United Kingdom
October 27, 2022
Novel and robust crop traits delivered by one of the world’s most advanced plant breeding programmes will be the core focus on the RAGT Seeds stand at CropTec ’22.
Visitors will be able to talk to RAGT plant breeders and members of the commercial team about the latest combinable and forage crop developments as well as soil health plants.
The stand will include an impressive range of indoor crop plots featuring innovative varieties designed to meet the needs of today’s farmers.
One of the most important developments is RAGT’s ground-breaking Genserus brand, wheat varieties that are resistant to the potentially devasting aphid-borne disease, barley yellow dwarf virus.
“RAGT is the first company to introduce this trait in Europe,” says RAGT’s managing director Lee Bennett.
“The resistance trait offers protection from the day the wheat is planted to the day it is harvested, for less than the cost of a single pyrethroid spray. Resistance greatly simplifies crop management, removing the need to monitor and control aphid populations with foliar-applied insecticide sprays while benefiting the environment.”
Among the Genserus varieties on show are RW42046 (RGT Grouse), which is a Group 4 hard variety with high yield potential and good disease resistance, and a new coded milling wheat line. Both of these varieties are also resistant to orange wheat blossom midge.
“These are the first of several varieties coming through with both BYDV and midge resistance, enabling many growers to produce insecticide-free wheat, which has obvious attractions within human consumption markets,” says Lee.
Other material emerging from RAGT’s breeding pipeline includes new high yielding wheats with excellent disease resistance, conventional and Clearfield oilseed rape lines and some very promising winter and spring barleys and oats with improved yields of top-quality grain.
RAGT Seeds remains at the forefront of DNA technology, adopting new techniques and developing them to optimise trait selection across its breeding programmes.
Lee says: “Our experience in this area brings many advantages in developing and breeding the varieties we sell and the advice we provide.
“This has helped RAGT become and remain Europe’s number one cereal seed provider.”
The development of genetic markers and advances in technology have greatly increased the accuracy and speed at which the presence or absence of desired characteristics can be detected. This is invaluable in helping breeders tackle the many challenges that crop production faces, says Lee.
“Boosting crop resilience in the face of climate change and improving nitrogen use efficiency are just some examples that will help growers drive down input costs and carbon footprints.
“All this must be combined with improved yields and quality, while ensuring rigorous end user specifications and changing consumer habits are met to help growers make the most of an increasingly volatile market.”
Find out more by visiting RAGT in Hall 1 on stand 640 when CropTec returns to the East of England Showground, Peterborough on 23 and 24 November 2022.
Topics
Species
