Canola National Variety Trial Results 2016

Key messages

• The 2016 growing season was wet across the state. Agzone 1-5 had optimal conditions whereas Agzone 6 experienced extremely wet conditions. The above average rainfall for the state, and the long growing season, favoured the mid-maturity class over the early maturity class.
• The new TT hybrid, InVigor T 4510 performed exceptionally well across all sites, surpassing the current benchmark Hyola 559TT by 120kg/ha on average, albeit with 1.4% lower oil. Monola 416TT was the overall highest yielding OP TT variety.
• Roundup Ready varieties Pioneer 45Y25 RR and Nuseed GT-53 were the highest yielding varieties in 2016. Nuseed GT-53 and GT-50 performed particularly well in the trials over 2t/ha. Pioneer 44Y24 performed well across the board. The early maturity Pioneer 43Y23 and Hyola 404 were both top performers again in their maturity class.
• In the IT chemistry group, Pioneer 44Y90 performed remarkably well across all environments.

Disclaimer: It is advisable not to make recommendations or management decisions on variety replacement or retention based solely on the 2016 NVT data.

Aims

The National variety trial (NVT) program is a national program of comparative crop variety testing with standardised trial management, data analysis, and reporting. The program is supported by the Australian Government and growers through the GRDC and is managed by the Australian Crop Accreditation System Limited (ACAS).

The aim of the program is to generate independent information to growers about current and newly released crop varieties.

Method

The trials are distributed across Australia in the main soil types and rainfall zones, and many trials are located with grower groups. The trials are sown and harvested close to district grower practice, to ensure variety performance is similar to that seen by growers on their farms. The varieties in the trials are either currently available to growers or will soon have commercial release to market and are benchmarked against district standards and quality check varieties. Field assessments of emergence, vigour, and days to flowering are conducted across all of the trials. All varieties have a CBH delivery standard analysis conducted on oil, seed protein and moisture.

There are two trial series; The early series are generally located in shorter season environments that may suit early maturity varieties. The mid series are located in longer season environments that may suit mid maturity varieties. In 2016 Agzone 4 was back in the TT trials, with a site at Kellerberrin, after a gap of several years.

New varieties in the 2016 NVT program were; TT varieties InVigor T4501, Pioneer 44T02 TT and SF Ignite TT; RR varieties Nuseed GT-53 and InVigor R 5520P; Clearfield varieties Pioneer 44Y90 and 45Y91.

Data analysis

The data analysis method has changed, from the variety rank on Agzone rank used previously. The varieties have been ordered by calculating their performance compared with the trial site average. This method is less affected by varieties not being present in all trials and it also shows the amount of difference between varieties. The results have been grouped by yield level (instead of Agzone) to give an indication of variety maturity effects on performance.

1. Variety yield performance compared with site average (i.e. amount above or below site average)
2. Varieties ordered by overall average yield performance across all trial sites.
3. Trials grouped by yield level for simple data presentation
4. Final yield data presented as % of trial average
5. TT results have been arranged into hybrid and OP groups.

Results

The 2016 growing season was wet across the state, with optimal conditions in Agzone 1-5 and extremely wet conditions in Agzone 6. Unfortunately, this led to loss of high rainfall (and higher blackleg pressure) NVT trials at Gibson, Kendenup and South Stirlings, leaving 18 successful trials. There were high yields for the 2016 TT trials, from 1.4 to 3.4t/ha, and 5 trials over 3t/ha. The above average rainfall and long growing season favoured the mid-maturity class over the early maturity class.

Bayer’s new variety, InVigor T 4510, performed exceptionally well in the long season of 2016. InVigor T 4510 had high yields at all 18 trial sites, apart from the lowest yielding trial, at Hyden. InVigor T4510 exceeded Hyola 559 by 120kg/ha on average, but produced 1.4% lower oil. Hyola 650 also out yielded Hyola 559 in 2016, although was only in 5 trials.

