Wheat Contest Winners Grow Bin Buster Yields

New names joined familiar ones amongst the list of wheat farmers earning the title of "Bin Buster" in the 2024 National Wheat Yield Contest.

Phillip Gross, Warden, Washington, bested all contestants with an entry of 223.08 bushels per acre (bpa). It's the second-highest yield recorded in the contest, which began in 2016 and is designed to encourage wheat growers to strive for high yield, quality and profit while trying new and innovative management strategies. DTN/Progressive Farmer is the official media partner of the competition.

Thanks to a favorable growing season for many farmers and the creation of a new website, interest in the contest soared in 2024. Anne Osborne, National Wheat Foundation (NWF) project manager, says total entries reached a record of 516. NWF also offered a new pilot category, Digital Yield, that allowed growers to use digital agriculture technologies and data from their calibrated grain cart scales to tally yields.

The 24 national winners in the traditional categories had a yield average of 145.05 bpa. Though awards are determined by yield, emphasis is also placed on high-quality grain production. National winners submitted a 10-pound sample that was analyzed for milling and baking qualities, and additional awards were given.

MEET THE BIN BUSTERS

IRRIGATED WINTER WHEAT:

Phillip Gross
Warden, Washington
Variety: Limagrain Cereal Seeds Jet
Yield: 223.08 bpa

If once is an accident, twice is a coincidence and three times is a pattern, what does four times represent? In the case of Phillip Gross, the answer may be a legend.

For the fourth time in the nine-year history of NWF's contest, the Washington state farmer submitted the highest overall entry, earning "Bin Buster" honors with irrigated hard red winter wheat yielding 223.08 bpa.

Farming in the rain shadow of the Cascade Mountains in eastern Washington offers a unique set of challenges. Characterized by hot, dry summers and cold winters, the region's climate presents conditions that can favor wheat production -- or bring it to its knees. Irrigation is a necessity.

Gross' winning entry of Limagrain Cereal Seeds Jet was planted on Sept. 15, 2023, in a conventionally tilled field behind a crop of sweet corn. The field received an inch of irrigation prior to planting.

Using a custom-made 60-foot double-disc drill with Great Plains openers, he planted the seed treated with CruiserMaxx Vibrance in 7.5-inch rows. In addition to a broadcast fertilizer package, Gross' in-furrow program contained trace minerals, biologicals, carbon to feed those bacteria and a cocktail of acids and enzymes, seaweed products and desert plant extracts -- even a tiny amount of wood vinegar.

"We really focus on healthy roots and the root zone microclimate," he says. "My motto is, 'It's only crazy if it doesn't work.'"

Excellent fall growing conditions had the wheat leaping out of the ground. Emergence and tiller counts were both above average.

"But, winter was brutal," Gross says. "We had really cold winds and no snow cover. A lot of the wheat was within an inch of death, but there was life left in those crowns."

As spring arrived, he applied herbicides to control weeds, along with a fungicide and a topdress fertilizer pass. Then, he turned on the water. The field received a total of 15 inches.

"A lot of years, you'll get hot winds that suck out the moisture and shrivel the grain," he says. "This season, we had some of the best flowering and head-fill temperatures that we've seen in a long time."

Gross says the crop management he employs is about pushing the boundaries of what's possible. "There's this huge, relatively unknown world beneath our feet," he explains. "The bacteria, the fungi, the protozoa, the nematodes and how that whole system works is what I find interesting and intriguing."

DRYLAND WINTER WHEAT:

Steve VanGrunsven
Forest Grove, Oregon
Variety: Limagrain Cereal Seeds Shine
Yield: 170.63 bpa

In Oregon's Willamette River Valley, friendly competition amongst neighboring farmers reached national proportions again in 2024.

With a yield of 170.63 bpa, Steve VanGrunsven, Forest Grove, Oregon, took home the title of "Bin Buster" in the dryland winter wheat category. During the past five seasons, farmers from this region have earned nine national awards, including one Bin Buster each year. This marks VanGrunsven's second time atop a category.

"I guess we're showcasing Oregon's soft white winter wheat production pretty well," he says. "We're fairly open with each other, but I guess maybe we don't tell each other everything."

Farming just 60 miles from the Pacific Ocean, the climate is temperate, and winters are generally mild. Annually, 40 inches of precipitation fall, though rain is rare in June, July and August.

"If we get an inch total in three months, that's a wet summer," he says. "Having that moisture through the winter and then that warm, dry summer really helps with harvest and our quality."

VanGrunsven aims to produce a low-protein soft white winter wheat, so managing fertility is crucial.

"We don't want excessive nitrogen there at the end to push our protein too high," he explains. "For our export markets in Asia who pay a premium for our wheat, the goal is 7 to 9% protein instead of 10% plus."

VanGrunsven planted Shine, a soft white winter wheat variety from Limagrain Cereal Seeds, on Oct. 7, 2023, in a silt loam field that had been in silage corn. He used a John Deere 8350 grain drill to plant the wheat treated with CruiserMaxx Vibrance at a rate of 1 million to 1.1 million seeds per acre on 6-inch row spacing.

