Annual Progress Report on Malting Barley Research March, 2002

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MINNESOTA BARLEY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT
Kevin P. Smith
Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics
University of Minnesota
St. Paul, MN 55108, U.S.A.
Barley improvement at the University of Minnesota is a cooperative effort of the
Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, the Department of Plant Pathology, and the
Research and Outreach Centers of the University of Minnesota. The primary objective is
to develop high yielding disease resistant varieties that have favorable malting and
brewing characteristics. With the Fusarium head blight (FHB) epidemic of the last eight
years, developing varieties with resistance to this disease is the number one priority.
Secondary objectives are to enhance germplasm for future uses, and to generate breeding
and genetic information that will be helpful in achieving future progress.
Barley growers in the Midwest were again confronted with the continuing epidemic of
FHB. Disease was sporadic and influenced by weather patterns and planting dates. Early
planted fields had a greater tendency to escape disease since they avoided more
conducive weather occurring later in July. Grain harvested from yield trials in Crookston
had only trace amounts of deoxynivalenol (DON). Overall, yields in Minnesota were
down from last year with average yields reported to be 55 bushels per acre compared
with 64 bushels last year. This was likely due, in part, to exceptionally dry weather
during the first half of the growing season.
Varieties and breeding lines were evaluated in yield trials in five locations in Minnesota
(St. Paul, Morris, Crookston, Stephen, and Roseau). Advanced yield trials were
conducted at all five locations, intermediate trials at three locations (St. Paul, Morris, and
Crookston) and preliminary yield trials at two locations (St. Paul and Crookston). The
Mississippi Valley Nursery was grown at Morris and Crookston and both locations were
submitted for malting quality analysis at the USDA-ARS Cereal Crops Research Unit.
The Canadian Six-Row Coop Test was grown at Crookston and included the Minnesota
variety Lacey as an entry in 2001.
CURRENT VARIETIES
Robust continues to be the dominant barley variety in the Midwest occupying 78 % of the
acreage in 2000 (MN, ND, and SD). The acreage percentages for Minnesota in 2001
were: Robust 74%, Lacey 10%, Stander 7%, Morex 2%, Royal 2%, Conlon 1% and
others 4%. The latest release from the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station,
Lacey, was added to the AMBA list of approved malting varieties. Miller Brewing Co.
has rated it satisfactory in two years of testing while Anheuser-Busch is continuing
testing of Lacey with the 2001 crop.
Relative grain yield data for the current varieties is reported in Table 1 as the percent of
the mean of the varieties with the mean of the varieties reported in Bu/A at each location
as well as the state mean. Stander was the highest yielding variety in the state 3-year