From unpredictable weather, to evolving disease threats, there are numerous risks to crop profitability; some of which can be managed,
or at least mitigated, with careful variety selection, says our arable technical manager, Ron Granger.

Yield remains a top priority when choosing what to grow, but the key is selecting proven varieties that deliver “yield security” across multiple, often very different seasons, by combining yield potential with agronomics and disease resistance, suited to specific situations.
Yield security is something Limagrain is providing, with a range of exciting hard wheat varieties, including LG Typhoon, LG Beowulf, LG Rebellion, and two new Candidates for 2025, LG Challenger and LG Defiance.

LG Typhoon has been on the RL for three years, and has proven popular with many agronomists and farmers, especially those drilling early and with wider-row
regen-type systems. It has an excellent disease resistance profile, especially for yellow rust (9) and Septoria tritici (7.2). This, combined with orange wheat blossom midge (OWBM) resistance, good specific weight and agronomic characteristics of a slow, prostrate, growth habit, and high tillering ability, all suit such situations.
These characteristics make LG Typhoon a great all-round package, but it should not just be considered as an early drilling variety. It has proven to be a great all-rounder, showing good results when drilled later, affording extra flexibility should the weather disrupt plans.

LG Beowulf takes genetic gains further, building on its strong Costello x Gleam parentage. It offers robust disease resistance, rated 9 for yellow rust, and 6.6 for Septoria tritici, stiff straw, strong tillering, OWBM resistance and excellent grain quality, particularly specific weight. LG Beowulf has all the key agronomic attributes for securing yield potential, with proven performance across different situations, soil types, drilling dates, and regions. It is a variety that offers great all-round flexibility, suiting most on-farm situations, and is certainly one for consideration this Autumn. It also has faster Spring growth than LG Typhoon, which could make it a better option for those concerned about black-grass and wanting to maximise crop competition. Another variety with variety with growth is LG Rebellion. Although not on the RL, it has performed consistently well over the past three years in official trials and Limagrain remains fully committed to it for the coming Autumn, confident that it offers a differential package to many other hard feed wheats. LG Rebellion capitalises on its KWS Extase parentage, offering more rapid Spring growth, high untreated yield potential, and good grain characteristics, with the bonus of Pch1 eyespot resistance.

Early maturity is a particularly valuable asset for spreading harvest date and the potential for land preparation or an early entry into oilseed rape.
LG Rebellion is more suited to the main and late drilling window, performing well on all soil types, but probably warrants special consideration for more testing, lighter and medium-bodied soils where varieties with faster growth, earlier maturity, and good specific weight are considered beneficial. It also suits growers wanting to sow a hard wheat after late-lifted root crops, veg,
and maize. Yellow rust is something to watch out for on-farm, but recent seasons show all varieties – even those with the highest resistance ratings – should be monitored, given the pathogens constantly evolving nature.

Raising the Bar

The two exciting new Candidate varieties, LG Challenger and LG Defiance, promise to raise the yield potential bar further, backed up by high untreated yields. They mark the latest results of ongoing Limagrain breeding development, bringing new hard wheats to the UK market.

LG Defiance builds on its Gleam x KWS Extase parentage, offering the second-highest treated yield of all Candidate varieties (111); slightly ahead of three-way cross, LG Challenger (108). LG Defiance is more of a KWS Extase-plant type, but with a slower Spring growth, suiting the mainstream to late drilling window. 

LG Challenger, in contrast, sits tighter to the ground and tillers better, which is likely to make it a more suited option for earlier drilling and Northern regions, based on limited data.

Both have OWBM resistance and good grain quality, although LG Challenger has a slight edge on specific weight and Hagberg.
With hard feed wheats accounting for around half the UK wheat market and likely to feature heavily again this Autumn, selecting a variety that fits your situation and offers yield security is key to maximising returns, whatever next season throws at us!

This article is featured in the June 2025 edition of GatePost.  Click here to read the full edition. 

Regenerative farming has become a bit of a polarising subject amongst growers in recent years. There are those who reject the term completely and others who have embraced it in its entirety.  Generally, growers are adapting Regen ideas and practices in a way that fits their existing system, with a watchful eye on yields and overall profitability. Equally, breeders and machinery manufacturers alike are paying attention to this trend and innovating accordingly.

“The question we often get asked is whether we are creating the right varieties for regenerative farming systems,” says Ron Granger, arable technical manager at Limagrain.

Though untreated yield figures and disease resistance ratings are useful, there’s no data on varieties grown in wide rows and established by direct-drilling, both of which are typical of the approach. Similarly, the use of inter-row cultivations or companion cropping with wheat may require plants with a specific growth habit and speed of development.

