It's the Right Time to Sow Winter Wheat: Seed Selection Tips and Disease Control Guide

As the saying goes, “Choose good seed for the field, one ridge beats two.” The first step in growing crops is to choose a good variety. It's already September, have you started your preparations for winter wheat?How do you choose a good wheat variety? How should you identify new varieties?

1. How do you choose a good wheat variety?

How can you prevent common wheat diseases, such as root rot, crown rot, wheat scab...... These issues all need to be taken into consideration when selecting seeds. To choose a good variety, you need to follow two principles: first, choose varieties suited to the local climate, cultivation and other conditions; second, choose varieties suited to production development and market demand.

2. Four aspects to note about wheat varieties and production

1. Pay attention to varietal characteristics. The winter-spring growth habit of the wheat variety and the previous crop determine how early or late to sow; the tillering and ear-bearing characteristics and grain weight determine the sowing rate; the plant and leaf type determine the row and plant spacing configuration and sowing method.

2. Pay attention to the variety's high-yield potential and water-fertilizer use characteristics. Yield potential determines fertilizer input. Focus on choosing green wheat varieties that “save water, fertilizer and pesticides, save labor and are efficient, and are suitable for simplified mechanical cultivation.”

3. Pay attention to stress resistance. Resistance and tolerance to the 5 major diseases - stripe rust, leaf rust, powdery mildew, sheath blight and scab - as well as cold and freezing tolerance, drought resistance, lodging resistance, tolerance to high temperature and high humidity, and resistance to dry hot wind, determine the implementation of contingency cultivation techniques at key stages.

4. Do not blindly pursue new, special, exotic or unusual varieties. For new, special, exotic and unusual varieties, first conduct small-area, multi-year, multi-site trial demonstrations before large-scale promotion.

3. How should you identify new varieties?

Note three things: first, look at the biological characteristics of the variety; second, look at yield and quality; third, look at disease resistance and stress resistance. Choose varietal characteristics according to the previous crop; choose suitable varieties according to the local natural ecology, climate conditions and the types of pests, diseases and weeds that occur.

4. Why is wheat seed treatment especially important?

If not handled properly, you may encounter various disease problems.

1. Seed-borne diseases

Fungal diseases spread by wheat seed include common bunt and loose smut. These diseases can cause varying degrees of yield loss, and occasionally total loss. In addition to yield loss, these diseases also reduce grain quality, and because the grain grade drops, its value is also affected.

2. Soil-borne diseases

Soil-borne fungal diseases of wheat include common root rot, pythium root rot, sheath blight root rot, fusarium wilt and root, crown and foot rot. These diseases are often overlooked because the roots and crowns they affect are not as visible as foliar diseases, but they lead to reduced stand establishment and weak plants, which are easily attacked by other diseases and pests, causing yield loss.

3. Insect pests

Wheat aphids, commonly known as oil insects, greasy insects or honey insects, are one of the main pests of wheat. They pierce and suck on wheat, affecting photosynthesis as well as nutrient absorption and translocation. After wheat heads, they concentrate on the ears to cause damage, forming shriveled grains and reducing thousand-grain weight, resulting in yield reduction.

5. How should wheat seed be treated before sowing?

First, check whether seed that has been stored and processed for a certain period meets requirements for germination rate, moisture index and so on, and conduct further testing and identification; at the same time, pay attention to other preparatory work before sowing, such as sunning and seed selection, to ensure seed quality.

To increase the germination rate of crops and improve their growth after germination, chemical seed dressing is very necessary. Recommended wheat seed dressings include difenoconazole, fludioxonil, tebuconazole, silthiopham, diniconazole, thiram, triadimefon and mancozeb. In addition, pest and disease control is also essential. Recommended insecticidal agents include imidacloprid, thiamethoxam, fipronil, isofenphos-methyl and others.

Whether it is a seed dressing or an insecticidal agent, products must be selected in a targeted way. If take-all disease is severe, it is recommended to choose agents containing ingredients such as silthiopham, difenoconazole + fludioxonil; if root rot is severe, difenoconazole can be used; if controlling wheat aphids, imidacloprid or thiamethoxam can be chosen.

In addition, the seed dressing period is generally 10-20 days before wheat sowing. Choose a suitable seed dressing according to the disease situation in the field in previous years, generally focusing on preventing soil-borne diseases of wheat, while also combining prevention of underground pests and aphids (which transmit viral diseases).

Choose a good wheat variety and learn seed treatment techniques. May everyone be able to grow wheat of good quality.