CropLink

Wheat is opportunistic and will grow despite some harsh conditions. But, what will the crop give when pampered and pushed?

The answer for Phillip Gross was 202.53 bushels per acre (bpa), a yield that earned him top honors in the 2018 National Wheat Yield Contest.

The Warden, Washington, farmer has hauled in the winning yield in the National Wheat Foundation’s contest for three consecutive years. This is the first time an entry has exceeded 200 bpa. He topped the contest with 184.29 bpa in 2017 and 192.85 bpa in 2016.

“I think by increasing seed population and trying to encourage more tillers in the fall, we could have done better,” Gross says.”I personally think this is only half of its yield potential,” he says of the winning irrigated winter wheat variety, LCS Jet.

The national contest also bestows honors in four individual categories: irrigated winter and spring wheat, and dryland winter and spring wheat. To even the playing field, those entries are ranked based on how much the plot yield exceeds a five-year county average.

The contest also included a quality component in 2018. To be eligible for competition, wheat entries had to be Grade 1 or 2, the grades required for food-grade wheat. Entries were also tested for a variety of quality components, such as protein, test weight, falling number, hardness and 1,000 kernel weight.

The Progressive Farmer is the official magazine of the National Wheat Yield Contest, and details of each winning entry will be featured in the March 2019 issue. More details on state winners and how to enter next year’s contest can be found at www.wheatfoundation.org.

Wheat is opportunistic and will grow despite some harsh conditions. But, what will the crop give when pampered and pushed?

The answer for Phillip Gross was 202.53 bushels per acre (bpa), a yield that earned him top honors in the 2018 National Wheat Yield Contest.

The Warden, Washington, farmer has hauled in the winning yield in the National Wheat Foundation’s contest for three consecutive years. This is the first time an entry has exceeded 200 bpa. He topped the contest with 184.29 bpa in 2017 and 192.85 bpa in 2016.

“I think by increasing seed population and trying to encourage more tillers in the fall, we could have done better,” Gross says.”I personally think this is only half of its yield potential,” he says of the winning irrigated winter wheat variety, LCS Jet.

The national contest also bestows honors in four individual categories: irrigated winter and spring wheat, and dryland winter and spring wheat. To even the playing field, those entries are ranked based on how much the plot yield exceeds a five-year county average.

The contest also included a quality component in 2018. To be eligible for competition, wheat entries had to be Grade 1 or 2, the grades required for food-grade wheat. Entries were also tested for a variety of quality components, such as protein, test weight, falling number, hardness and 1,000 kernel weight.

The Progressive Farmer is the official magazine of the National Wheat Yield Contest, and details of each winning entry will be featured in the March 2019 issue. More details on state winners and how to enter next year’s contest can be found at www.wheatfoundation.org.

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