Performance of Hard Red Winter Wheat in a Late-Planted, No-till Fallow Cropping System.

Soft white winter wheat is grown almost exclusively throughout the Pacific Northwest.  Exceptions to this trend exist in low precipitation areas of north-central Oregon and south-central Washington.  In this region, hard red winter wheat (HRWW) is an attractive option because minimum protein goals can be achieved without application of cost-prohibitive quantities of nitrogen (N) fertilizer.  Most of the HRWW is produced using a tillage-based (fallow) system.  Optimism about no-till fallow is tempered by concerns that grain yield may be reduced as a consequence of late (October) planting.  Yield reductions can be offset, to some extent, by placing required fertilizer in close proximity to the seed.  Cultivar selection may be an equally important strategy for minimizing the yield penalty associated with late planting.  The objective of this research was to evaluate HRWW cultivars for their performance in a late-planted, no-till fallow cropping system.  A single field experiment was conducted during the 2006-2007, 2007-2008, and 2008-2009 crop years.  The three experiments were located 4-to-10 miles north/northeast of Lexington, Oregon and 1200 to 1700 feet above sea level.  Planting occurred in mid-to-late October.  Planting, and fertilizing, was accomplished using a customized Fabro® plot drill.  Wheat was harvested from the center of plots using a research combine equipped with a 5-foot cutting platform.  ‘AgriPro Paladin’ and ‘Norwest 553’ performed well during years when annual precipitation ranged from 7.2 to 9.4 inches.  ‘Norwest 553’ exhibited the best combination of traits—good test weight, maximum yield, and a grain protein content that was greater-than-average.