Ron remarked, “What was interesting was the finding that 43% of growers we surveyed in a recent re-gen poll said the RL data isn’t extensive enough for selecting varieties for these systems. It was a real ‘could do better’ moment.”

Factors like consistency, yield and disease resistance have always been integral to the development of new varieties. These are even more important when you consider a variety suitable for regen. Ron also lists attributes such as tillering ability and plant growth habit as well as rooting and grain quality as key considerations.

Cultivation is a basic tenant of regen practice and increasingly farmers are looking for varieties that work with their latest machinery purchase and suit the no or minimal tillage approach.

“From HORSCH’s perspective, it is encouraging to see seed breeders developing and trialling new seed varieties specifically designed for direct drilling and minimum tillage practices. While HORSCH offers a comprehensive range of seeding and tillage equipment, recent trends have shown a shift towards low-disturbance and direct drilling methods. As a result, the outcomes we have observed with LG Typhoon are particularly promising.“

Limagrain have been proactive in testing varieties on farm in a Regen situation. This has resulted in internal endorsements for LG Typhoon and LG Redwald, with the newer varieties LG Beowulf and LG Rebellion also under testing and in the running for consideration for the future. 

The AHDB Recommended List has traditionally served as a catalogue for wheat growers when it comes to selecting varieties for the coming season. Breeder’s compete for the top rankings in this publication each year. With increasingly tough growing conditions, ever tighter margins on farm and stricter legislation on nutrition and chemical inputs. Some farmers take a more granular approach when it comes to varietal selection, 43% of growers in a survey conducted by Limagrain said the RL data isn’t extensive enough for selecting varieties.

“Whilst recommended varieties are often suitable for the more conventional farming systems, there’s a case to be made for selecting varieties tailored towards less orthodox systems” suggests Ron Granger, LG’s arable technical manager.

As a plant breeder at the forefront of food production, we believe good genetics are the backbone of our agricultural economy in the UK, and it appears farmers agree! We received 900 responses to our survey of wheat growers, with further thoughts and ideas gathered during focus groups and stakeholder interviews it was made abundantly clear that disease and pest resistance is key when selecting a variety. Other agronomic features such as good grain quality and high, stable yields were also highlighted.

Ron Granger – Arable Technical Manager

Senior wheat breeder, Phil Tailby confirms, “this is very much aligned with the strategy and key objectives of the Limagrain breeding programme in the development of new varieties.

LG Rebellion, despite its unlisted status has demonstrated a very consistent high treated yield over both seasons and regions (UK 106%) This is backed up by an impressive untreated yield (93%), performing consistently across three contrasting high pressure disease years. Although the variety has a good disease resistance profile and has shown very high untreated yield, Yellow Rust was seen in some regions on the variety in 2024 and Limagrain’s technical team suggest that this should be monitored, and if present, treated accordingly to maintain high yield potential on farm.

LG Rebellion has the desirable attribute of early maturity, breaking the trend for later maturing varieties delivering the highest yields. With increasingly unpredictable weather patterns, and the shift in climactic conditions over the past few harvests, this has proved a great attribute on farm. The opportunity to spread both harvest period and workload, offers growers increased flexibility when it comes to things like land preparation and future cropping opportunities.  

LG Rebellion has many of the desirable attributes of key consideration to growers. A high yielding feed wheat that demonstrates strong and consistent performance on farm, backed up by an earlier maturity and with excellent grain quality characteristics of a high hagberg and specific weight. On top of this, the variety has a wide drilling window and shows good results from October sowing onwards through to December, giving growers flexibility for sowing after root crops and maize

 Limagrain considers this variety worthy of its place both on farm and in the market 

#JOINTHEREBELLION

Growers looking for a strong-performing winter wheat that they can sow late this autumn and harvest early next year, should consider the hard Group 4 variety, LG Rebellion, from Limagrain Field Seeds UK.

The variety builds on many of the agronomic strengths that made KWS Extase such a popular choice on farms, but brings with it higher yield potential and even earlier maturity.

“It’s a high yielding hard feed wheat and has shown very consistent high yield potential across testing seasons and regions, with additional desirable agronomic characteristics,” says Limagrain Field Seeds arable technical manager, Ron Granger.

Early maturity is a particularly valuable characteristic of LG Rebellion, offering growers in many parts of the country, north and south, a way to spread harvest workloads or provide an early entry for following crops, such as oilseed rape, he says.

