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Know How / Wheat / Variety selection

There are plenty of options when it comes to choosing which variety to grow, with markets favouring some and others having a strong regional or rotational reputation. Now with greater focus on their agronomic characteristics, find out which varieties are performing well and proving their worth, whatever their intended end use - milling or feed.

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Case studies

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VARIETY SELECTION

Kent growers assess two new Group 2 winter wheats

Two new Group 2 milling winter wheat varieties are being grown on one Kent farm, with both Mayflower and Palladium looking good ahead of harvest, and Mayflower so far a…

WHEAT

Wheat variety Dawsum hits specific weight in poor light

David Hoyles is impressed with the new winter wheat feed variety Dawsum and has increased his area by 50% this season. That's because it produced a good specific weight on…

WHEAT

Wheat grower plans fewer sprays to delay disease resistance

Mike Wilton is planning fewer fungicide sprays on his winter wheat this season, although by using the latest chemistry he is aiming for good clean crops and to avoid disease…

WHEAT

Wheat for Warburtons gives Yorkshire grower low-carbon option

North Yorkshire grower Richard Murray Wells is switching to grow winter wheat for Britain’s biggest bread brand, Warburtons, with the aim of producing low-carbon milling grain for a well-established market…

VARIETY SELECTION

Why heritage wheat forms heart of Surrey mixed farm

Growing and milling heritage wheat for the artisan bread market forms the heart of Mike and Jenny Pinard’s mixed arable and sheep farm in Surrey. Varieties grown include England's oldest…

WHEAT

How to grow a winter wheat crop yielding 15t/ha

Tim Lamyman is consistently growing wheat crops yielding 15t/ha using a high-input, high-output system across a number of varieties on his Lincolnshire Wolds farm. His method of using high levels…

Practical advice

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VARIETY SELECTION

Insecticide-free wheat varieties set for drilling autumn 2023

Insecticide-free winter wheat varieties are set to be available for growers to drill in autumn 2023, as one plant breeder has developed the first wheat varieties with resistance to the…

CROP MANAGEMENT

Cereals 2022: Options to manage wheat disease in dry springs

Wheat growers need to consider alternative disease control methods to cope with drought-stressed crops in the spring - such as inter-cropping, variety blends and grazing in the early part of…

WHEAT

Warm wet weather signals tricky time for wheat

Disease control in winter wheat is set to be particularly tricky this season as the dry and cold early spring weather, which has held back the spread of disease, moves…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Advice on choosing winter wheat to reduce fungicide spend

Winter wheat growers who match up their choice of varieties and drilling dates to disease-controlling fungicide programmes could trim their spraying costs this spring. Agrochemical costs are being driving higher…

VARIETY SELECTION

Biscuit wheat grower reveals his Group 3 variety choices

Biscuit wheats have been a central part of the rotation at EG Hadingham & Sons for many years, where they have performed consistently and provided premium earning opportunities. In most…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Irish wheat growers get use of novel fungicide ahead of UK

Irish wheat growers will have a new very effective fungicide this spring a year ahead of UK farmers giving them an advantage in controlling damaging diseases such as septoria and…

Insights

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VARIETY SELECTION

Analysis: Which wheat varieties to consider for harvest 2023

Winter wheat varieties that do not expose farming businesses to any more risk are in demand ahead of this autumn, as growers deal with the combination of market volatility and…

VARIETY SELECTION

Why consistency is a wheat blend’s biggest selling point

How much do you value consistency of performance in your crops? If you do, then growing variety blends should perhaps be on your radar. Long-term evidence from Denmark (see panel),…

VARIETY SELECTION

A guide to the new Recommended List lodging scores

Tweaks to the AHDB Recommended List are helping growers get a better handle on the lodging risk from the different cereal variety options for drilling this autumn. There had been…

DISEASE MANAGEMENT

How variety blends can protect wheat against septoria

Researchers in France have shown that variety blends have the potential to slow the erosion of septoria resistance genes in wheat. There has been an increasing interest in growing variety…

CROP MANAGEMENT

What AHDB Cereals and Oilseeds spends its levy cash on

AHDB Cereals and Oilseeds is aiming to get on the front foot and attack some of the UK arable industry’s key issues, which are set to be identified in its…

WHEAT

Why breeders are looking at the past for tomorrow’s wheats

Over the past century, breeding has played a major role in improving winter wheat performance, with yields increasing from an average 5.5t/ha in 1979 to 7.8t/ha at harvest 2021. But…

VARIETY SELECTION

New varieties with better disease resistance get green light

New cereal and oilseed rape varieties with improved yields and resistance to diseases have been given the official green light for next year’s drilling plans, which may help growers with…

VARIETY SELECTION

Variety verdict: Top-performing wheats and barleys of 2021

The combination of plants already under stress and a disease explosion that hit crops in late spring and early summer is thought to be behind the discrepancies seen in wheat…

VARIETY SELECTION

Harvest 2021: The 5 top-yielding winter wheat varieties map

Throughout the harvest season, we are updating our handy map with the latest data from 2021’s AHDB wheat Recommended List harvest results. Use the map below to find the five…

VARIETY SELECTION

Why demand is expected to be strong for virus-resistant wheat

Insecticide-free wheat has moved a step closer with the arrival of the hard Group 4 winter wheat variety Wolverine, which is the first to offer barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV)…

Online resources from AHDB

AHDB Recommended List 2022/23 Winter wheat

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AHDB Recommended List 2022/23 Winter barley

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AHDB Recommended List 2022 Spring barley

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AHDB Recommended List 2022/23 Winter oilseed rape

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