Waitsburg, Washington, USA
September 14, 2015
With yield results in from the three major Pacific Northwest universities — Washington State University, Oregon State University and University of Idaho — growers across the region are taking note of the strength of the Limagrain Cereal Seeds (LCS) winter wheat lineup. Across 2015 state variety trials, LCS marketed winter wheat varieties finished first in 15 trial sites and were among the top 5 highest-yielding lines in 53 trial sites.
Much of the blockbuster 2015 yield performance came on the shoulders of soft white winter wheat LCS Artdeco and the relative newcomer hard red winter wheat LCS Jet.
LCS Artdeco, released in 2011, performed exceptionally well this season due to three main factors:
- Earlier maturity. With record heat during a time of the year when wheat varieties are filling out kernels, LCS Artdeco was a week ahead of most other varieties.
- Exceptional yield potential. The milder than normal 2014/15 winter helped LCS Artdeco fulfill its genetic potential.
- Strong finish. LCS Artdeco is always a great finisher, and this year’s excessive heat meant that it finished even more quickly than normal.
LCS Jet, the newest hard red winter wheat LCS release, topped trials all across the Pacific Northwest this year — just like last year — due to three main factors:
• Wide adaptation. LCS Jet performed well all over the PNW, in differing rainfall zones and elevations. Coupled with an ability to consistently put up trial-topping numbers, LCS Jet is quickly setting itself apart from other varieties in terms of both yield potential and yield stability across the region.
- Exceptional yield potential. Like LCS Artdeco, the mild winter months helped LCS Jet stay closer to its true genetic potential. It should be noted, however, that LCS Jet has very good winter-hardiness as well.
- Earlier maturity. Again, like LCS Artedco, LCS Jet is an earlier variety that tends to finish very strong.
LCS is marketing, on behalf of the University of Idaho, three high-yielding new UI Clearfield Plus lines this year — UI Magic, UI Palouse and UI Castle. Of those, UI Magic stole the show this season for two main reasons:
- Excellent yield potential, equal to or better than that of UI Castle.
- Earlier maturity, similar to LCS Jet and LCS Artdeco.
The industry has also taken note of several high-performing soft white winter wheat lines which were bred in collaboration between Oregon State University and Limagrain Cereal Seeds. These varieties, tested under an LOR prefix, will be released under the familiar Norwest prefix in 2016 and beyond. Hard red winter wheat variety Norwest 553 was the first cooperative release between Limagrain (Nickerson) and Oregon State University, over a decade ago.
“Our partnership with standout agronomic programs like the University of Idaho and Oregon State University make our breeding programs and varieties stronger,” says Frank Curtis, LCS Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. “We have no doubt, that combining locally adapted genetics from public breeding programs with modern technology and marketing skills from the private sector is the fastest way to bring improved new varieties to growers.”
Group Limagrain was founded in France in 1965. The farmer-owned company is the largest seed company in the European Union. Limagrain Cereal Seeds (LCS) was established in 2010 as Group Limagrain’s first American operation for cereal breeding. Centrally located in Fort Collins, Colorado, LCS is dedicated to developing new, improved wheat varieties for the world’s fourth largest wheat market, the United States. The company has research stations in North Dakota, Washington, Indiana and Kansas, as well as partnerships with more than 25 land grant universities across the country.
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