LG Rebellion has strong tillering ability and good spring vigour, and suits drilling around the traditional October window. However, it can also perform well when sown later, into November, providing conditions allow, therefore could make a good choice for growers looking to sow wheat after later harvested potatoes, sugar beet, or maize, Mr Granger says.

“While LG Beowulf remains the highest yielding variety in late drilling situations on the present AHDB Recommended List, there is also a good opportunity for extended drilling dates with LG Rebellion, because it’s so quick out of the blocks regarding its vigour in the spring. It produces strong tillers and responds very well to PGR programmes.”

Another key strength of LG Rebellion is its consistently high untreated yield. The 2024 AHDB provisional harvest results (published 26 September) show that LG Rebellion delivered the second highest mean untreated yield over the four years to this harvest (2020-2024), at 117% of control.

This is partly due to an excellent disease resistance profile, especially for Brown Rust and Septoria, plus the variety also offers Pch1 eyespot resistance, which will be particularly important for growers looking to grow it in a second wheat situation, says Mr Granger. Indeed, LG Rebellion has performed well in second wheat situations, he notes.

Grain quality is excellent, offering a high Hagberg and specific weight, although he reminds growers that it is a hard Group 4 feed wheat with ukp export potential, rather than a Group 2 quality wheat like its parent.

“It’s a KWS Extase derivative with 4% higher yield, offering yields comparable with the best hard feed wheats commercially available.

“But choosing a variety should never be just about yield,” he adds. “While yield is important, it’s also important to consider all of the other attributes that a variety offers growers on farm, whether that’s variety positioning, early maturity, disease resistance, or grain quality.”

LG Rebellion spreads workloads on Cambs farm

Cambridgeshire farmer Michael Brown grew 20 ha of LG Rebellion for the first time last season, utilising its early maturity to help spread harvest workloads on the 600 ha farm.

The variety was one of the last to be drilled before the weather broke in the middle of October last year, but despite that, it was easily the first to reach harvest, which this summer was on 30 July.

“The LG Rebellion established well last autumn, but it was in the spring that it grew away really quickly,” he remarks. “Throughout the spring, the variety was easily the most forward of all the wheats I grew.”

Mr Brown’s LG Rebellion also went on to produce the farm’s joint highest winter wheat yield last season, averaging 10.5 t/ha, with a specific weight of 78 kg/hl.

On the back of that strong performance, he is increasing the area of LG Rebellion for this season, with 30 ha being grown for seed, and another 30 ha as a commercial crop.

Alongside LG Rebellion‘s early maturity, Mr Brown also values its strong disease profile, as reflected by the high untreated yield.

“We grow a lot of crops for seed, so generally like to maintain a robust fungicide programme, but it’s good to have the varietal resistance as an insurance policy in the event that the weather prevents us getting on with sprays at the optimum time. There may be scope to reduce inputs slightly on the cleaner varieties, such as LG Rebellion, in the future, so that’s something we may look at doing.”

LG Rebellion

•   –>  Hard Group 4 feed wheat with consistent high yield potential
•   –>  Consistent yield performance over multiple seasons and across regions
•   –>  Very high untreated yield
•   –>  Good disease resistance profile, including Pch1 eyespot resistance
•   –>  Strong tillering with good spring vigour
•   –>  Very early maturity
•   –>  Suitable for drilling from early October onwards
•   –>  Excellent grain quality – ukp export potential
•   –>  A true replacement for growers of KWS Extase and its agronomic type
•   –>  Has shown good black-grass competition in external trials

The first year of growing LG Typhoon proved to be a resounding success for Leicestershire farm and contracting business, F J Garner & Sons.

The variety out-yielded other wheats on the farm by around 25%, and produced a good grain sample, with big, bold grains, despite very challenging growing conditions throughout much of the year.

Extending to 420 ha of land, plus another 120 ha of contracting for neighbours, across a mixture of soil types, the farm tried 9.3 ha of LG Typhoon last year on the recommendation of seed merchant, Saxon Agriculture, explains Peter Garner.

“We like to stay one step ahead of the curve by growing new varieties, otherwise there is a risk you get left behind. It was only one field last year, so wasn’t a particularly big gamble.”

But it was a decision that paid off, after the crop, which followed oilseed rape and received biosolids prior to being direct drilled on 20 September, yielded an average of 11.4 t/ha, well above all other varieties grown last season.

“The crop was initially a bit slow to get going last autumn, but once it did, it started to look good, then very good in the spring.

“By harvest, the LG Typhoon yielded really well. I did see 16 t/ha at one point on the combine yield monitor, and certainly many parts of the field were typically doing 11-14 t/ha. Inevitably, the headlands did pull down the overall average slightly.