Nutrients remaining from the previous crop fed the wheat through the winter. Once it broke dormancy, VanGrunsven made topdress applications that included SuperU, a stabilized urea product, along with smaller amounts of potassium and sulfur. He says his primary objective was keeping the plants healthy and growing, controlling diseases with three to four fungicide applications.

"We're just doing what we can to maintain the yield potential of the genetics," he adds.

VanGrunsven points out Mother Nature was kind to his wheat, providing "Goldilocks" conditions that were never too wet or too dry, too cold or too hot. "When we saw test weights in the 62- to 63-pound range, we knew we were going to be in good shape," he says.

IRRIGATED SPRING WHEAT:

Jess Blatchford
Baker City, Oregon
Variety: WestBred WB6341
Yield: 174.74 bpa

Jess Blatchford farms in the high desert country of eastern Oregon where seasons are short. He topped the irrigated spring wheat category with 174.74 bpa of WestBred WB6341, a soft white spring wheat variety.

His winning field of wheat was in the Baker Valley, which sits at an elevation of about 3,400 feet. It receives 6 to 8 inches of rainfall per year. Blatchford applied 18 to 20 inches of water to the crop through sprinklers.

"It's a good climate for wheat. We were hot this year with 10 days above 100°F, but we only had three nights all summer long that it didn't drop below 60°F," he says, noting late and early frosts are always a threat.

"My farm was formed off an alluvial fan. So, I have areas that have good, deep soils and other areas that only have about 5 inches of topsoil with a lot of river gravel and rock," he says. The wheat contest field was planted to potatoes in 2022 and corn in 2023, and seeded in 6-inch rows at about 120 pounds per acre.

"We have a lot of residual fertility after potatoes. About what we put on the corn is what it takes off. So, we soil-test to make sure what's left and base applications on that," Blatchford says.

His winning entry received 125 pounds of nitrogen, 41 pounds of potassium, 44 pounds of sulfur, 20 pounds of magnesium and 7 pounds of manganese per acre prior to seeding. Around late May, just before leaf extension, he dropped another 25 pounds of nitrogen, 10 pounds of phosphorus and 17 pounds of potassium through the high-clearance sprayer in a pass with herbicide and fungicide.

Most of Blatchford's production ends up in the export market. Livestock feedlots that buy and grind wheat for feed are also important customers.

"I cut the wheat about as high as I can get away with for the grain and then come back with the draper header on the swather to windrow all the straw and bale it. Baling helps manage residue. We're getting 5.5 tons (per acre) of straw out here, and trying to get that all worked in is cost prohibitive from a fuel standpoint," he says.

"The key to making spring wheat yield is selecting a variety that suits the climate of the valley and giving the crop what it needs in a timely manner," Blatchford explains.

DRYLAND SPRING WHEAT:

Nick Pfaff
Bismarck, North Dakota
Variety: Croplan 3099A
Yield: 117.60 bpa

Nick Pfaff says there is one ingredient vital to wheat yield -- rainfall.

The Bismarck, North Dakota, farmer won top honors in the dryland spring wheat category with Croplan 3099A, a hard red spring awnless variety that yielded 117.60 bpa. The winning field received 22.3 inches of precipitation during the season.

"Fields that received more in the 20-inch rainfall range (with the same inputs) were about 15 bushels off of this field," Pfaff says.

On average, he spread 100 to 180 pounds of urea per acre in a variable-rate application ahead of planting. He followed with 80 pounds of starter (12-36-6 plus 5 pounds of sulfur) while drilling in 7.5-inch spacings on April 25, 2024. The crop followed soybeans and was seeded at 120 pounds per acre with a target population of 1.4 million plants per acre.

A fertility booster of 10 gallons per acre of 28% liquid nitrogen (30 pounds nitrogen per acre) was applied when the wheat was about 10 inches tall. A routine fungicide treatment was used to protect against fusarium head blight and other diseases. In general, beardless (also known as awnless) varieties can be more susceptible to disease.

"The upside is the awnless wheat has a longer maturity (92 days) and gives us a longer harvest window. This variety is extremely durable and holds up to wind and weather," Pfaff says.

The offset is the increase in stalk strength and the volume of material generated, which requires combines to slow to 3 to 3.5 mph or slower. The heads of awnless wheat are also larger.

"We really like this wheat for its high yield potential, but it is lower in protein," he adds. To boost protein, he applied another 30 pounds of nitrogen per acre (10 gallons of UAN plus 10 gallons of water) postanthesis (flowering) before the wheat berry started to become milky.

The field remains part of the yield equation in this region of central North Dakota along the upper Missouri River.

"Fields closer to the river are more nutrient dense and are almost always guaranteed to yield better -- no matter the rainfall received," Pfaff explains. "Since the farm is geographically spread out, I think about harvest logistics and try to place seed varieties with good durability against lodging in those northern fields.

"I'm focused on yields, but I'm also putting an emphasis on return on each input. We need yield, but it must make sense," he says.

