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Magenta wheat makes the most of 2011


Australia
October 2011

Magenta wheat has been a very solid performer this year for Murray Siegert. The Goomalling farmer says its stronger disease package has enabled Magenta to stay greener for longer, to take advantage of this spring’s softer finish and maximise yield potential. Its ability to establish quickly and tiller well has been another winner helping out compete the weeds.

Murray admits 2010 was not a great year for the longer growing season varieties. It was extremely dry and generally speaking a very trying year, better suited to the shorter growing season varieties.

However, he said, in those conditions, his Magenta yielded just as well as his other wheat varieties. In addition, he had no small grain size issues with Magenta with screenings in 2010 being similar to the shorter growing season varieties. Murray believes this may be due to a varied management approach for Magenta.

A return to more favorable conditions in 2011 has seen the variety really ‘power ahead’.

“Magenta is a very competitive variety that tillers vigorously,” he said.

“Because of that we’ve found we’ve had to back-off the seeding rate to only 55 kg/ha compared with the other varieties that we normally sow at 70 to 80.

“It also has very good yellow spot resistance, which is the major leaf disease we have here.

“For us it’s a variety we can sow relatively early and have confidence it will compete with the weeds and have good disease resistance, which is important if the crop is going into a wheat on wheat situation.

Murray said in addition to lower seeding rates, Magenta would require its own approach to fertiliser management.

“I think with Magenta, we’ll put enough nitrogen up front at seeding to get the crop away, but I’d be a little cautious about too much nitrogen too early.

“For our situation, probably 20 units of N at seeding would be plenty and we’d apply more N later depending on seasonal requirements.

“In the paddock, Magenta looks good because it’s a vigorous tillering crop and resistance to yellow spot means it stays greener longer than other varieties.

“Even as it’s maturing we’re finding we still have the flag leaf in good condition, as well as the flag leaf minus one and two. Given the right conditions, that really helps with the grain fill. It’s easy on the eye.”

Murray said, “We’ve started to sow cereals dry, or even immediately after the opening rains, before the weeds have had a chance to emerge.

“That’s where Magenta has a fit for me. We would select paddocks that have lower weed pressure to sow Magenta early.

“I’ve sown it on last year’s wheat stubble and they’re probably our best crops, which you normally don’t expect. It would also do well on canola stubble.”

Magenta’s coleoptile length is classified as long. Andrew Suverijn, WA State Manager for Nuseed said, “Long coleoptile has the potential to deliver farmers flexibility at sowing time.

“They can plant this variety deeper to chase soil moisture or to avoid a trifluralin herbicide band.

“Magenta is classified as APW providing good economic returns for farmers and it comes with a very good overall disease package.

“Its stem rust resistance is a distinct advantage over Yitpi,” said Andrew. “It is classified resistant to leaf rust”.

“It has intermediate resistance to Septoria nodorum (glume blotch). Glume blotch can lead to shriveling of grain and loss of seed,” Andrew said. “Sowing more resistant varieties is a management tool farmers use to lower the risk of producing higher screenings.”

He said Magenta seed was available for sale through Seedpool, which is an online trading site located at www.seedpool.com.au

Seedpool lists growers online who have grown authorised InterGrain wheat varieties. They can then be contacted directly so that farmer to farmer trading can happen more easily.



More news from:
    . Nuseed Pty. Ltd.
    . InterGrain Pty. Ltd.


Website: http://www.nuseed.com

Published: October 15, 2011

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