“It’s not the highest yield we’ve ever had, but in a year where everything else was yielding nearer 7-9.2 t/ha, it was head and shoulders above the rest.”

The crop produced a good grain sample too, with a thousand grain weight of 53 g; the highest of all wheat varieties grown last season, Mr Garner adds.

Disease-wise, it stayed clean throughout the growing season and looked a good colour in the spring, he notes.

Following the strong performance in 2023/24, the farm is growing LG Typhoon again for the coming season and plans to sow another 20 ha this autumn, which will be direct drilled around the third week of September, weather permitting.

The 2023/24 season proved to be a stern test for most crops and varieties, but third generation Staffordshire farmer, Rob Atkin, is pleased with the resilience LG Typhoon has shown.

Rob Atkin

Last year was the 380 ha mixed arable and beef farm’s first time for growing LG Typhoon, with a 6 ha field sown to assess the variety’s performance.

“We saw LG Typhoon in Agrii trials in 2022 and were really impressed with how it looked; it was clean, stood well, and has relatively high yield potential,” says Mr Atkin. “We also try to pick varieties that are competitive in the spring against bromes and black-grass.”

“LG Typhoon seemed to fit the bill and suit our heavy land, as well as being a good second wheat performer, so we decided to give it a try.”

Given the wet conditions last autumn, the field, which followed forage maize, was drilled later than Mr Atkin planned, on 17 October. “We got the maize off, but then had 65 mm (2.5”) of rain, which meant we couldn’t get back on the land for a while, and had to plough and combination drill instead of our usual minimal tillage. Normally we’d start drilling in the second week of September and be all done within a month, so it was right at the end of our usual window.”

Despite the late start, which was followed by an exceptionally wet autumn and winter, Mr Atkin says the LG Typhoon established well and appeared to be less affected by the tough conditions than other varieties grown on the farm, which included Graham, Oxford and KWS Extase.

“It was a little slow to get going, probably due to the cold, wet soils, but once it did, it withstood the wet conditions really well. Disease-wise, it has also been impressive; it was one of the cleanest varieties on the farm last season, despite some others breaking down to Septoria later in the season.”

Crops stay clean

That cleanliness is even more impressive given the generally high disease pressure last year, and the fact that Mr Atkin employs a reduced two-spray fungicide regime on most wheats, which does not follow conventional timings.

“We want to utilise varietal resistance and extend the cover fungicides provide, so essentially both sprays went on mid-way through the conventional timings. The first was applied at the equivalent of T1.5, while the second was at T2.5. While we are reducing the number of sprays, we do use robust chemistry at those timings.”

The first treatment was 0.8 L/ha Cleancrop Vulture (prothioconazole + tebuconazole) plus 1 L/ha Phoenix (folpet), with additional micronutrients and trace elements. This was followed four weeks later by 1.3 L/ha Boogie Xpro (bixafen, prothioconazole + spiroxamine), again with trace elements.

“The odd field did need an additional T3 last season, but we stuck with the two-spray approach on the LG Typhoon, and it looked really clean all the way through.

This resilience meant LG Typhoon was one of the best performing varieties on the farm this harvest, although Mr Atkin says all winter wheat yields were around 2.5 t/ha (1 t/acre) below normal, due to the wet conditions from autumn to spring.

Increasing the area

Mr Atkin is keen to give LG Typhoon another go this season, and is increasing the area of the variety to 20 ha, which he hopes to sow by the end of September. “One field will be a first wheat after oilseed rape, but we’ll also try the variety in a second wheat position to see how it performs there.”

He also hopes to be able to avoid the need for the plough this autumn, and get back to a minimal tillage system, based around a shallow disc-based cultivation after harvest, to work the top 10-20 mm of soil, which is allowed to green-up, before spraying off with glyphosate and then drilling with the farm’s Amazone Cayena tine drill.

Other varieties going in the ground this autumn include Oxford, Bamford, Crusoe, Fitzroy and a 5ha trial area of LG Beowulf, which joined the AHDB Recommended List this year.

“A lot of people have been raving about LG Beowulf and it looks good in trials, so I’m keen to give it a try on our farm. We’re growing it as a first wheat after maize or oilseed rape this season, and if it performs, we’ll look to multiply up the area next year with home-saved seed.”

Mr Atkin concludes: “It has been really hard to evaluate varieties this season given the weather, but from what we’ve seen, LG Typhoon has done well and seemed to cope better with the conditions, so we’re keen to see how it, and other varieties, perform in – hopefully – a more normal season.”

Demonstrating flexibility

Limagrain Field Seeds UK’s Ron Granger says LG Typhoon has clearly shown its great flexibility for drilling date in the 2024 season.

