The primary objective of the soft red winter wheat breeding program at the University of Kentucky is to enhance the profitability of wheat production by developing and releasing improved wheat varieties. In Kentucky this means early maturity, lodging resistance, disease resistance, spring freeze tolerance, along with high yield and test weight are among the traits of interest.

Year in and year out, diseases are the most yield-limiting factor. These diseases include powdery mildew, leaf blotch, glume blotch, leaf rust, and head scab. The breeding program is built around a combination of pedigree and bulk methods, with F3:5 lines being the first generation to be yield tested.

Support for the breeding program is generously provided by the Kentucky Small Grain Promotion Council through a checkoff program.

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University of Kentucky, College of Agriculture
Last Updated: February 29, 2012