SEPTEMBER 2018 SEEDWORLD.COM / 27 ALTHOUGH PLANT BREEDERS are experts in evaluating and understand- ing their crop, the worst mistake many breeders make is selecting parents without considering their impact on the hybrid. Excellent parents often produce unsuccessful hybrids; on the other hand, successful varieties can result from par- ents that performed poorly. What you observe in the parents is not what you observe in the hybrids. Neglecting Phenotypic Data When planning new hybrids, many breeders filter parents based on pheno- typic data to create new hybrid combi- nations. The problem with that is that it neglects the effect of these parents on hybrids. This mysterious effect is called “combining ability.” Instead of searching parents that “perform well in trait X and in trait Y,” you should search for parents where their hybrids “perform well in trait X and trait Y.” The criteria for selecting parents should be based on how they affect their hybrids, and not on their own performance. For this, we need to use all existing data. Each hybrid previously observed has something to teach us about its corresponding parents. The tricky part is that parents’ impact on hybrids across a range of traits is not easy to deduce and requires cross refer- encing to previous generations and past observations. The inability to do this not only means losing data that you already spent time and effort collecting, but more importantly, leads you to making the wrong decisions. This is equivalent to selecting based on a gut-feeling and trial-and-error instead of data-driven, educated decisions. Key Questions At any point in your breeding program, you should ask: What have I learned about the parents from my past hybrid observations? What is the combining ability of a given parent for a specific trait? What did each parent contrib- ute and to which phenotypes? If you can’t answer these questions, how will you develop better hybrids in the next season? If you cannot learn from your existing data, you are less likely to make a genetic gain and release market break- through varieties. But don’t despair. Specialized plant breeding software, which is designed to capture the true breeding values of your lines, can be a game changer in the suc- cess of your breeding program. Are You Making a Hybrid Breeder’s Worst Mistake? YANIV SEMEL PHENOME CEO yaniv@phenome-networks.com • phenome-networks.com CATTLE RANCHERS IN the Texas- Oklahoma region intentionally set them- selves up for a management challenge when they plant dual-purpose wheat for both grazing and grain. The idea is to plant hard red winter wheat early enough in August for it to grow and provide early-winter forage for grazing. Then the ranchers remove the cattle to allow the wheat to grow and produce a grain crop later in the spring. In other words, they plant wheat out of season, ahead of the Hessian fly-free date. For this to be a profitable proposition, the weather needs to cooperate and the rancher must make correct manage- ment decisions. There are good reasons why farmers in this region wait until late September and October to plant wheat. Early planted wheat invites greenbugs, Hessian flies, disease and other pests, which declare open season on seed and the emerging crop. With effective man- agement decisions, dual-purpose wheat can usually beat the odds. Beating the Odds Know the source of your seed. Plant breeders at Oklahoma State University and elsewhere are developing varieties adapted for dual-purpose production. These varieties tend to recover faster from grazing and have more abundant tillers for grain production. Planting certi- fied seed reduces the risk of introducing seedborne diseases, which could flourish in warmer August weather. Seed treatment offers the only avail- able protection for early-planted seed against seedling diseases and pests. Matching the seed treatment to the pest pressure is critical, as there is only one Managing Dual-purpose Wheat: A Crop Planted “Out of Season” ERIC PATTON, NUFARM AMERICAS SEED TREATMENT LEAD @NufarmUS • eric.patton@nufarm.com •.nufarm.com opportunity to apply an effective treat- ment for early-season insect and disease control and the prevention of seed decay caused by aspergillus and penicillium. A premixed seed treatment product, such as Nufarm’s Sativa IMF Sembolite Max protects seed/seedlings against dis- eases, including rhizoctonia, fusarium and pythium in addition to controlling aphids, Hessian fly and wireworms. Including a biological booster in the seed treatment can help promote root development and faster plant growth. Finally, double the planting rate for wheat intended for grazing before it matures for grain production. With careful attention to making the proper manage- ment decisions, dual-purpose wheat can be a profitable option in the Texas- Oklahoma region even when it is planted early in the season.