“Although now established as a true early drilling wheat, the variety should not be ‘pigeon-holed’ into this one category,” he says.

“The variety has demonstrated a consistency of yield performance from its agronomic characteristics, to perform in both the standard and later drilling dates, showing a robustness from its plant development, and great disease resistance profile.

“For growers seeking security for on-farm performance in challenging years of high disease pressure, then LG Typhoon is a variety worthy of consideration.”

•   –>  Atkin Farms, Uttoxeter, Staffs
•   –>  380 ha (930-acre), mixed arable and grassland family farm
•   –>  Predominantly heavy copper marl soils
•   –>  Cropping includes winter wheat, milling oats, feed and malting barley, winter beans, forage maize,
•          oilseed rape, and cover crops (trialled ahead of maize)
•   –>  101 ha of grassland, home to 300-350 Belgium Blue cattle
•   –>  Predominantly min-till since 2003, plus some direct drilling where possible
•   –>  Strong focus on protecting water quality (working with South Staffs Water)
•   –>  Annual rainfall usually 890-900 mm – 1,200 mm in 2023

LG Beowulf – the highest yielding wheat on the 2024-25 AHDB Recommended List

Ron Granger shares his views on what the variety offers and where it fits on farm:

Arable Technical Manager

When breeders cross two varieties, we know what we want to accomplish with regards to the complimentary attributes both parent varieties offer – genetically and agronomically – in the progeny.

LG Beowulf reflects this approach, as a cross between two very successful commercial varieties; (Costello x Gleam). Recently, we have seen several very high yielding wheats added to the RL, but unfortunately, although gaining commercial market share, they have not offered the all-round desirable agronomic package that many growers wish for in a perfect world.

LG Beowulf bucks the trend, offering the highest UK treated yield potential sitting at 106.2%, and one of the best agronomic packages available, combined with great flexibility within the rotation – it’s a fantastic package!

High yields are important for maximising profit, but more than this, a grower needs to know that these yields will be delivered consistently every season; and this is exactly what LG Beowulf does.

It performs extremely well both as a first wheat and in the more testing second wheat situation and is suitable for all soil types. However, LG Beowulf should be grown on more moisture retentive soils to achieve maximum yield potential, as there are better variety ideotypes for the more testing, lighter, drought prone soil situations.

LG Beowulf offers a very good disease resistance profile, especially for the key disease challenges of yellow rust (9) and Septoria tritici (6.7). The variety also delivers a very high untreated yield (91%); a consequence of its superb disease resistance in combination with its straw strength. LG Beowulf offers very good straw strength – combining a rating of 8 untreated, with an 8 rating with PGR treatments applied. Offering Orange Wheat Blossom Midge resistance is an important benefit, especially for growers in the more drought prone regions of the southeast. It’s a genetic IPM offering that should not be underestimated.

LG Beowulf can be drilled early and onwards through into the very late drilling slot, if the season dictates, giving growers a security and flexibility of drilling date, that not all varieties exhibit. The variety does have a slightly later maturity, but widening the harvest date is useful as an insurance against erratic weather patterns. Spread your risk on farm by having early maturing varieties alongside later maturing ones.

LG Beowulf has the benefit of a high specific weight combined with a high Hagberg. A high specific weight is one of the best characteristics to ensure high yield potential is maintained in erratic, seasonal weather conditions.

“There is no such thing as a perfect variety, however, LG Beowulf comes close!”

It offers a comprehensive agronomy package along with very high yield potential in the hard feed wheat sector; desirable characteristics both on-farm and for the market.

Click here to download the LG Beowulf Technical Sheet

A large estate in the northeast of England, has turned to wheat variety LG Typhoon as part of its drive to build a more sustainable regenerative cropping system.

The in-house farming operation of County Durham-based Raby Estates, began conversion to direct drilling in 2018 and is striving to reduce the use of artificial inputs where possible, without compromising on the quality and quantity of crops produced.

“We’re trying to move away from growing high input varieties, so are primarily looking for those that offer a robust disease package, good standing power and suitability for our direct drilling system,” according to farm manager Philip Vickers.

“Direct drilling in northern England is not something you want to be doing into November, so I also look for varieties that suit the early drilling slot. From what we’ve seen so far, LG Typhoon seems to fit our requirements well.”

Strong performance

In 2022, the farm grew around 32 ha (80 acres) of LG Typhoon, alongside several other varieties, but Mr Vickers has been so impressed with its agronomics, ease of management and yield performance, that he has increased this to 100 ha for 2023/24.

