Otane management updated

Press, 7 October 1988, Page 19

Otane management updated

Management recommendations for Otane wheat have been updated by D.S.I.R. and MAFTech scientists after several years of trials and practical experience. Several key management factors have been identified to enable growers to maximise yields and quality. These include:—

© Otane should not be sown before August because of possible frost damage at flowering. The sowing rate should be increased to take account of the large seed size and .reduced tillering activity. 0 Otane can benefit from nitrogen fertiliser. Target yield and paddock fertil-

ity are the key determinants in optimising nitrogen input. A split application, 35 per cent at drilling, 65 per cent at late tillering, is recommended if rates above 50 kgN/ha are being used.

® Otane has good straw strength and does not require straw shorteners.

© Otane has moderate resistance to sprouting, equal to Oroua but less resistance than Rongotea or Kotare, so should be harvested as soon as possible after maturity. This will avoid any physical or chemical deterioration in grain quality.

© In some circumstances Otane would benefit from correctly timed and targeted fungicide applica-

tions. Growers must decide whether or not applications are economic, depending on the diseases present and their severity. Results from trials in well managed crops, averaging over 5 t/ha in a season with very high disease levels, indicate good responses to a half rate each of two fungicides applied at ear emergence.

Research has shown that Otane has considerably greater tolerance to stripe rust than Oroua or Rongotea and the disease does not spread rapidly through the plant. This means that growers can be more flexible in timing fungicide applications. Otane is moderately susceptible to stripe rust

as a seedling and treated seed should be sown to provide some protection for this.

Some sporulation of stripe rust can occur on the flag leaf and infection in the head can occur. If conditions around the time of ear emergence are suitable for disease development (cool, damp weather) a late spray, between ear emergence and flowering, should limit infection of the flag leaf and head. If appropriate fungicides are chosen, this would have the added bonus of controlling glume blotch as well. The withholding period of the fungicide must be considered in this decision.