Waskada hard red spring wheat

Abstract

Waskada is a hard red spring wheat that meets the end-use quality specifications of the Canada Western Red Spring wheat class. Waskada was found to be adapted to the wheat growing regions of the Canadian prairies based on data from the Central Bread Wheat Cooperative Registration Test in 2004, 2005 and 2006. In comparison with the check cultivars (Katepwa, McKenzie, CDC Teal, AC Barrie, and Superb), the grain yield of Waskada was similar to that of the best check in Manitoba and in Saskatchewan. Waskada matures 1 d later than AC Barrie and 1 d earlier than Superb. Waskada had similar height and lodging characteristics as Katepwa and McKenzie. The test weight of Waskada was 1.3 kg hL-1 higher than McKenzie, the best check. Waskada demonstrated moderate resistance to leaf rust but very good resistance to stem rust. Resistance to common bunt and loose smut was good, being similar to the more resistant checks Superb and Katepwa, respectively. Resistance to Fusarium head blight was better than the best check in four determinations made over the 3 yr of registration testing. Waskada appears to deter egg laying by the orange blossom wheat midge. Waskada has good preharvest sprouting resistance with similar or lower sprouting scores than the best check in 4 yr of testing, and it also maintained its falling numbers after natural or artificial weathering of spikes. End-use quality tests identified that Waskada had significantly higher amylograph viscosity than all checks except Superb. Waskada had a significantly lower loaf volume than CDC Teal and AC Barrie and was within the range of the checks for other quality traits. Key words: Triticum aestivum L., cultivar description, red spring wheat, test weight, preharvest sprouting, Fusarium head blight, wheat midge oviposition deterrence