The LG Typhoon averaged an excellent 9.4-9.6 t/ha.

“Agronomy-wise, LG Typhoon was problem-free. It established quickly in the autumn, got away well in the spring, and was relatively early to harvest, tight behind Graham.”

Robust disease profile

Strong Septoria resistance is a must-have for all winter wheat varieties grown on the farm, as the disease remains the number one yield-robber in high pressure seasons.

With a Septoria rating of 7.2, backed up by a combination of genetics that are different to those in other RL varieties, LG Typhoon has a distinct advantage over others.

Perfect fit for regen systems

LG Typhoon offers attributes that make it ideally suited to strip tillage/ direct drilling, regenerative crop establishment systems, that often feature wider rows.

•      –>     High yielding, consistent & resilient variety, that delivers across seasons & rotations
       –>     A prostrate growth habit with a slower plant development through the autumn & winter months
       –>     High tillering variety that utilises the space from wider rows often associated with direct-drilling
       –>     Very good disease resistance profile reflected in its high untreated yield
       –>     Exceptional disease ratings for yellow rust (9) & Septoria (7.2)
       –>     Good standing
       –>     OWBM resistance
       –>     Excellent performance as a second wheat
•  

• ---

•  

• LG Typhoon is a high yielding, consistent & resilient variety, that delivers across seasons & rotations!

Hard feed wheats account for more than half of the UK winter wheat market, and will undoubtedly feature heavily again in many cropping plans this autumn, as growers look to bounce back from the rain-hit 2023/24 season.

Winter wheat remains the highest gross margin crop on most arable farms, with yield still regarded as being ‘king’ for maximising returns. But, achieving high yields when faced with more extreme and unpredictable weather, alongside the many other agronomic challenges, requires varieties with strong agronomics and proven, consistent, performance across multiple seasons, says Limagrain UK.

“Farmers are increasingly looking for security on-farm,” says the firm’s arable technical manager, Ron Granger. “You need a variety that delivers the right agronomics, as well as high yield.”

It is something Limagrain UK is providing, with a range of exciting new hard wheat varieties coming through its UK breeding programme, including LG Typhoon (launched two years ago), newcomer this year, LG Beowulf, and 2024 RL Candidate variety, LG Rebellion.

Genetic gains

These varieties, and two others currently in National List trials that will hopefully progress as Candidates for 2025, are the latest results of several years of ongoing breeding development, says Limagrain UK wheat breeder, Phil Tailby.

“When the UK market started shifting towards hard wheats several years ago, it took a few years for breeding programmes to adapt and new hard wheat varieties to come through. But, by using powerful breeding tools, such as marker-assisted and genomic selection, we have been able to increase selection intensity, improve selection accuracy, and reduce the time needed to develop the next generation.

“This ultimately drives faster varietal improvements, delivering the traits that growers want and need in modern wheat varieties.”

LG Typhoon for example, has an excellent disease resistance profile, especially for yellow rust (rated 9) and Septoria tritici (7.2), plus it has orange wheat blossom midge (OWBM) resistance, good specific weight, and a slow, prostrate growth habit that suits both early sowing and wide-row, direct drilling situations.

“It joined the Recommended List in 2022 with a range of agronomic attributes that are beneficial to farmers,” says Mr Granger. “These characteristics have seen it deliver excellent consistency across different seasons and regions, and suitability for the on-farm placement we have advised.”

LG Typhoon’s suitability for early drilling could be particularly pertinent this year, given the likely desire by growers to avoid a repeat of last autumn, when many drilling plans were halted by heavy rain during October onwards, he notes.

Newcomer LG Beowulf takes genetic gains on a stage further, building on its strong Costello x Gleam parentage, Mr Granger continues.

It delivers a range of desirable agronomic characteristics that make it the highest yielding variety on the RL, with proven performance across a range of situations, soil types and regions, including the North. LG Beowulf has a strong disease profile, rated 9 for yellow rust, and 6.7 for Septoria tritici, stiff straw, strong tillering, OWBM resistance, and good grain quality, particularly specific weight.

LG Beowulf has also inherited Gleam’s robustness and ability to be sown into a wide range of drilling dates and still deliver on yield, he adds.

RL Candidate variety for 2024, LG Rebellion, offers similarly impressive performance, capitalising on its KWS Extase parentage to give very high untreated yields, and an excellent disease resistance profile (notably against yellow rust and Septoria), with the additional genetics of Pch1 eyespot resistance.

LG Rebellion is also earlier maturing than KWS Extase and, unusually for a hard Group 4 variety, it has ukp export potential thanks to its excellent grain quality.

