Fort Collins, Colo. – PlainsGold® varieties took the top six spots in the 2020 Colorado Winter Wheat Variety Survey, conducted by the National Agricultural Statistics Service, Mountain Regional Field Office. According to the survey, Langin was the most popular winter wheat variety in Colorado, planted on 20.1 percent of the winter wheat acres.
Langin, a hard red winter wheat, was developed by the Colorado State University (CSU) Wheat Breeding and Genetics Program and released by Colorado Wheat Research Foundation (CWRF) in 2016 under their PlainsGold® brand. Langin is known for its very high yield potential and stripe rust resistance, along with very good milling and baking quality. The variety, known to thrive in Southeast Colorado, is named after Ed Langin, who served as both superintendent of the Plainsman Research Center in Walsh and as the Southeast Area Cooperative Extension and Research Director for many years.
This was the first year Langin took the first place spot, which was previously held by Byrd for five years in a row. Langin also holds the top ranking for yield in the three-year average for Dryland Variety Performance plots conducted by CSU’s Crops Testing program.
Avery took second place at 18.8 percent, followed by Byrd at 12.8 percent, Incline AX at 4.4 percent, Hatcher at 4.1 percent, and Brawl CL Plus at 2.8 percent. Colorado wheat producers also reported 32.8 percent of their seed planted was certified seed.
Incline AX and Crescent AX made up 6 percent of the crop being planted to the new CoAXium® Wheat Production System (WPS), a herbicide tolerance technology based the on the AXigen® trait, developed at CSU and owned by CWRF. CoAXium® WPS, marketed through a partnership between CWRF, Limagrain Cereal Seeds and Albaugh, LLC, provides control of winter annual grassy weeds such as feral rye, downy bromegrass and jointed goatgrass through the use of Aggressor herbicides applied to varieties with tolerance to the herbicide.
The PlainsGold brand, introduced in 2012, carries some the most well-known and innovative winter wheat varieties available today in the High Plains. The PlainsGold brand, varieties and AXigen® trait are owned by the farmer-governed Colorado Wheat Research Foundation. Royalties from the sale of PlainsGold seed support the public wheat breeding program at Colorado State University, which further enhances the funding provided by the wheat assessment paid by all Colorado wheat farmers.