Variety breakdown

[Jerry]

How many years do you think a variety holds in for?

Grown skyfall and Graham for a few years but skyfall is suffering from rust.

What’s interesting is home saved skyfall is fairing better fresh C1 seed a seed contract.

Graham is all home saved and little sign of rust.

Note I’m in the SW so high disease pressure.

 

[snarling bee]

We had one of our best ever yields from C5 Admiral IIRC.

 

[Gong Farmer]

These days yellow rust produces variants more rapidly than Covid so nothing's safe for long.

However there's an interesting theory, only supported with anecdotes as far as I know, that varieties can adapt if grown repeatedly and from the same seed, on the same farm. They adapt to their location, soil type, climate etc and are 'empowered'.

New seed wouldn't have this effect so possibly weaker?

There are many growers doing this, I know of one or two still growing Deben, and unlikely to be sourcing new seed every year.

Might explain why individual growers stick with a variety, and it keeps performing, long after it has declined in official trials.

 

[robbie]

That's kind of what I'm seeing, Whether there's anything in it or not I dont know but I've grown jb Diego for ages my seed is at least C6 by now and it does really well.

It dropped of the list, for amongst other things it's poor disease ratings but I'm not seeing it on farm. I know I'm the east so different kettle of fish to the west but it was Supposed to be a rusty variety but I'm not really seeing anymore in it that a lot of the other mainstream varieties, perhaps with the exception of Graham which is the cleanest variety I've ever seen.

 

[thorpe]

our graham looks v good , overwinterd seed home saved we only buy a variety once so this has been grown on for years, its very clean, agrono says drop it , i say i dont think so. remember growing kador for years after bought seed became unavailable, remained clean and did well.

 

[Hampton]

My skyscraper looks very clean, despite it being weak on yellow rust.
Zyatt is my dirtiest variety and may well be dropped this year.
extase looks clean and lush although could be a flash in the pan.
we need better varieties, and perhaps the lack of variety trials over the last 12 months will mean that the seed companies must sharpen their act as we can’t be seduced into buying what we can’t see

 

[thorpe]

My skyscraper looks very clean, despite it being weak on yellow rust.
Zyatt is my dirtiest variety and may well be dropped this year.
extase looks clean and lush although could be a flash in the pan.
we need better varieties, and perhaps the lack of variety trials over the last 12 months will mean that the seed companies must sharpen their act as we can’t be seduced into buying what we can’t see

how will we get better varieties when seedhouses are owned by the chemical companies. we dont seem to have come very far in the last 20 or 30 years but we have spent a lot on new seed!

 

[Hampton]

how will we get better varieties when seedhouses are owned by the chemical companies. we dont seem to have come very far in the last 20 or 30 years but we have spent a lot on new seed!

Can’t disagree with that

 

[Gong Farmer]

how will we get better varieties when seedhouses are owned by the chemical companies. we dont seem to have come very far in the last 20 or 30 years but we have spent a lot on new seed!

To be fair the breeders seem to be true to their profession with stronger and stronger septoria resistance coming through and most wheat varieties at least starting off with strong yellow rust resistance. Where their overlords the chemical companies come in is telling us this disease resistance uses energy in the plant and hence reduces yield, so disease should be controlled by other (chemical) means.

Must admit this boils my pi55.

 

[FarmerBruce]

our graham looks v good , overwinterd seed home saved we only buy a variety once so this has been grown on for years, its very clean, agrono says drop it , i say i dont think so. remember growing kador for years after bought seed became unavailable, remained clean and did well.

What’s his reason for dropping it. Been consistently our best performer for the past 3-4 years or so

 

[Jo28]

We still grow viscount, grew it as a seed crop when it first came out (maybe 08?) and home saved it ever since.

 

[Tom Nickerson]

How many years do you think a variety holds in for?

Grown skyfall and Graham for a few years but skyfall is suffering from rust.

What’s interesting is home saved skyfall is fairing better fresh C1 seed a seed contract.

Graham is all home saved and little sign of rust.

Note I’m in the SW so high disease pressure.

Graham to it's credit is a very strong variety in all our trials and has held up in the west. So not sure if that is a question of certified vs FSS.

I think it is safe to say if a variety starts to break, working on the basis it has a high score in the first instance, it takes between 1 and 3 years (talking nationally here, obviously local variations).

It's fair to say though when they do break they do break with a bang: within a year.

 

[SilliamWhale]

How many years do you think a variety holds in for?

Grown skyfall and Graham for a few years but skyfall is suffering from rust.

What’s interesting is home saved skyfall is fairing better fresh C1 seed a seed contract.

Graham is all home saved and little sign of rust.

Note I’m in the SW so high disease pressure.

What was your fungicide on the Skyfall to be so rusty?

 

[Jerry]

What was your fungicide on the Skyfall to be so rusty?

What was your fungicide on the Skyfall to be so rusty?

If memory serves

Some had boogie followed by Brutus.

Sime boogie followed by kestrel.