“It ticks many different boxes and gives growers the option of going for something that’s a bit different to other hard feed wheats on the market,” says Mr Granger.

Market insight

David Brown

Hard Group 4 wheats are estimated to account for around 54% of the UK wheat area, based on seed sales and farm-saved seed data, according to Openfield’s David Brown, who believes it will remain a key sector for UK growers.

While many hard Group 4 wheats go into animal feed production, in some years, there is a potential milling premium available – typically worth £2-5/t over the feed price – for crops of sufficient quality to be blended into the grist with other high-protein grade varieties, he says.

Milling demand and specifications for hard wheats do vary season-by-season, but users typically require 10.7% protein, 180 Hagberg, and 74 kg/hl specific weight, although these thresholds can be down to 10.2%, 130 and 74 kg/hl, depending on the season and overall crop quality, he says.

“Milling demand and hard wheat specifications are usually made in September, once millers know the quality profile for EU and UK crops.

“The UK is currently trading at import parity for full-spec Group 1 milling wheat and if millers continue to import, we could see more opportunity for UK hard wheat going into the grist.”

Much will depend on the size and quality of crops in the UK and elsewhere, which at the time of writing, remains uncertain given the challenging weather across much of Europe, Mr Brown says.

“With a reduced wheat area in the ground for this harvest – estimated at around 1.4 million ha – a much lower UK crop is widely anticipated, although estimates vary as to how much it will be down. The crop in the ground to be harvested in August 2024 could be between 9 and 11 million tonnes, which is comparable with 2020, and to put this into context, crop 2022 was 15.5 million tonnes and crop 2023 is circa 14 million tonnes,” he says.

Potentially, that could help support markets, but with a lower crop, the UK will be more reliant on imports, which is therefore likely to cap domestic prices, he adds.

“The UK will continue to follow global markets. These did move slightly higher during May, but all eyes remain fixed on the new crop and how that will be impacted by the weather around the world, and other events (e.g. the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East), over the coming months.”

New LG hard wheats: key attributes

From early to late drilling, ploughed land to min-tilled, and high to low soil fertility, Fife farmer & contractor, Zander Hughes, faces almost every possible cropping scenario across the 320 ha (800 acres) he farms for a range of clients.

Zander Hughes

Such variability represents a stern test for any variety, but for Mr Hughes, LG Skyscraper continues to be the stand-out performer in terms of its consistent yield and quality across multiple seasons, and flexibility to go into a range of drilling situations.

Having grown LG Skyscraper since its launch five years ago, the variety once again accounts for his entire winter wheat area, with around 130 ha in the ground for harvest 2024, up from 81 ha last season, due to rotational shifts and a slight reduction in spring barley area. Most is sown as a first wheat after potatoes, vegetables, grass, or spring barley.

“We’ve never had any problems with LG Skyscraper; we really like it as a variety. To this day, LG Skyscraper remains the variety that produced the biggest yield I’ve ever grown, at 14.5 t/ha in the year we first tried it.”

Although last year’s crop did not quite reach that level, he says it still performed really well, averaging 10.5-10.75 t/ha across the whole wheat area, with big, bold grains, good quality, and plenty of straw that stood well.

That performance came despite relatively high disease pressure last season, and challenging conditions that meant the first T0 fungicide, plus growth regulator, could not be applied, he notes.

“That did put slightly more pressure on the T1 and T2 growth regulators in high fertility situations, but despite this, crops generally still stood really well.”

Looking good in a tough year

As for this year’s crop, Mr Hughes says the vast majority was drilled into good conditions, despite tricky autumn weather that stretched the drilling window from 1 September to mid-November. Some fields were ploughed, while others were min-tilled, although decisions are very much taken on a field-by-field basis, depending on soil conditions and previous cropping, he notes.

LG Skyscraper has a fairly vigorous growth habit once it germinates, so Mr Hughes has no fear of sowing it later, as he might with some other varieties.

As always, seed rates were adjusted according to drilling date and conditions, ranging from 375 seeds/m² at the lowest, up to 525 seeds/m² in the most challenging situations last autumn.

“At the moment, there aren’t really any obvious differences between the early and late-sown crops. We’ve found that standing water on some fields – which is a new thing for us this year – has had more of an effect than drilling date.”

With most crops around growth stage 31 (T1) at the time of writing, Mr Hughes says generally the LG Skyscraper all looks well, with no obvious issues, despite ideal conditions for Septoria and yellow rust development over much of the season so far.

