Registration of ‘Merl’ Wheat

Abstract

‘Merl’ (Reg. No. CV‐1052, PI 658598) soft red winter (SRW) wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), developed and tested as VA03W‐412 by the Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station, was released in March 2009. Merl was derived from the three‐way cross ‘Roane’/Pioneer variety 2643//‘38158’ (PI 619052). Merl is a broadly adapted, high‐yielding, mid‐season, moderately short, semidwarf (Rht2) cultivar having above‐average straw strength and milling and pastry‐baking qualities. Merl is resistant to powdery mildew [caused by Blumeria graminis (DC.) E.O. Speer] and moderately resistant to stripe rust (caused by Puccinia striiformis Westend.). In Virginia, Merl ranked among the top five cultivars for grain yield with a 3‐yr (2007–2009) average of 5725 kg ha−1 Merl had a mean grain volume weight of 76.4 kg hL−1 across 22 environments, which was significantly (P < 0.05) higher (1.9–3.0 kg hL−1) than that of the other top‐yielding cultivars. In USDA‐ARS Uniform Eastern SRW Wheat Nursery trials conducted at 29 locations, Merl ranked sixth among 46 entries for grain yield (5917 kg ha−1) and seventh for grain volume weight (76.0 kg hL−1) in 2006 and ranked second among 45 entries for grain yield (5529 kg ha−1) and sixth for grain volume weight (75.7 kg hL−1) in 2008. Merl has a soft grain texture, flour softness equivalent values from 57.5 to 60.8 g 100 g−1, and straight‐grade flour yields from 70.5 to 71.5 g kg−1 The flour protein concentration (7.5–8.7 g 100 g−1) and gluten strength, assessed via lactic acid solvent retention capacity (101–104 g 100 g−1), of Merl are lower than average. These quality attributes contribute to Merl's above‐average pastry‐baking quality (cookie‐spread diameters of 17.93–18.93 cm).