Seeding Rate and Yield Potential Effects on Yield and Grain Quality of Soft Red Winter Wheat.

In Ohio, soft red winter wheat production has decreased during the past 25 years. Producers are seeing less value in the crop, and cite lack of consistent grain quality and yield as two of the greatest challenges for profitability. Current recommendations for stand management decisions are over 20 years old, and their origin is unknown. The objectives of this study are to examine the effect of seeding rate on grain yield, determine the potential of NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) to estimate yield, and examine the effect of seeding rate and variety on grain quality. During the 2015-2016 growing season, we evaluated four wheat varieties of differing yield potential (‘Croplan W210110R’, ‘Steyer STex 141’, ‘Wellman W304’, and ‘Malabar’) planted at four seeding rates (0.75, 1.0, 2.0, and 2.5 million seeds/acre). The study was conducted at two locations: Wood County and Clark County, Ohio. A similar study was conducted at two on-farm locations (Crawford and Pickaway County), with seeding rate as the only variable. An NDVI sensor was used to record values, which were related to yield at harvest. This research will provide updated recommendations with new, more accurate methods that are tailored to Ohio’s production environment. It will also focus on the two factors that must improve for profitability, and attempt to create a solution to the lack of consistency in wheat production.