Grainswest - Winter 2019

Winter 2019 Grains West 26 FEATURE Scott Keller New Norway-area farmer and agronomist GrainsWest: What will it take to get barley yield and agronomic performance in line with other crops? Scott Keller: Especially for guys who are new to growing barley, figuring out the right management is crucial. They will be planting on virgin barley ground, so the potential for strong yields is excellent if they approach it properly. On our farm, we’ve seen a 25 bu/ac increase in barley yield over 15 years, and we know that’s entirely due to management because new varieties are rare. GW: How urgent is the need to increase barley yield, and what are the barriers? SK: It’s important because if farmers don’t make money with barley, they won’t grow it. The biggest barrier now is maltsters resisting change and not letting us use plant growth regulators. An option like Ethrel can improve standability and lower protein levels if applied at the right time and the right rate. Unfortunately, if you spray it at the wrong time, you can damage your crop, and because it’s not idiot-proof, the maltsters prohibit it. GW: How vigorous is the push to increase barley yield in Canada? SK: In one respect, it might be too vigorous. It sounds like there is a push to breed dual-purpose varieties that yield like feed but have malt quality. As a malt grower, that concerns me, as it may lead to more people growing malt and driving the price down. It could also mean that less of my barley makes the cut, and profitability in this business is all about rate of acceptance. GW: Describe the work you’re doing to enhance barley yield. SK: One of the biggest changes we made was no longer growing barley on barley. When we switched to a barley- canola-barley rotation, we improved barley yield by seven bu/ ac, and extending it to a two-year break between barley crops added another seven bu/ac. We then found that if one of the non-barley crops was a pulse, we garnered seven more bu/ac. So, just by having a two-year break from barley and including a pulse crop, you can enhance yield by 21 bu/ac.