Senova’s new cereal varieties to be unveiled at Cereals

Well-known for its innovative cereal variety introductions, Senova is expanding its portfolio with three new winter wheats and three winter barleys – bringing genetic improvements at a time of rapid change in the industry.

“As well as our popular winter oat varieties, Mascani and Cromwell, and our winter triticale Lumaco, we will be showcasing some new winter cereal varieties that have good resistance and tolerance to pests and diseases,” says Senova’s managing director Tow Yewbrey.

“These will allow growers to complement cropping with new SFI actions, where appropriate, and help to manage risk. They will also reduce their reliance on artificial inputs and keep costs under control.”

Strong contenders

Among these are three candidate Group 4 hard feed wheats – Rufus, Riley and Memphis – all of which are very high yielding and currently sit at the top of the candidate list on yields of 105/106.

While there are subtle differences between them in terms of regional performance and disease resistance ratings, the new feed wheat varieties are all strong contenders suitable for today’s rotations, says Tom.

“These have all given good yields across the regions, have exceptionally stiff straw, early maturity and good disease resistance packages. We’re really excited about their potential.”  

In addition, three candidate two-row winter barley varieties will also be showcased for the first time, all of which are also up for recommendation later this year.

Organa is a groundbreaking BYDV tolerant two-row winter barley which is already attracting interest, due to its ability to tolerate high BYDV infection pressure and retain its yield performance.

“It has both the YD2 and YD3 genes associated with BYDV tolerance,” explains Tom. “So while there is some impact of BYDV, it loses far less yield and the risk is reduced.”

Kitty is a very high yielding feed barley with resistance to both strain 1 and strain 2 of BaYMV and the highest specific weight of any barley variety at 73.7kg/hl. Nos Olena offers good grain quality, along with all-round performance and standing ability.

“The breadth and depth of our latest variety offer shows that we have been working hard on bringing improvements for both growers and end users,” notes Tom.

More choice for winter oat growers

Otherwise, winter oat growers are likely to be interested in Cromwell. This variety joined the Recommended List last year, and is now finding favour with millers, he reports.

“While there’s nothing wrong with Mascani, which has stood the test of time, it’s good to have another choice in Cromwell and not be reliant on just one mainstream variety,” adds Tom.

Where triticale is of interest for its versatility and lower management demand, Lumaco’s performance puts it at the top of the AHDB Recommended List with a yield of 104, he continues.

“With its yellow rust resistance of 9 and specific weight of 73.4kg/hl, it has much to offer over other triticale varieties. It’s a crop that performs well on both light and heavy land, offering costs savings over wheat.” 

Speak to Senova about its cereal varieties at Cereals 2024 on stand 607.