Getting Bigger Barley Yields
by Jack van Roestel
Prof. Claude Caldwell’s cereal yield triangle
Heads per square metre
Kernels/head Kernel weight
yield
YIELD and Critical stages
• Heads/m2 x kernels/head x kernel weight
= YIELD
• Heads/m2 are set early (seeding and tillering)
• Kernels/head are set at stem elongation
• Kernel weight is set during grain fill
How can you maximize on barley
yields?
• Use the right variety & a high seeding rate
• Planting as early as possible
• Prepare a decent enough seedbed to get uniform seed placement (< 1inch) & emergence.
Maximizing Barley Yields
• Pay attention to soil pH (> 6.0), supply 50-70N, and the required P, K, S.
• Control broadleaf weeds at barley 4th leaf to early tillering. Perennial grass/clovers, etc need to be looked after before plowing.
• Have a combine, drier, storage & market pre-arranged. Harvest on a timely fashion.
Maximizing Barley Yields
Use the Maritime Cereal Trial results from NSCDI, AAFC-PEI, NBDA & NBSCIA
CHOOSING A VARIETY
• “There is huge potential in a bag; the trick is to maximize those genetics on your farm.”
6-row Barley 3-Year Yields (t/ha)
1000 Kernel Weight (g)
Straw Yield (t/ha)
Fusarium DON (ppm)
AC LEGEND 4.5 42 2.1 1.5
RHEA 4.5 43 2.9 1.6
SYNASOLIS 4.4 38 2.2 1.5
PEDIBELLE 4.3 42 2.5 1.2
2-row Barley 3-Year Yields (t/ha)
1000 Kernel Weight (g)
Straw Yield (t/ha)
Fusarium DON (ppm)
CERVEZA 4.4 40 3.1 0.9
ISLAND 4.3 45 3.4 0.6
LEADER 4.6 50 3.8 0.7
SELENA 4.3 45 2.6 0.6
Early Planting Mitigates the Level of
Deoxynivalenol Contamination in Barley in
Eastern Canada Thin-Meiw Choo
Eastern Cereal and Oilseed Research Centre
12
Fusarium Head Blight
6-Row Barley
2-Row Barley
13
Barley samples contaminated with mycotoxins in
Eastern Canada in 2000-2003 (163 samples)
• Deoxynivalenol (DON) 79%
• Nivalenol (NIV) 23%
• 3-acetyl DON 16%
• 15-acetyl DON 13%
• Zearalenone 9%
• HT-2 4%
Source: Choo et al. (unpublished data)
14
Maximum Tolerance Level in Canada
Mycotoxin Level
Deoxynivalenol (DON) 1 ppm for swine
5 ppm for cattle
Zearalenone 1 ppm for swine
10 ppm for cattle
T-2 1 ppm for swine
HT-2 0.025 ppm for dairy
Source: Charmley and Trenholm 2000
15
Treatment
2007
2008
Early
Late
Early
Late
Planting
May 9
May 24
May 6
May 28
Harvest
August 27
August 29
August 19
September 5
Effect of Planting Date on DON levels & Grain
Yield of 6-Row Barley cultivars at AAFC, PEI
16
Treatment
2010
2011
Early
Late
Early
Late
Planting
May 5
May 17
May 20
June 1
Harvest
August 23
August 24
Sept. 2
Sept. 13
Effect of Planting Date on DON levels & Grain
Yield of 6-Row Barley cultivars at AAFC, PEI
17
DON vomitoxin content (ppm) over 4 years
Cultivar Type Early Planting Late Planting
OBS4714-1 Early 3.4 4.8
Brucefield Medium 5.2 10.5
AC Alma Medium 4.7 5.4
Chapais Medium 4.0 4.8
AC Vision Medium 4.0 4.7
AC Legend Medium 3.9 5.6
AC Klinck Late 3.8 4.7
Stander Late 4.7 9.4
AC Westech Late 3.3 7.0
Encore Late 6.6 8.2
Synosolis Late 2.7 4.8
Average ( of all
11 varieties)
4.2 6.4 18
Grain yield (t/ha) of 11 barley cultivars in the
Harrington Farm, PEI
Year Early Planting Late Planting
2007 4.1 a 3.8 ab
2008 3.3 cd 0.8 e
2010 3.6 bc 3.7 b
2011 3.6 bc 3.0 d
Overall Average 3.6 2.8
19
a-e, grain yield followed by the same letter are not
different at the 0.05 level
Seeding Rate
Suggest the following in viable seeds/m2 (or seeds/ft of row in 6” spacing)
• 6-Row Barley (early): 300 (15)
• 2-Row Barley (early): 350 (17)
• Barley (late): use 15% more seed
• Spring Wheat : 400 (20)
• Winter wheat: 350 (17) from Sept.12-20th in central NS
Weed control in cereals is often left too late!!!
