June 10, 2010

UNL Extension Organic Winter Wheat Variety Plot Tours will be held June 23 at UNL's South Central Agricultural Laboratory at Clay Center and June 24 at UNL's Haskell Agricultural Laboratory near Concord.

Each event will have a one-hour tour and presentation starting at 5 p.m.

The UNL Wheat Breeding program is working with millers and bakers to select winter wheat cultivars for the organic market with an emphasis on nutritious whole wheat products. Antioxidants, dietary fiber and gluten strength, as well as yield performance and disease resistance, will be discussed for each of the varieties grown on certified organic research land.

Richard Little, UNL organic wheat breeding specialist, will visit with farmers about experimental wheat lines, and released and potential cultivars for organic wheat production. He also will discuss fertility issues and how various cultivars perform in a crop rotation.

The Haskell Ag Lab tour will include a field experiment to evaluate the period between harvesting winter wheat and planting the subsequent row crop. Several cover crops were compared and the cover crops were subject to several management methods including: disk, flaming, and crimping to prepare for subsequent row crops. There also will be a demonstration of a Rodale design crimper and a flamer.

Farmers considering transitioning to an organic production system also can see how crop rotations are set up at each research location and meet with other organic farmers.

To register, call the Haskell Ag Lab at (402) 584-3837 or e-mail Liz Sarno, UNL Extension educator and organic project coordinator

IANR News Release