Breeding Canada Western Red Spring Wheat for the Parkland Region of Western Canada.

Canada is the sixth largest producer of wheat worldwide and second in exports, as a nation, after the USA. The Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) class is the largest class of wheat produced in Canada making up about 70% of annual production. With climate change, it is anticipated that wheat production will move northward in Western Canada because drought conditions in the southern Prairies could restrict production. The Parkland Region of Western Canada represents an area of grassland stretching from central western Manitoba to the Peace River region of northern Alberta separating the Prairie grasslands from the boreal forests. This area is characterised by its long days and short growing season which tend to be cooler than the southern Prairies. In order to develop wheat varieties adapted to Parkland growing conditions, a CWRS breeding program is conducted from the Beaverlodge Research Station in northern Alberta which is situated at approximately 55.2° latitude north. The pedigreed-based shuttle breeding program includes New Zealand offseason nurseries to accelerate line development. Beaverlodge accommodates all aspects of the program except disease screening for the eastern Parkland which is conducted in Manitoba. Breeding for the Parkland region is a challenge because the required early maturity is negatively correlated with high yield potential. The principal breeding challenge is to find those rare lines which break the correlation. The strengths and weaknesses of the program as well as germplasm developed will be presented.