Farm-based selection and seed production of varieties of bread wheat, spelt, emmer, and einkorn adapted to organic systems in the Northeast

Farm-based selection and seed production of varieties of bread wheat, spelt, emmer, and einkorn adapted to organic systems in the Northeast

Summary

Information on the project was distributed through several workshops, newsletters, and field days. A seed production workshop was held February 28^th, 2013 in Ithaca, NY. The first advisory board meeting was held March 18^th 2013.  Loose smut has been identified as the most problematic seedborne disease for Northeast organic growers, and we will target SARE grant efforts on scouting of seed crops for the disease and developing a method to test seed for disease. Workshops on wheat disease identification and prevention will be will be held at three locations in the Northeast in the winter of 2014. Crossing blocks for wheat, spelt, emmer and einkorn were completed and seed increases are in progress. A protocol was developed for farm-based selection.

Objectives/Performance Targets

1. 1000 farmers in ME, NY, PA and VT learn about the project through newsletters, information given out at field days and mailings (Summer and Fall 2012). 

A seed production workshop was held February 28^th, 2013 which ad 25 participants.  Video from this seed production workshop will be distributed online.

An article specific to the project was written for the Northern Grain Grower’s Association Newsletter and published in the Spring, 2013 edition. Distribution list is 305 farms throughout the Northeast and Canada.

A workshop on wheat disease identification and prevention is being planned the winter of 2014.  It will be held at three locations in the Northeast to facilitate greater participation by regional farmers. 

Project methods and updates will be presented and published by the 7^th Annual Organic Seed Growers Conference in Corvallis, Oregon on January 30^th, 2014.

2. 60 farmers participate in seed production training and learn about the key production, processing and legal aspects of producing certified seed. 30 of these farmers indicate they will produce seed of project varieties (Winter 2012-13 and Winter 2013-14). By the end of the grant, 25 farmers produce organic seed that passes state certified seed requirements (Harvest of 2015).

A seed production workshop was held February 28^th, 2013.  Video from this seed production workshop will be distributed online.

A SARE Project Advisory board meeting was held by conference call on March 18^th.  Items discussed are listed under accomplishments.

A workshop on wheat disease identification and prevention is being planned the winter of 2014.  It will be held at three locations in the Northeast to facilitate greater participation by regional farmers. 

Project methods and updates will be presented and published by the 7^th Annual Organic Seed Growers Conference in Corvallis, Oregon on January 30^th, 2014.

Cornell (Lisa Kissing Kucek) developed a literature review on loose smut organic treatment and presence detection methods. Grant collaborators have identified loose smut as the most problematic seedborne disease for Northeast organic growers, and have decided to address target SARE grant efforts at treatment or presence testing of the disease.  The group is collaborating with Dr. Gary Bergstrom at Cornell University to conduct any disease testing research.

3. 120 farmers attend selection workshops and 10 farmers establish successful trials with early-generation breeding populations (Summer 2013, Summer 2014).

A farmer selection workshop was led by Julie Dawson with assistance by Lisa Kissing Kucek as part of The Grain Research Tour in Vermont June 27^th, 2013.  Sixty-six participants attended and engaged in learning about crop genetic improvement, crop ideotypes, and how to make selections for breeding.

Cornell (Lisa Kissing Kucek) developed a protocol for farm-based selection.  Grant collaborators are identifying ten farmers to host on-farm selection plots in the spring and fall of 2014.  A semi-structured interview is being drafted to gather information on farmer’s ideotype of wheat and ancient grains.

4. 40 farmers participate in selection of early-generation breeding populations (Summer 2013, Summer 2014), and 10-20 of the most promising populations are advanced to larger on-farm selection trials (Summer 2015).

Cornell (Lisa Kissing Kucek) developed a protocol for farm-based selection.  Grant collaborators are identifying ten farmers to host on-farm selection plots in the spring and fall of 2014.  A semi-structured interview is being drafted to gather information on farmer’s ideotype of wheat and ancient grains.  Crosses and early generation populations have been made to establish farm plots in the spring and fall of 2014.  Thirty three F2 winter wheat populations were planted for field increase during October 2013. Seven winter spelt, 10 einkorn, six spring wheat, two emmer and 24 winter wheat crosses were made in the greenhouse during 2013.

The University of Vermont continued the production of F3 spring wheat populations in on-farm trials. There are 10 populations that seed were harvested from in 2013 and this seed will be distributed to participating farms in 2014.

