HOLLAND, Man. – Size isn’t everything, but the Prairie Grain Development Committee has recommended a new line of flax for variety registration that has a significantly bigger seed.
Agriculture Canada flax breeder Scott Duguid, who developed the new line known as FP 2270, said the large seed size is a bonus, on top of its other positive traits.
“I’m very excited about this variety,” Duguid said following his presentation at the Manitoba Flax Growers Association’s March 3 annual meeting in Holland.
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“It is a line that is outyielding Bethune, and it has this extra facet to it … a large seed size.”
The Prairie Grain Development Committee’s oilseed committee vouched for Duguid’s work when it recommended FP 2270 at its annual meeting, held in Winnipeg in late February.
The line produced an average yield of 38.8 bushels per acre in trials held at sites in the black and grey soil zone from 2008-10, where the growing season is longer. It yielded five to six percent more than CDC Bethune at those sites.
Yields were even higher at sites across Western Canada, producing 41.7 bu. per acre, which was one percent higher than CDC Bethune.
Duguid said most flax varieties have seeds that weigh 5.8 to six grams per 1,000 kernels, but FP 2270 weighs 6.8 grams per 1,000 kernels.
The extra size makes the seed easier to handle but only provides a slight boost to yield, he added.
“Yield is largely determined by how many seeds you have … in each of the bolls…. Seed weight is just a bonus.”
Western Canadian trials have shown that FP 2270 has less oil content than CDC Bethune but has a higher content of linolenic acid. It is immune to rust and is moderately resistant to wilt. Its maturity is similar to Flanders.
He said the line is particularly well suited to the black and grey soils of the eastern Prairies because it reaches maturity slightly later than Bethune.
“It’s very well adapted to this particular zone.”
The Prairie Grains Development Committee will now submit its recommendations to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s variety registration office.
FOR A RELATED STORY, SEE PAGE 38
