Producers whose wheat crops have been plagued by fusarium head blight, commonly known as head scab, have a new weapon to fight the devastating disease without sacrificing yield loss.
The first scab-resistant soft red winter wheat variety from Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. will be available for planting this fall in the U.S.

"Producers in areas with high levels of scab will benefit from our new variety because it offers outstanding resistance to head scab," says Clive Holland, product manager for wheat. "This will be a tremendous benefit to growers in areas where conventional wheat varieties can experience as much as 25 to 50 percent yield loss and up to 25 percent loss in test weight."

In addition to industry-leading scab resistance, Pioneer® brand 25R18 offers outstanding straw strength, exceptional test weight and consistent yield potential. Strong resistance to leaf blight, leaf rust and two common Mosaic viruses complete its disease package.

"Head scab is a threat wherever wheat is grown," Holland explains. "Farmers in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri have been particularly hard hit in the past. This new resistant variety will offer wheat growers an alternative to current susceptible varieties and greatly reduce the risks of this disease devastating their crop next season."

Pioneer 25R18 was developed using traditional plant breeding methods. Sources for resistance came from wheat varieties completely unadapted to the soft wheat growing region. Therefore, it has taken Pioneer researchers several cycles of breeding to select for this elusive trait while also
maintaining yield potential and 0ther desirable agronomic traits, according to Greg Marshall, wheat breeder and coordinator of wheat research for Pioneer.

"Our focus has been on incorporating scab resistance into crosses with our elite, high-yield potential lines," says Marshall. "We’re excited about the new variety because it will offer solid performance with a high level of scab resistance."

Until now, farmers have not had many options to combat head scab. Staggering flowering by planting several varieties of different maturities had been one of the most effective strategies to spread the risk of infection. Other practices have included avoiding planting wheat in reduced and no-till fields that were previously planted to corn.

The increased frequency and severity of head scab during the past 10 years are attributed to the increase in reduced and no-till acres. The Fusarium species of fungi, which causes stalk rot in corn, also causes scab or head blight in wheat. The fungus flourishes under wet, warm conditions such as crop residues left on the soil surface. Wind and rain droplets at flowering time can carry the fungi spores from the crop residue to the wheat heads. And warm, humid conditions during flowering favor spreading the fungus in the wheat head.

Symptoms are initially visible a couple of weeks after infection. The individual spikelets of the wheat head begin to discolor and turn white. Infected heads are very visible among the uninfected, green heads.

The first scab-resistant wheat variety from Pioneer will be available in limited supply for fall planting. For more information on product availability, contact your local provider of Pioneer products.

Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. is the world's leading supplier of agricultural genetics and is the leading developer and integrator of agricultural technology. Headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, Pioneer develops, produces and markets a full line of seeds, forage/grain additives and services to grain and livestock producers, grain processors and other customers worldwide.

Company news release
N1919