New cereal varieties for next year

Commonly, leading varieties were popular for many years - such as the likes of Olympic, Heron, Robin, Gamenya and Timgalen - in their respective eras.

However, with greatly updated plant breeding technologies and investments in this day and age, new varieties commonly only remain popular for a limited period of time.

Upgrades for quality, disease resistance, yield ability, and various agronomic traits commonly sees breeding companies release upgraded varieties on an annual basis.

Many of these quickly replace existing varieties before they are then themselves commonly, quickly replaced by further upgrades.

New varieties for 2024 include Leverage, Sundancer, SEA Peel, SEA Stockman, LRPB Tracer, and Brumby.

These join 2023 releases that included RGT Waugh, LRPB Scotch, Brumby, Jillaroo, Kingston, LRPB Anvil CL Plus and Reilly.

Clearly not all of these will suit everyone but they join the extended list of varieties available for the coming season.

New variety Leverage, with background parentage of Gregory and Coolah, builds upon the yield potential of both.

It is an APH high-yielding, mid-slow maturing, shorter plant type, spring habit variety.

For many areas it is suited to late April to early May sowing.

Leverage's stripe rust rating is MRMS (moderately resistant to moderately susceptible), an improvement compared to Coolah and Coota.

It is also rated MRMS to yellow leaf spot, an added advantage against this common wetter season disease threat.

It is potentially a future, leading variety, especially with the trend towards earlier sowing.

Sundancer, also is a mid-slow maturing, spring habit, APH quality variety suited to late April early May sowing.

However, adding to its flexibility is when sown later - for example later into May - will run to head faster than several other slower maturing varieties.

A feature of Sundancer is its longer coleoptile than other early season varieties, an important attribute when sowing a little deeper is required to place seed on soil moisture.

It also has a solid disease-resistance package with strong stripe rust resistance.

LRPB Tracer phenology data indicates it is suited to a main season planting window across NSW and Queensland.

It has yielded high APH quality and also contains features such as strong acid soil tolerance, good root lesion nematode tolerance, aluminium tolerance and sodic soil tolerances.

Tracer has a good disease package combined with a compact plant type, commonly regarded as helpful in zero till stubble retention farming systems.

LRPB Major is a new mid-slow, spring maturing variety with a good disease resistance profile suitable for the main season sowing window in Southern NSW and Victoria.

Brumby is a broadly adapted, high-yielding, mid-maturing (slightly later than Scepter) potential APW wheat, with an excellent disease resistance profile.

Brumby is well suited to medium-high rainfall areas.

Its disease package includes useful stripe rust, good stem rust and yellow leaf spot resistance.

Tomahawk CL plus is another new wheat variety with improved yield and disease resistance.

SEA Peel is a quick maturity variety with similar yield potential to other quick maturity lines, consistently low screenings, useful levels of resistance to soil-borne pathogens, and strong rust resistance package.

Final milling classification is anticipated in 2024.

SEA Stockman is a quick-mid maturity, awnless hay wheat.

Its quick maturity, relative to other hay wheats, allows it to be sown relatively late and harvested early to allow, where appropriate, a summer crop.

It has excellent standability, good rust resistance package and large kernel size. Grain quality is rated feed.

New barley varieties in 2023 included Titan AX, Fandaga. Zena CL and Spinnaker.

For 2024, Neo is a new high-yielding IMI (specific herbicide tolerant type) barley, with mid-spring maturity.

Disease resistance includes cereal cyst nematode, powdery mildew spot form of net blotch, and useful resistance to net form of net blotch and leaf scald.

Neo has medium plant height with good head retention and good tolerance to lodging and head loss.

It is important to check details of all varieties such as the latest resistance ratings.

No variety has adequate resistance to all diseases.

It is also important to match a variety's resistance levels with possible disease threats and prepare to combine it with other management strategies.

Next week: Definition of best grazing management depends on multiple factors.