MEET THE 2024 NATIONAL WINNERS

WINTER WHEAT DRYLAND:

First Place: Jeffery Krohn
Owendale, Michigan
Variety: DF Seeds 271
Yield: 170.10 bpa

Second Place: Clint Zenner
Genesee, Idaho
Variety: Limagrain Cereal Seeds Shine
Yield: 167.03 bpa

Third Place: Garrett Warren
Dayton, Washington
Variety: Limagrain Cereal Seeds 50% Shine/50% Jefe
Yield: 164.68 bpa

Fourth Place: Scott Truszkowski
Stewartsville, New Jersey
Variety: Dyna-Gro 9070
Yield: 152.33 bpa

Fifth Place: Mark Deysher
Bath, Pennsylvania
Variety: Seedway SW 65SR
Yield: 152.32 bpa

WINTER WHEAT DRYLAND ABOVE COUNTY AVERAGE:

First Place: David Ebers
Wellston, Oklahoma
Variety: WestBred WB4422
Yield: 136.42 bpa, 350.52% above Lincoln County, Oklahoma, average

Second Place: Koby Dickerson
Vernon, Texas
Variety: Limagrain Cereal Seeds Steel AX
Yield: 102.80 bpa, 305.69% above Wilbarger County, Texas, average

Third Place: Tom Hill
Tonkawa, Oklahoma
Variety: Limagrain Cereal Seeds Warbird AX
Yield: 135.64 bpa, 282.72% above Kay County, Oklahoma, average

Fourth Place: Dylan Lindsey
Lamont, Oklahoma
Variety: Limagrain Cereal Seeds Atomic AX
Yield: 130.05 bpa, 270.51% over Grant County, Oklahoma, average

Fifth Place: Cheryl Lindsey
Tonkawa, Oklahoma
Variety: PlainsGold Kivari AX
Yield: 130.32 bpa, 267.71% above Kay County, Oklahoma, average

WINTER WHEAT IRRIGATED:

First Place: Oree Reynolds
Castleford, Idaho
Variety: WestBred WB1621
Yield: 220.81 bpa

Second Place: Zach Balahtsis
Tonkawa, Oklahoma
Variety: Limagrain Cereal Seeds Warbird AX
Yield: 177.52 bpa

SPRING WHEAT DRYLAND:

First Place: John Wesolowski
Warren, Minnesota
Variety: WestBred WB9590
Yield: 114.93 bpa

Second Place: Dale Flikkema
Bozeman, Montana
Variety: WestBred WB9668
Yield: 113.74 bpa

Third Place: Bruce & Helle Ruddenklau
Amity, Oregon
Variety: WestBred WB9668
Yield: 106.95 bpa

SPRING WHEAT DRYLAND ABOVE COUNTY AVERAGE:

First Place: Greg Messer
Richardton, North Dakota
Variety: WestBred WB9590
Yield: 106.65 bpa, 166.49% above Stark County, North Dakota, average

Second Place: Austin Kautzman
Mott, North Dakota
Variety: WestBred WB9590
Yield: 90.13 bpa, 147.01% above Grant County, North Dakota, average

Third Place: Jordan Christman
Hettinger, North Dakota
Variety: WestBred WB9590
Yield: 87.36 bpa, 137.40% above Adams County, North Dakota, average

SPRING WHEAT IRRIGATED:

First Place: Dallin Wilcox
Rexburg, Idaho
Variety: WestBred WB7589
Yield: 169.94 bpa

Second Place: Joel Zwainz
Reardan, Washington
Variety: WSU Tekoa
Yield: 165.35 bpa

PILOT DIGITAL YIELD - SPRING WHEAT DRYLAND:

High Yield: Brad Disrud
Rolla, North Dakota
Variety: WestBred WB9590
Yield: 102.00 bpa

High Above County Average: John Hofer
Milnor, North Dakota
Variety: WestBred WB9590
Yield: 98.00 bpa, 61.98% above Ranson County, North Dakota, average

BEYOND THE BUSHELS

The relationship between wheat yield and quality is complicated. To avoid compromise, the National Wheat Foundation (NWF) includes both components in its annual yield contest. Each national winner submits a sample for analysis of grain characteristics such as test weight and protein. Flour characteristics such as falling number, gluten strength, consistency and stability are evaluated. Hard wheat entries are baked into bread, and soft wheat entries are evaluated as sponge cake and sugar cookies.

A panel from across the wheat industry evaluates the entries based on recognized standards. NWF Director Brian Walker says it is important feedback.

"Adding quality components to the contest rewards those who achieve both, while we continuously improve and evolve. And it recognizes that each crop year can be different," Walker adds.

**

FOR MORE INFORMATION

-- For a complete list of contest rules, visit https://www.wheatcontest.org/…

-- Follow Jason on social platform X @JasonJenkinsDTN

-- Pamela Smith, Senior Crops Editor, contributed to this story. Follow the latest from her by visiting the Production Blogs at https://www.dtnpf.com/… or following her on social media platform X @PamSmithDTN

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