Spring Wheat & Barley
Management Trials 2000-02
• Low Input – 50 kg/ha N @ seeding
• Medium Input – 50 kg/ha N @ seeding +
50 kg/ha N @ Zadoks Growth Stage 32
• High Input – 75 kg/ha N @ seeding + 75
kg/ha N @ Zadoks Growth Stage 32 +
Fungicides + Plant growth regulator
Barley Varieties • AC Queens – 2-Row
• Belmore – 2-Row
• Chapais – 6-Row
• Excel - 6-Row
• AC Legend – 6-Row
• AC Westech – 6-Row
• AC Alma – 6-Row
Mean Barley Yields at Different
Management Levels (2000-2002)
4.3 4.4 4.5
1
2
3
4
5
Low Input Med. Input High Input
Management
Yie
ld t
ha
-1
2002 Protein Results
Barley
Management
Level
Protein %
Low Input 9.7
Medium Input 11.0
High Input 11.8
Evaluation of fungicides on winter wheat,
barley and spring wheat (2010-2012)
Doug MacDonald
N S Crop Development Institute
Dalhousie Faculty of Agriculture
Mar. 19, 2013
Experimental design
(1) winter wheat –Pioneer 25R56 (2011& 2012) & Emmit
(2) 6-Row Barley – AC Westech
(3) Spring wheat – AC Helena (milling potential)
• Three year (2010-2012) data with 4 reps
• Fungicides evaluated
(1) ZGS39: flag leaf fully out ( Headline, Stratego,Tilt )
(2) ZGS60: flowering ( Caramba, Proline, & Prosario )
Barley
• All early applied fungicides significantly increased
yield compared to the check and Headline was best
Untreated CheckTiltStrategoHeadline
4.5
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
Early fungicide application (ZGS39)
Yie
ld (
t/h
a)
c
bb
a
Barley, 2010-2012
Early timing
of application
ZGS39
Barley
• Late application of Proline & Prosaro increased yield;
Untreated CheckProsaroProlineCaramba
4.0
3.8
3.6
3.4
3.2
3.0
Late fungicide application (ZGS60)
Yie
ld (
t/h
a)
b
aa
b
Barley, 2010-2012
Late timing
of application
ZGS60
DON amounts of barley from 2010-2012
Growth stages Fungicide DON (ppm)
ZGS39
Headline 0.81 a
Stratego 0.53 ab
Tilt 0.45 b
Untreated 0.32 b
ZGS60
Untreated 1.14 a
Prosaro 0.45 b
Caramba 0.27 b
Proline 0.25 b
Spring Wheat ( only if it works for you )??
Spring wheat compared to barley can be ……
• more inconsistent in yield (no more straw)
• requires 20 kg/ha N more
• takes 2 week longer growing season
• often more prone to DON problems
• <4 t/ha yield, there’s ?? profit potential with either spring feed/milling wheat (barley as well)
Prof. Claude Caldwell’s cereal yield triangle
Heads per square metre
Kernels/head Kernel weight yield
www.dal.ca dal.ca
• In a 6 inch row spacing, it is about 20 heads in a
foot of row or about 30 plants in a half-metre of
row.
• To estimate your yield potential after heading,
count the number of heads in a foot of row x 20
x # of kernels/head x TKW
• (45 for 2R barley; 40 for 6R barley; 34 for
wheat)
What does 400 heads/m2 look like?
www.dal.ca dal.ca
Yield compensation will not repair
poor stands Heads/m2 Kern/head TKW (g) Yield (T/ha)
400 22 37 3.25
400 32 36 4.61
400 40 35 5.60
200 22 38 1.67
200 32 37 2.37
200 40 36 2.88