54 | Advancing Seed in Alberta Canola The Alberta Regional Variety Advisory Committee (ARVAC) does not take any responsibility for accuracy or validity of the canola performance data. Diseases, Seed Treatment and Seed Testing •  Disease ratings are compiled from various data sources in Alberta and other prairie provinces. •  Treat rye and flax seed to control seedling blight, cereal seed for smuts and fusarium, canola seed to control flea beetle, seedling blight and the seed borne phase of virulent blackleg. •  Wheat with Moderately Susceptible (MS) or Susceptible (S) ratings for common bunt should be treated with a systemic fungicide as low levels of infection will restrict marketability. • Refer to labels for maximum storage periods of treated seed. •  Treated seed must not be fed to livestock, poultry or wildlife, and cannot be sold for feed. •  Leaf spot ratings in the wheat tables are a combination of resistance to tan spot and septoria leaf disease complex. •  Fusarium head blight (FHB), caused by Fusarium graminearum and other species, is an increasing problem in Alberta. The relative ranking of crops from most susceptible to least susceptible is durum wheat, spring and winter wheat, triticale, barley and oat. Corn is a host of F. graminearum and can serve as a source of infection when residue is left on the ground. FHB infection is highly influenced by the environment and heading date. A resistant (R) tolerance rating for FHB does not equate to immunity. Under severe epidemics, all varieties will sustain damage. All seed should be tested for the presence of FHB and treated with an appropriate seed treatment. Producers are advised to choose varieties with the best FHB tolerance whenever possible and always use best management practices to slow the spread of this disease (please see http://www1.agric.gov. ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/agdex5210). •  Seed used in the Alberta Regional Variety Testing program comes with a “fusarium-free” certificate and trials are inspected for FHB during the growing season. Laboratories participating in the FHB testing program: • 20/20 Seed Labs Ltd., Nisku, AB: 1-877-420-2099 • BioVision Seed Research Ltd., Edmonton, AB: 1-800-952-5407 •  BioVision Seed Research Ltd., Grande Prairie, AB: 1-877-532-8889 • Parkland Laboratories, Red Deer, AB: 403-342-0404 • Precision Seed Testing, Beaverlodge, AB: 780-354-2259 • Seed Check Technologies Inc., Leduc, AB: 780-980-8324 Agronomic Practices Used in Small Plot Trials Small plot trials are conducted using the following best agronomic practices: •  N, P, K and S fertilizer rates are based on soil test results for 1.25x the area average yield goal of the past 4 years, as reported in the AFSC Yield Alberta publication. •  All wheat, barley and oat seed is treated with Cruiser Maxx Vibrance Cereals. Triticale is treated with Dividend XL RTA. Flax seed is not treated. •  Seeding rates are adjusted for TKW and germination to reach the following target plant populations listed in Table 1.0. Crop Wheat Class CWRS CPSR CNHR CWSP Durum CWSWS Winter Wheat Target Plant Population (plants/sqft) 31 31 31 31 28 31 33 Crop Barley Oat Triticale Flax Class 2 row 6 row Brown Yellow Target Plant Population (plants/sqft) 25 25 28 29 75 84  Table 1.0 Target Plant Populations used to determine Seeding Rates •  Foliar fungicides are not applied to the trials which allows for testing genetic differences between cultivars for their disease resistance. The application of a foliar fungicide under conditions for disease development could significantly increase yields on some cultivars. Abbreviations and Rating Scales • TKW = Thousand kernel weight. • XX = Insufficient data to describe. •  Maturity: VE = Very Early, E = Early, M = Medium, L = Late, VL = Very Late, XL = Extremely Late. •  Resistance Ratings: VP = Very Poor, P = Poor, F = Fair, G = Good, VG = Very Good, EX = Excellent. •  Disease Tolerance Ratings: R = Resistant, MR = Moderately Resistant, I = Intermediate, MS = Moderately Susceptible, S = Susceptible. •  Kernel Type (winter wheat): HR = Hard Red, SR = Soft Red, HW = Hard White, SW = Soft White. • Awns (wheat): Y = Yes (bearded), N = No (awnless). • Awn Type (barley): R = Rough, S = Smooth, SS = Semi-smooth. • Seed Size (flax): S = Small, M = Medium, L = Large. Other Variety Information For additional information, including varieties not listed in this publication, please call the Alberta Ag-Info Centre toll-free at 310- FARM (3276) or check the Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development website, Ropin’ the Web at: www.agriculture.alberta.ca/rvt. Fact sheet information and tables prepared, reviewed and approved by: Alberta Regional Variety Advisory Committee (ARVAC) Data preparation and fact sheet coordination by: Alex Fedko Coordinator RVT/Crop Research Technologist Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development