Planting Date and Variety Selection Effects on Wheat Yield – Alabama Cooperative Extension System
Planting early can improve crop establishment but can also cause early flowering. Delayed harvest of summer crops like cotton and soybeans may force producers to plant wheat later.
Key Aspects
Planting wheat too early in the fall can hasten fall growth and increase the risk of frost damage in the winter and spring, as well as the risk of the crop running out of moisture before reproductive stages. To reduce yield risks, varieties should be chosen based on their cold requirements.
Vernalizaton and Weather
The required length of low temperature exposure decreases with colder temperatures and advanced plant development, so a wheat variety receiving only a partial amount of cold weather will produce few heads. It can also produce full heads but mature when the weather is very hot, resulting in poor yield.
Day Length
When a long-day wheat variety is exposed to above-average temperatures, it may experience early flowering and a short grain-filling period, resulting in low yield and poor grain quality.
Yield Differences Between Early and Late Plantings
Early planting causes excessive tillering during the fall and spring, which increases the risk of spring freeze injury. The impact of planting date on final yield varies by location in the state. Yield losses were higher for later planting dates than for the standard planting date.
Variety and Planting Date Options
Choose varieties and planting dates that are best suited to your growing season and location. Early maturing varieties are good options for planting late in the season; however, in southernmost regions, delayed plantings of early maturity varieties may result in lower yields and seed weight.
Seasonal Climate Variability and Wheat Yield
The El Niu00f1o Southern Oscillation (ENSO) affects climatic conditions in the southeast United States during the fall, winter, and spring. ENSO has three phases: Niu00f1o, Niu00f1a, and Neutral, with the El Niu00f1o phase having more positive effects on wheat in Alabama’s southern areas.
Acknowledgment
The Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station/Hatch/Multistate grant “Assessing the Impact of Weather and Climate on Corn and Wheat Production in Alabama via Field Research and Modeling” and the Alabama Wheat and Feed Grain Committee provided funding for this project.
What month do you plant wheat?
Spring wheat is planted as soon as possible in the spring and harvested in the late summer; dormant seeding occurs in late November or early December, when the ground is cold enough to prevent germination until spring.
How late can you plant wheat?
The rains have slowed wheat planting in many areas, but we still have a chance for a good crop! We usually try to plant wheat within the first 10 days after the recommended fly-free date, but we can plant wheat up to one month after the recommended fly-free date and still get good yields.
What time of year do farmers plant wheat?
Spring wheat is planted in the spring and harvested in the summer and fall, whereas winter wheat is planted in the fall or winter and harvested in the spring and summer.
What date should winter wheat be planted?
Plant this hardy annual cereal grain from seeds, which are available at farm suppliers, online, and some garden centers, from mid-September to early-December.
How can I make wheat grow faster?
Wheat is a good example: it can grow without water, but it will grow much faster if you keep it watered. If you leave your soil unattended for too long and don’t plant anything in it, it will eventually turn back into dirt.
Does wheat grow back every year?
Perennial wheat is generally a weak perennial, as current lines of the crop only regrow two times; researchers are working on developing stronger perennials that will regrow multiple times. Perennial wheat is planted at the same time as annual wheat, and the plants grow similarly at first.
How late is too late for winter wheat?
Winter wheat can be seeded up until about February 15 in southeast Nebraska and March 15 in northwest Nebraska and still vernalize. Vernalization requires four to six weeks of freezing temperatures at night, though some varieties have shorter requirements.
Does winter wheat come back every year?
Winter wheat is typically planted in the Northern Hemisphere from September to November and harvested in the summer or early autumn the following year; however, facultative varieties can be grown as either winter or spring wheat depending on sowing time.
Is it illegal to grow wheat at home?
Commercial wheat operations, which rely heavily on commercial pesticides and fertilizers for production, are often very traumatic to otherwise fertile land, making it illegal to grow wheat at home.
How hard is it to grow wheat?
Growing your own wheat may appear daunting given the specialized equipment and large farms used by commercial wheat farmers, but the truth is that there are a few misconceptions about growing wheat that have turned even the most ardent gardener away from the idea.
What happens to wheat after it is harvested?
The harvested grain is sold to a local grain elevator at market price, after which it is sold to flour millers for domestic consumption or loaded onto ships bound for overseas markets. Flour mills grind the grain into various types of flour, such as whole wheat, all-purpose, and bread flour.
How deep do you plant winter wheat?
Seed winter wheat at a 1- to 1.5-inch soil depth to facilitate rapid emergence; seeding deeper than an inch deep puts the crowns at risk of winter kill, while seeding shallower than an inch deep delays emergence.
How long does it take for wheat to sprout?
In 2-3 days, tiny sprouts should appear, indicating that sprouting is complete. Drain well before using or storing.
What happens if you plant winter wheat in the spring?
Winter wheat can be planted in the spring as a weed-suppressing companion crop or early forage, but you lose the benefit of fall nutrient scavenging. Reasons for spring planting include winter kill or spotty overwintering, or simply because you didn’t have time to fall-seed it.
What is the best row spacing for wheat?
Wide row yield losses will have the greatest impact on profitability on farms where wheat accounts for a large percentage of total annual crop area and yield expectations are often high; in these cases, 25 cm rows are recommended; however, if a spacing wider than 25 cm is required, 37.5 cm should be preferred over 50 cm.