Preharvest management options for wheat

Winter wheat, if not already there, is quickly approaching physiological maturity. The earliest seeded spring wheat is soon to follow. And thus, it is time to evaluate your pre-harvest management options. Follow this linkto red a quick review of your options. Although there are very persistent assertions, pre-harvest glyphosate – when applied according to the label – should not result in changes in grain protein. A summary of a study to debunk this myth can be found at http://bit.ly/1kNa87n.

HRSW varieties differ for their resistance to pre-harvest sprouting. This high-temperature dormancy peaks at physiological maturity. Repeated wetting and drying of the grain in a swath or even while standing will degrade this dormancy over time. The dormancy of some varieties break down sooner than other, potentially resulting in sprout damage. Visit http://bit.ly/1nOJZVE to look up the ratings for the current HRSW varieties. The best remedy to avoid pre-harvest sprout damage is to harvest timely, even if that means that you are above 13.5% grain moisture content

Finally, many wheat fields are showing tall off-types. Visit http://bit.ly/1u92Sw1 for the reasons tall off-types appear in spring wheat. Varieties that are notorious for off-types are Mayville, LCS Albany, and Rollag.