Spring Varieties Produced by Breeding

For spring barley, plant breeders have directed their efforts toward two principal types: Barleys that tolerate humid heat and are adapted for growing in the upper Mississippi Valley and Great Lakes States, and barleys grown in the drier parts of the Pacific coast, Rocky Mountain area, and the Great Plains as far east as the one-hundredth meridian. Three improved varieties of the first group have been distributed.

Bay, a six-rowed, smooth-awned variety, was released by the Michigan station in 1945. J. W. Thayer, Jr., reported that in average or favorable years Bay yields about the same as Wisconsin Barbless; in unfavorable years it will yield a fourth more. It matures a little earlier and has a slightly stiffer straw than Wisconsin Barbless, characteristics that make it a more desirable variety for a companion crop. The heads of Bay do not snap off so easily as do those of Wisconsin Barbless. It has been accepted by the maltsters as a malting barley, being similar in this respect to Wisconsin Barbless. The commercial acreage is confined to Michigan.

Mars was developed at the Minnesota station by LeRoy Powers and the late F. R. Immer, and was released in 1945. It is six-rowed and smooth-awned, matures rather early, and is somewhat shorter than other popular varieties. The straw is stiff. At four Minnesota stations, from 1941 to 1945, it yielded 5 bushels more than Wisconsin Barbless. Its kernels are small; the test weight is high. Mars resists stem rust and stripe, and is moderately resistant to leaf blotch, but it is susceptible to scab, loose smut, and leaf rust. It is considered unsatisfactory for malting, principally because of its low diastatic power and small kernels.

Tregal was produced at the North Dakota station by G. N. Geiszler, L. R. Waldron, and T. E. Stoa, and released to North Dakota farmers in 1943. For several years it has averaged a fifth to a tenth more in yield than Manchuria. Tregal resists nuda loose smut. It is a little shorter and somewhat earlier in maturity than Wisconsin Barbless or Manchuria, but is generally considered unsatisfactory as a malting barley.

In the Rocky Mountain area, Velvon and Velvon 11 were produced by R. W. Woodward in the cooperative work of the Utah station and the Department. Both are six-rowed, smooth-awned types, and were released in 1935 and 1943. By 1944 Velvon was the leading variety on intermountain irrigated lands. Although it is resistant to nuda loose smut and moderately so to covered smut, it has sterile florets or blanks in the spike. Velvon 11 is an improvement in these respects. Both are stiffer strawed than Trebi, the variety formerly grown, and both can be harvested successfully with a combine. The straw is preferred by farmers, who use it for feeding and bedding. Both varieties have outyielded Trebi in most comparisons, except at higher elevations where the percentage of sterile florets tends to increase in the Velvon varieties.

Lico is a six-rowed smooth-awned sort produced by D. W. Robertson of the Colorado station and released in 1937. It yielded 4 to 5 bushels more grain to the acre than Trebi in 10 years of testing under irrigation at the Fort Collins station. Its straw is much stiffer than that of Trebi and, therefore, Lico makes a good companion crop. It is recommended for the irrigated lands in Colorado. Its most serious drawback is its susceptibility to nuda loose smut.

Flynn 37 was introduced in 1941 to farmers in Sherman and Gilman Counties in Oregon by the Moro station. It is the work of H. V. Harlan, D. E. Stephens, and M. M. Oveson of the Department of Agriculture and the Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station. It is superior to older varieties because it yields more, has smooth awns, is suitable for combining, and resists drought. Barley and other cereal grains are used extensively for hay in the Columbia River Basin. Flynn 37; because it has smooth awns, is more likely to replace the hooded types largely used for this purpose, than the rough-awned types grown previously. The straw of Flynn 37 is stiffer than that of Club Mariout, so it is better for combining.

Belford and Rufflyn were produced by the late O. E. Barbee of the Washington station and released in 1943 and 1939. Belford, a hooded kind, outyields Horsford 'the commonly grown hooded variety. Rufflyn is bearded and yields 5 percent more grain than Beldi Giant or Blue. Its test weight is somewhat greater, and farmers report it is much easier to thresh. Belford and Rufflyn are grown in Washington.

Flynn 1 meets most of the requirements of farmers in the Great Plains. It was released to Kansas farmers from the Hays station in 1933, H. V. Harlan and A. F. Swanson of the Department being responsible for its production. In tests it yielded 2 to 5 bushels more than the varieties it replaced. Flynn 1 is less open to damage by Helminthosporium, grasshoppers, and green bugs than other varieties grown in Kansas, but is more subject to smut. All in all, Flynn 1 is the best spring variety now available for Kansas. It is grown extensively in northwestern Kansas and in eastern Colorado, and to a limited extent in southwestern Nebraska.

Munsing, released from the Akron, Colo., field station in 1944, took plenty of time to grow up. F. A. Coffman, of the Department, commenced working with it in 1920. Later his Colleagues, J. J. Curtis and J. F. Brandon, carried on with it. Munsing is a two-rowed variety, like Compana, Spartan, and Vance. At Akron, it yielded slightly less than Beecher, but 15 percent more than Spartan. Munsing has been the leading variety in yield, in 4 years out of 6, in the Uniform Great Plains Nursery; its 6-year average yield being 40.5 bushels an acre, compared to 33.8 for Spartan and 38 for Beecher. It has a high test weight. Munsing has a short straw and the spikes seldom emerge entirely from the boot. The straw is weak, however—its most serious fault. But the straw is soft, and livestock like it. In stooling it beats all others grown on the Plains.