Statewide Spring Wheat On- and Off-Station Variety Trial

Project Title

Off-station spring wheat variety performance trials in Central Montana – CARC

Project Leader

Simon Fordyce, Research Scientist, Program Lead – Crop Variety Testing, CARC

Project Personnel

Jason Cook, MSU Spring Wheat Breeding Program

Hwa Young Heo, MSU Spring Wheat Breeding Program

Sally Dahlhausen, Research Assistant III, CARC

Tracy Watson, Research Assistant III, CARC

Objective

The main goal of this work was to identify the top-performing spring wheat cultivars in central Montana.

Methods

Standard spring wheat variety performance trials were established in Moccasin, Geraldine, Judith Gap, Denton in the fall of 2024. Trials included 25 experimental lines seeded in triplicate in 5-row, 5 x 16-foot plots to evaluate differences. Trials at Moccasin, Denton, and Geradine were planted on April 23, May 16, and May 17 and harvested on August 19, August 26, and September 3, respectively. Judith Gap was planted on May 27 but was not harvested due to hail. Planting depth was 1 inch at a rate of 20 seeds/ft2. Starter fertilizer, 20-30-20-10 NPKS, was applied at seeding at a rate of 50 lb/ac. Fertility programs were consistent with local management practices at each testing location. All plots were trimmed to a harvest length of approximately 12 feet and harvested with a small plot combine.

Long term precipitation and temperature averages were derived using historical Agrimet data (https://www.usbr.gov/gp/agrimet/station_MWSM.html). However, Agrimet failed in May of 2025. Therefore, precipitation and temperature records from September 2024 through August 2025 were obtained through Montana Climate Office Mesonet Data Downloader, Moccasin Hydromet (https://mesonet.climate.umt.edu/dash/moccasin/).

Results

Precipitation in July was 2.05 inches higher (Table 1) and 3.4 °F cooler (Table 2) than long term (21-year) averages at the Central Agricultural Research Center (CARC) near Moccasin. A late killing frost on June 3 (Table 3) and a near-killing frost (32.5 °F) on June 23 may have damaged some of the more sensitive crops at the CARC. The frost-free period was 125 days. While weather conditions were favorable at the CARC, hailstorms were prevalent across the region, including at our Judith Gap testing locations (spring wheat, winter wheat, spring barley), forcing abandonment of these experiments in 2025. Hail was also reported at our Geraldine and Moccasin test sites, but damages were minimal.

Table 1. Monthly precipitation (inches) during the 2024-25 growing season with long term (21-year) averages.

Table 2. Monthly air temperature (°F) during the 2024-25 growing season with long term(21-year) averages.

Table 3. Key air temperature events with dates.

Moccasin Location

The grand mean for grain yield was 52.2 bu/ac (Table 4). Significant differences were observed for yield (P = 0.0017) and protein (P < 0.001).

• Top Yield Performers: BZ 917-277 (62.6 bu/ac), PI 642366 (62.3 bu/ac), and PI 690450 (59.4 bu/ac).
• Top Test Weight Performers: MT 21074 (65.2 lb/bu) and BZ 917-277 (64.9 lb/bu).
• Top Protein Content: WB 222 (13.2%) and WB 9879CLP (12.7%).

Table 4. Spring Wheat, Moccasin MT

Bold* = top performer within a column; Bold = equivalent to top performer within a column; NS= Not significant

Geraldine Location

The grand mean for grain yield was 52.5 bu/ac (Table 5).

• Top Yield Performers: MT 1809 (60.7 bu/ac), MT 22205 (60.0 bu/ac), and MT 21484 (58.9 bu/ac).
• Top Test Weight Performers: MT 22083 (64.4 lb/bu) and LIMAGR 211 (64.2 lb/bu).
• Top Protein Content: WB 222 (15.8%) and AGRIPR 161 (15.4%).

Table 5. Spring Wheat, Geraldine MT

Bold* = top performer within a column; Bold = equivalent to top performer within a column; NS= Not significant

Denton Location

The grand mean for grain yield was 38.9 bu/ac (Table 6).

• Top Yield Performers: MT 1939 (46.4 bu/ac), MT 21484 (44.1 bu/ac), and MT 22182 (43.0 bu/ac).
• Top Test Weight Performers: LIMAGR 211 (64.4 lb/bu) and MT 22083 (64.3 lb/bu).

Table 6. Spring Wheat, Denton MT

Bold* = top performer within a column; Bold = equivalent to top performer within a column; NS= Not significant

Summary

Overall, total precipitation was above, and average temperatures were below the long-term averages, while a hailstorm prevented harvest of spring wheat trials at our Judith Gap testing location and caused minor damages at Moccasin and Geraldine. Grain yield across all locations averaged 47.9 bu/ac and ranged from 38.9 bu/ac at Denton to to 52.5 bu/ac at Geraldine.

Although no variety was consistently the highest yielding across locations, WB 222 consistently ranked highest for protein content across locations (Moccasin, Geraldine, Denton). BZ 917-277 was the top yielder at Moccasin and a top performer for test weight at both Moccasin and Denton. LIMAGR 211 performed well for test weight at all three locations.

Funding and MWBC FY 2025 Grant Submission Plans

An expenditure summary will be provided by OSP. No additional grant support was provided for this project. A request for continuing this project was submitted for funding consideration for the next fiscal year.