Kojonup, Meckering and Mingenew in 2003. 

Its yield performance was also competitive against Wyalkatchem and EGA Bonnie Rock in the Lakes/Mallee zone in Department of Agriculture 2004 crop variety trials.

“GBA Sapphire boasts very low pre-harvest sprouting and strong resistance to leaf and stem rust, bunt and flag smut. For stripe rust, adult plant resistance was highly effective in all parts of Western Australia in 2004,” Dr Fox said.  

“The adult plant resistance comes with seedling susceptibility, which can be managed through seed dressing and in-furrow applications in areas with high risk of very early infection, such as some zones of eastern Australia.

“GBA Sapphire incurs very low losses to shattering or screenings and, importantly, does not express late maturity alpha amylase,” he said.

GBA Sapphire is marketed by Pioneer Hi-Bred Australia.