6 GERMINATION.CA MARCH 2019 tration on Feb. 28. It met or exceeded all agronomic, disease and quality parameters for the class, Graf noted. Some exciting new lines from Richard Cuthbert’s program were also included, among others. That, combined with the new assessment tool developed by Graf, are just a taste of what’s to come in the world of wheat, Larsen noted. “Hybrid wheat is coming, and that will have interesting implications from a registration perspective. Also, there’s the topic of forage wheat and how we handle that. Whether we ask for it to be put it through the special purpose class or have a special forage test is up for discussion,” he said. “The past few years have been dry on the Prairies, so having more annual forages available would be handy for the livestock industry. The thing us, wheat is wheat — there is only wheat for grain, no ‘forage wheat’ registra- tion system or forage wheat class. If you want wheat for forage it needs to go through all the qualifications for grain production. Do we ask for things to change or have that forage data generated afterwards so produc- ers have that info?” Barley for Brewing Six barley lines were put forth for recommendation this year by the Prairie Recommending Committee for Oats and Barley (PRCOB), coming from the programs of Patricia Juskiw, Joseph Nyachiro and Yadeta Kabeta (Field Crop Development Centre in Lacombe) as well as Aaron Beattie (CDC, University of Saskatchewan). Ana Badea, chair of the PRCOB's Breeding & Agronomy Evaluation Team, is already looking forward to next year. Although she didn’t have any lines up for recommendation in 2019, the barley breeder from AAFC Brandon in Manitoba says she’s hopeful that next year could see the unveiling of a line called TR17255, a hulled or covered variety that could be ideally suited to the mainstream industry and a replacement for AC Metcalfe. “The continuous challenge we have is to try to see into the future. We don’t have a crystal ball — it’s a challenge trying to predict what will be needed in 10 years by farmers and seed companies, malt houses, brewer- ies. The key is making sure we develop the right germplasm needed to be the foundation of those new varieties needed by different users,” she says. The PRCOB also put forward five oat lines for registration courtesy of breeders Jennifer Mitchell-Fetch (AAFC Brandon) and Jim Dyck of the Saskatoon-based Oat Advantage (see page 58 for a story on Dyck’s oat breeding). In Pulses, Protein’s the Name of the Game With the release of the new Canada Food Guide in January, plant-based protein is a major topic among the public, and pulse breeders are aware of it. This year, the Prairie Recommending Committee for Pulses and Specialty Crops (PRCPSC) sup- ported for registration four bean lines, five lentil lines, six yellow pea lines and one green pea line. “In pulses, we really have to hold the line on protein — it’s a value- added component of pulses,” said Glen Hawkins, breeder for DL Seeds and chair of the PRCPSC. All seven pea lines were from the breeding program of Tom Warkentin at the University of Saskatchewan. “One expanding area would be for selecting higher protein content in yellow pea, especially since there’s a growing market for fractionation,” Warkentin says. “We want to combine higher protein without losing good agronomic performance. We don’t want high protein and low yield.” For Warkentin and Hawkins, the topic of value creation is top-of-mind in order to reward breeders for their innovations and help fund the crea- tion of new varieties for producers and processors. “At DL Seeds we’ve been work- ing for the past 10 years in the pulse market with little to no return in terms of royalties. Developing these lines isn’t free,” Hawkins says. “In all crops where producers use farm saved seed, it’s imperative we put dollars back into the pockets of the breeders.” Warkentin agrees. “I hope we have mechanisms in place soon for self-pollinated crops so there are better incentives for breeding them,” he said. No lines were put forward this year by the Prairie Recommending Committee for Oilseeds. Mitchell Japp, chair of the PGDC. Jamie Larsen, chair of the PRCWRT. Glen Hawkins, chair of the PRCPSC. Ana Badea, chair of the Breeding & Agronomy Evaluation Team for the PRCOB. Tom Warkentin, pulse breeder.