Given higher disease risk, robust SDHI and triazole-based T1 and T2 fungicides will be used to protect the important yield-building leaves through the remainder of the growing season, and maximise crop potential. This will build on the prothioconazole-based T0 applied earlier this spring, accompanied by trinexapac-ethyl and chlormequat growth regulators, and trace elements.

“Growth stages are slightly all over the place at the moment, even within the same field, so we’re hoping the T0 growth regulator will reduce the apical dominance of the main stems a bit, as they’re a lot further on than the tillers at this stage. We’ll also apply another growth regulator at T1, although decisions are taken on a field-by-field basis.”

Nitrogen is usually applied in three doses, but this year Mr Hughes has favoured more of a “little and often” approach, based on four applications of granular fertiliser, roughly in a 30-40-20-10% split, to reduce any potential risks of field losses due to the weather. Total application generally averages around 210 kg/ha, although this ranges from 180 kg/ha to 240 kg/ha depending on soil levels and crop potential.

Sticking with LG Skyscraper

Looking ahead to next season, Mr Hughes plans to continue growing LG Skyscraper, although is also going to try Limagrain UK’s new hard Group 4 variety, LG Beowulf, which joined the AHDB Recommended List this year as the highest yielding winter wheat.

LG Skyscraper is just one of 16 varieties featuring in a Limagrain UK variety demonstration that Mr Hughes is hosting for the first time this season.

“The demonstration is being held on one of our contract farms that hasn’t grown wheat for around 15 years. My initial plan was to go with LG Skyscraper on this farm, because it’s one we like and has done well for us, but there was some debate as to what variety would best suit the farm, hence hosting the trial here.”

As well as a range of Limagrain UK and competitor varieties, the demonstration is also looking at the impact of different seed rates on four Limagrain wheats, sown at half, three-quarters, 100%, and 125% of the standard seed rate. 

LG Skyscraper

     –>     Soft Group 4 wheat

     –>     First listed on the RL in 2019

     –>     OWBM resistance

     –>     Good yellow rust resistance (7)/ Septoria requires monitoring

     –>     Consistent yield and quality performance over multiple years

     –>     Flexibility for a range of rotational positions (1^st or 2^nd wheat), sowing dates, and soil types

     –>     Good grain quality – specific weight (77.1 kg/hl)

     –>     End market flexibility – feed/ distilling/ biscuit grists

LG has a range of summer open days across the UK, to present their demo trials, alongside Limagrain’s technical experts who will be providing all the latest information on new & existing varieties.

As well as the LG experts, each event will feature industry experts from within the agricultural sector, providing technical information on an array of topics such as fertiliser & micronutrients, agrochemicals, SFI’s and more. On top of this, we will again be running the Moisture Meter Clinic, which has been a farmer favourite in past years.

LG’s Summer Demos will have a wide assortment of winter wheat varieties to show, including Limagrain’s No.1 highest yielding variety; LG Beowulf, and a taste of Limagrain’s up and coming RL Candidates and NL2 offerings.

Alongside this, they will also be displaying commercial competitor varieties, with both untreated and treated plots.

Rothwell and Woolpit will be showing all varieties in the Limagrain winter barley portfolio, including the 2 highest yielding; LG Caravelle & LG Capitol, plus exciting new BYDV tolerant RL Candidate, LG Carpenter.

Register now…

     —->     Tues 9th July – Rothwell, Lincolnshire

     —->     Weds 17th July – Perth, Perthshire

BASIS/NRoSO points will be available for each Demo Day.

If you are thinking of growing an LG variety, have an interest in learning more, or have any questions for our experts, Register Now for one of our Demo Days.

Plant breeders Limagrain UK will showcase their impressive portfolio of varieties across crop sectors at Cereals 2024. 

After several years absence from Cereals, the breeders have returned to the Event on the back of their resounding success on the 2024/2025 AHDB Recommended List.

“Producing the highest yielding varieties, backed up with desirable agronomic characteristics is an exceptional achievement for any breeder. What’s more, these varieties have proven to be robust and consistent performers across seasons and regions,” explains Ron Granger, Limagrain’s arable technical manager.

Visit stand 606 to find out more about the highest yielding winter wheat LG Beowulf, LG Caravelle the highest yielding 2-row winter barley and the highest gross output oilseed rape varieties LG Armada, LG Adeline and LG Academic.

There will also be experts on hand to discuss Limagrain’s very diverse portfolio, including maize, forage crops and SFI options as well as an opportunity to enter a prize draw to win free seed.

“We are here to listen and share our expertise on how to get the very best out of Limagrain genetics, and the Cereals Event gives us the opportunity to do this directly with the farming community we serve,” he says.

Visit LG on stand 606, buy tickets here