New TT hybrids SF Ignite, and Pioneer 44T02 performed as well as the benchmark variety Hyola 559, in 2016. SF Ignite was only tested in the Mid series and was a solid performer in these high rainfall zones, similar to Hyola 650, but produced 1.1% lower oil content than Hyola 650. Pioneer 44T02 had limited testing on the south coastline (since not in trials at Scaddan and Munglinup), however performed well in the northern and central districts in the medium rainfall zone.

Hyola 559 gave reliable yields in 2016 but was outclassed at sites over 3t/ha.

For the TT OP group, which covered 71% of WA canola hectares in 2016, only ATR Bonito was included in all trials, with other OP varieties in 4-9 trials.

Monola 416TT was the overall highest yielding OP TT variety in 2016. Both ATR Stingray and ATR Mako out yielded ATR Bonito by 90-100kg/ha, when comparing matched trials (where concerned varieties were both grown). The hybrids Hyola 559 and InVigor T 4510 out yielded ATR Bonito by 330 and 440kg/ha, respectively.

Table 1. TT variety yield and oil performance, of 2016 WA NVT

# yield limits adjusted slightly from half tonne increments, to make groups more even

* Average calculated from single sites, rather than average of grouped yield levels

Bayer 300TR out yielded Hyola 525RT in the Early series, while Hyola 725RT out yielded Hyola 525RT in the Mid series.

In the long season of 2016, the longer season varieties Pioneer 45Y25 and GT-53 topped the yield leader board. Pioneer 45Y25 had reasonable representation (8 trials), with only one poor performance, at Buntine. Unfortunately this was the only 45Y25 trial in the 2-2.5 yield range, so the results are particularly obvious (Table 2).

Nuseed GT-53 and GT-50 performed particularly well in the trials over 2t/ha. GT-53 had a small but significant yield advantage over GT-50 in 3 trials for an overall yield advantage of 40kg/ha and similar oil results, across 11 matched trials.

Pioneer 44Y24 performed well across the board. As did the early maturity Pioneer 43Y23, apart from poor performance at the high yielding Greenough trial. Pioneer 43Y23 had the lowest oil of the RR group, at 3.2% lower than 45Y25.

Monola G11 did well for trials less than 2.5t/ha and Hyola 404 was a good performer for trials less than 3t/ha, relative to the early maturity class varieties.

InVigor R 5520P was a marked improvement on IH 51 Podguard in both yield and oil content. On a site by site analysis InVigor R 5520P averaged 255kg/ha and 1.65% oil better than IH51.

Table 2. RR variety yield and oil performance, of 2016 WA NVT

* Average calculated from single sites, rather than average of grouped yield levels

Pioneer 44Y90 had the best yield and oil for all trials. Yield of Pioneer 45Y91 was (not significantly) above Pioneer 45Y88 yields and outperformed by Pioneer 44Y90 for yield and oil, at both sites where varieties were grown together.

Table 3. IT variety yield and oil performance, of 2016 WA NVT

2016 Canola groups and varieties in WA (2016 grower planting intention data, courtesy CBH group)

There was a small reduction in the proportion of GM canola grown in WA in 2016, down to 24% of canola hectares planned to be sown. (Table 5)

ATR Bonito was the most widely grown canola variety in 2016, at 38%, up from 20% in 2015. Hyola 404RR was the most widely grown RR variety, at 8.6% of total canola Ha. The most popular 7 varieties account for 80% of the WA canola crop in 2017 (Table 6).

Table 5. Proportion (% area sown) of canola herbicide systems in WA (Data courtesy of CBH Group)

Conclusion

Disclaimer: It is advisable not to make recommendations or management decisions on variety replacement or retention based solely on the 2016 NVT data.

The Canola NVT presentation will include analysis of the forthcoming 2012-2016 MET results and recommendations for 2017.

Acknowledgments; GRDC Project Number: National Variety Testing Program