LACOMBE, Alta. – Hulless barley, a relative newcomer on the Prairies, is a perfect fit for the west’s expanding livestock industry, says one plant breeder.
As Jim Helm walked through the experimental plots during an Alberta Centre for Barley Research field day at Lacombe, Alta., he explained breeding programs and scientific goals for the crop.
One of the centre’s mandates is to develop better strains of hulless barley as an alternative high-energy feed for hogs and cattle.
Field production of the crop is relatively new but production has been doubling every year for the last four years, said Helm.
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Offering growing tips as well as explaining challenges presented by hulless barley, Helm had praise.
It is a high energy grain providing upwards of 3,400 kilocalories per kilogram and 65 to 70 percent digestible protein
When hogs eat hulless barley, their digestive systems are able to extract more protein than from hulled barley, making it equal to corn or feed wheat.
“When you get to the total digestible protein, you have a significant advantage in the hulless,” said Helm.
Protein can save money
“Even though we say we’re not looking at hulless barley as a protein supplement, protein is often what makes the profit difference to the producer. He can cut back a fair bit in the amount of protein that he is putting into his rations and that is a big saving.”
Working with the University of Alberta, researchers are also looking for a starch that will break down quickly in a cow’s rumen to increase feed efficiency of barley over corn.
Hulless barley can be plagued by diseases like smut, a fungal disease that covers grain with black spores.
“In hulless barley this is one of the most prevalent problems,” Helm said. “They will have smut problems that are greater than what you’re going to have in the hulled varieties because it is easier to get infection in the hulless.”
Production techniques require some extra field know-how. Hulless barley flows through a seed drill differently and producers could end up seeding heavier than planned.
As well, some hulless varieties like Falcon have a problem with drooping because plants develop long, heavy heads. Lodging can be a problem in wind and heavy rain.
Smaller heads might be the answer, he said, and in a variety like Leduc the plant is developed to produce more but smaller heads on each plant.
Hulless barleys behave more like wheat when cut and may have to stay in the swath longer to dry. They are also slower to mature, especially in the early growth stages.
Because there is an air space between the kernel and the hull, hulless barley may sprout in swaths in wet weather. It packs heavier in the bin than hulled barley and may require aeration to prevent overheating.
Hulls come off easily at harvest and to remove the remaining hulls, grain can be buffed or run through the combine a second time.
