New DARD/AFBI cereal recommended list for 2014

The new Cereal Recommended List for 2014 is now available from the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI), Crossnacreevy (028 9054 8000), from Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) Direct Offices and on-line at www.afbini.gov.uk. This booklet is a comprehensive guide to cereal varieties best suited for use within Northern Ireland and is based on data collected from the extensive variety evaluation programmes carried out by AFBI Crossnacreevy and part-funded by the Home Grown Cereal Authority (HGCA) (www.hgca.com). Recommendations for spring and winter barley, spring and winter oats and winter wheat are given with a descriptive list for spring wheat varieties.

Spring crops

There are six fully recommended varieties on the spring barley list. Overture heads the list closely followed by a new recommendation, Garner. This variety has large grain, good disease resistance and very high straw yields. Odyssey remains on the list and its treated yield is matched by another new addition to the list, Propino. Propino has good yields and excellent grain quality, good disease resistance but does tend to ripen late. Quench and Concerto remain fully recommended, both varieties maintaining good over-years performances.  There are four new provisional spring barley recommendations for 2014. Hacker and Shada match each other on yield. Hacker has superior specific weight and straw yields, whilst Shada has larger grain and ripens later. Shaloo’s yield is just behind the other two newcomers, but it has better grain quality, better disease resistance but with lower straw yields.  Kelim, the fourth new recommendation, has lower yields than the other three provisional recommendations, but it is the first variety in trial that has exceeded the straw yields of Westminster. It has good grain quality and reasonable disease resistance but, like Westminster, is late to ripen. Westminster and SY Taberna are becoming outclassed.
For spring oats, Canyon and Firth remain fully recommended. Canyon gives better yield whilst Firth has superior grain quality and high kernel content.  Firth is suitable for the quality market. There are two new provisional recommendations for 2014 – Monaco and Conway. Monaco gives very high yields, is early to ripen but is not suitable for milling due to its poor specific weight. Conway gives lower yields compared to Monaco, but with good grain quality, may be suitable for milling. Husky is becoming outclassed and Rozmar has been removed from the list.
The spring wheat Descriptive List includes varieties that are in the HGCA UK trialling system and on the DAFM Ireland Recommended List. For 2014, the varieties have been split into two groups, those better suited for Northern Ireland which have been highlighted in bold font, and those less suited. Granary leads in terms of yield, grain quality and disease resistance. Trappe, Sparrow, Tybalt, KWS Willow and Ashby are also suitable for Northern Ireland. Spring wheat crops tend to get much less disease than autumn-sown wheat crops, but Belvoir is one variety that is more susceptible to disease than other varieties.

Winter crops

KWS Cassia is the highest yielding fully recommended 2-row winter barley for a second year and is joined by Florentine. Florentine is lower yielding than Cassia, but has superior disease resistance and straw strength. KWS Cassia has poor resistance to both Rhynchosporium and mildew but has higher specific weight. There are two new provisional recommendations – KWS Glacier and KWS Tower. Glacier offers higher yields but has weaker straw and smaller grain than Tower. California remains provisionally recommended and gives good yields, good grain quality, excellent standing power and better than average disease resistance. Retriever and Saffron are becoming outclassed. The 6-row KWS Meridian remains provisionally recommended, as does the 6-row hybrid Volume. Both have very good disease resistance and ripen early. Volume remains the highest yielding winter barley variety in trial.
Four winter wheat varieties are recommended for general use in 2014 with Grafton being the highest yielding.  JB Diego, Panorama and Alchemy also continue as fully recommended. Leeds and Dickens are new provisional recommendations. Leeds gives exceptionally high yields has good specific weight and is early to ripen, although it has small grain and is susceptible to mildew. Dickens also yields well, has good grain quality, strong straw, good disease resistance and is early to ripen. Dickens, along with Grafton and JB Diego, has performed will in HGCA second wheat trials in GB. Monterey and Horatio continue as provisional recommendations.  Both give high yields with Monterey having better disease resistance whilst Horatio has larger grain but is later to ripen.
The winter oat varieties Dalguise, Gerald and Mascani remain fully recommended for general use. Balado is now fully recommended for special use because, although it is very high yielding, its specific weight is low and it is unlikely to meet millers’ quality requirements.
In addition to details of the recommended varieties, the booklet also provides information on varieties that have been in the most recent trials, but have not been recommended, and on newer varieties that are still under evaluation.  Yield and agronomic characteristics of all varieties in trial in 2013 can be viewed in the Recommended Variety Lists section of the AFBI website www.afbini.gov.uk. The 2014 Cereal Recommended List Booklet is also available from AFBI Crossnacreevy

by Lisa Black and Ethel White, Plant Testing Station, AFBI Crossnacreevy
 

Notes to editors: 

AFBI carries out high quality technology research and development, statutory, analytical, and diagnostic testing functions for DARD and other Government departments, public bodies and commercial companies. 

AFBI's Vision is “Scientific excellence in Northern Ireland …  serving the world”.

All media enquiries to AFBI Press Office 

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