New wheat needed for Canterbury

Press, 9 May 1980, Page 9

New wheat needed for Canterbury

■ r The need for a new higher yielding wheat for •growing in Canterbury 'and the rest of the South -Island down to a line between Waikouaiti and 'Queenstown was raised by •Mr A. L. Mulholland, a ■grower representative, at a meeting of the Wheat Research Committee this week.

1 The committee at the time was discussing a variety called Tiritea, which is showing great promise for growing in Southland.

; Earlier Mr Mulholland said that when as chairman of the wheatgrowers’ sub-section of Federated Farmers he had visited the district to speak to meetings he had learned that growers were extremely interested in its early release.

In the southern province it has yielded up to more than 10 tonnes-per hectare and Dr D. S. C. Wright, who is in charge of the sub-station of the Crop Research Division of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research at Gore, said that its quality and flour extraction rate were also better, and in fact he said that he could see no weak point about it,

. But with yields of six, eight or 10 tonnes per hectare he said if the variety took on in the district too much wheat might be produced there. Dr Wright said that the variety, which is based on the Australian wheat, Raven, and a Mexican dwarf wheat and has the same parents as Rongotea, had been in trials in Southland for six years.

In the North Island the wheat has also been performing well. A report from the division’s substation at Palmerston North from the officer

in charge there, Dr J. M. McEwan, said that lines of the variety had been from 12 to 15 per cent better in yield than three selected standard varieties over at least 22 trials sown in the winter and spring. All except one line that had been autumn sown had also shown a baking quality at least as good as Kopara and in spring sowings they had been near to Oroua in quality.

Mr Mulholland said that the new variety might have merits in areas other than Southland too, but he undertood that it could have a high level of screenings if it was not grown in the correct locality.

It did bring to light, he said, that no specific wheat for Canterbury conditions had been produced since Kopara, which in various ways had been found wanting. That wheat had been released about 10 years ago.

Other wheats that had been adapted for growing in Canterbury had been bred for the North Island or for Southland.

A new spring wheat had been wanted in Canterbury and Karamu had seemed to fit the bill, but had been “clobbered” for various reasons.

He said t'.at he would not get too excited either about the new varieties, Rongotea and Oroua.

Wheatgrowing was slipping in the province with yields of 3.3 or 3.4 tonnes per hectare when they were looking at yields of up to 10 tonnes in Southland. Canterbury farmers, he said, were desperate for a new wheat suitable for their conditions, and in fact it was necessary for

the South Island outside Southland down to the Waikouaiti-Queens-town line.

Unless they could get more tonnes to the hectare he could see wheatgrowing going out in Canterbury. Mr Mulholland’s reference to the need for a variety with greater yielding ability brought a rejoinder from Mr J. K. Ireland, a representative of millers on the committee, who said while he was sympathetic with the need for a wheat that did better in the province, quality was at least as of as much importance as yield. The country, he said, had too many varieites that were good yielding and of good quality but which under stress showed a reduction in quality. The criticism of the quality of wheat in New Zealand was the outcome of marginal quality. With the high cost of operations in bakeries he said it would not be hard to make out a case showing the economic advantage of a quality product. There was thus a challenge for the plant breeder to by all means increase yield but still produce a high quality product.

The committee spent some time considering what action might be taken about Tiritea.

A report from the wheat variety committee, which was before the meeting, indicated that when it had been faced with the possibility of recommending the release of the variety, it had decided that a consolidated report on all the lines of the variety should be presented at its next meeting.

The director of the Crop Research Division, Dr H. r. Smith, said that he would be asking for all of the data about the variety to be co-ordinated.

Asked abouf the quantity of seed of it available, Dr Smith said that a multiplication programme was in progress but they did not have large stocks. There was not enough for large-scale sowing.

The director of the Wheat Research Institute, Mr R. W. Cawley, said that the important thing was that all available seed was placed so that when it was released there was as much available as possible.

The chairman of the committee, Professor R. H. M. Langer, said that clearly there was going to be a lot of evaluation of the variety.

Earlier Mr Mulholland had suggested that if there was sufficient seed and a decision could be made in time. Southland farmers might be allowed to sow what seed was available in the next sowing season, which began there in midSeptember. He said that he was not proposing total release of the wheat but larger scale trials to see if there were any “bugs” in it.

The acceptable crop cultivar committee has recently decided that Tiritea should continue in official testing for a further season. Seed is available for a full-scale milling trial and for sowings to allow for further evaluation of the variety after the 1981 harvest.