5. A data-sharing system for on-farm selection is established and used among states. A sustainable model of collaboration is developed so that on-farm selection can continue after the termination of the grant (throughout, to be completed before harvest 2015).

Project collaborators have had productive discussions with the Bauta Family Initiative on Canadian Seed Security, whose participants are also coordinating farmer-based selection of wheat.  Future collaborations with the Bauta Family Initiative can allow further dissemination of wheat lines developed through farmer-based selection in the Northeast United States.

Accomplishments/Milestones

Information about the project and contact information for project personnel was given to farmers attending the Northern Grain Growers Association meeting in March and attendees at field days in NY (Aurora, Willsboro, Ithaca), VT (Borderview, Bridport, New Haven, and ME (Stillwater). Contacts through a FarmShow magazine article on ancient grains published in January resulted in recruitment of additional cooperators for on-farm selection trials. Webinars were created for a related OREI project and presentations given at the NOFA-NY conference in January, the Maine grain growers’ conference in February, the NGGA 2013 conference in March and the NOFA field crops field day in March.

The first seed production workshop held Feb 28th 2013 and there were 25 attendees. It included presentations on NY State seed production requirements and testing and a farmer panel discussion on crop management techniques and seed cleaning equipment essential for the production of high quality, clean seed. This workshop was video recorded and will be turned into a webinar series for farmers who could not come to Ithaca, NY to attend the workshop in person. Sources of seed (organic and untreated) for varieties of interest to organic farmers have been compiled, revealing a continuing lack of choice and quality of seed for commercial organic production in the Northeast. Some varieties are available from Canada but several farmers have complained about shipping and customs regulations that make purchases difficult. Other varieties are only available from non-local sources, adding transportation costs to the seed prices. There are a few other sources of unlabeled seed that has variable quality, often contaminated with weed seeds. At this point there are only unlabeled sources of spelt and emmer and no sources of commercial quantities of einkorn seed.

A SARE advisory board conference call was held on March 18^th. Agenda items discussed included:

• Seed workshop and seed production participants, how best to recruit people and offer technical support?
• Seed source guide from the University of Maine
• Seed borne disease testing and treatment options
• Distributing populations to interested farmers for 2014 planting and selection workshop at a farm in the summer of 2014
• Field days for selection on-farm at participating farms with more area farmers before harvest 2013.
• Documentation of impact for organic seed production in the northeast
• Data-sharing options

On-farm selection methods:

Crosses have been made for on-farm selection from parents demonstrating desirable characteristics for organic production.  F3 populations of winter wheat and spring wheat will be bulked and placed on farms for selection.  Winter wheat F3 populations will be planted on-farm in the fall of 2014. Spring wheat F3 populations may be ready for on-farm planting in 2014.  F3 spelt populations will be ready for on-farm planting in the fall of 2015. F4 populations of einkorn and emmer will be ready for planting in 2015.  Five to six entries (varieties or populations) will be replicated two to three times in the selected fields.  The same populations established on-farm will be grown at regional experiment stations in Freeville, NY and/or Willsboro, NY to serve as regional comparisons. A complete protocol has been developed but is not elaborated here due to space limitations. Details are available on request.

Seed quality and disease prevention:

Seed treatments have been researched, however, no commercially available product or experimental treatment was deemed sufficiently promising to put in on-farm trials this year. Cornell (Lisa Kissing Kucek) developed a literature review on loose smut organic treatment and presence detection methods.  Grant collaborators have identified loose smut as the most problematic seedborne disease for Northeast organic growers, and have decided to address target SARE grant efforts on scouting of seed crops for the disease and developing a method to test seed for disease.  The group is collaborating with Dr. Gary Bergstrom at Cornell University to conduct any disease testing research.

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

We continue to hear from many farmers who are interested in participating in the project. Ten farmers are being recruited for on-farm selection trials in 2014. Three farmers are increasing seed of einkorn and emmer germplasm to be available for these and future trials.  Through project presentations and field day demonstrations of seed cleaning equipment (that show the amount of weed seed and other contaminants in farm-grown seed), farmers are increasingly becoming aware of the vital need for high-quality crop seed production in the Northeast. Several farmers have complained about weed seed contamination in purchased seed and that the selection of varieties is limited. Many are selling wholesale and may be able to benefit from increased retail or seed sale options. Eighteen farmers have currently indicated that they would like to participate in on-farm selection trials when breeding populations are available.

Collaborators: