The 2018 recommended list of winter oilseed rape varieties for planting in 2017 has just been published. Unlike in many previous years, the early harvest has enabled the 2017 harvest results to be included to generate the 2018 recommended list.

The new list has five varieties recommended, two fully – Anastasia and Sensation – and three provisionally – DK Extrovert, PX113 and SY Harnas.

Two of the previous three recommended varieties have been discontinued – Compass and Flash – and the third, Sensation, is being discontinued so there may be very little seed about.

In recent years, the very short time between harvest and planting made it impossible to include the results for the current year in the winter oilseed rape list. So this year includes the results from the 2017 variety trials and it also contains four new varieties.

The four new varieties are Anastasia, DK Extrovert, PX113 and SY Harnas. Anastasia is the only conventional variety of the four and PX113 is a hybrid semi-dwarf.

As in recent years, the new list also contains a table of all the varieties that were under trial in 2017, which is useful in terms of knowing what has been tested and is not yet regarded as being either up to the mark or tested sufficiently. While the same three varieties had been recommended in the previous three lists, it was expected that new varieties would appear on this year’s list, whether it included 2017 trial results or not.

The recommendation of five varieties, coupled with the extensive trial testing to which these are exposed, should give growers confidence in these varieties and reason to question the reliability of others in the market that are not being tested for recommendation. The Department’s trial programme aims to identify varieties that perform best in Irish fields and under Irish conditions to maximise reliability and returns for the grower.

Variety testing procedure

As with all recommended lists, varieties are evaluated across a number of different sites over a three-year period. The information provided for yield, oil, glucosinolate and agronomic data are based on average trial results from plots harvested during 2015 to 2017.

The yield and agronomic data are based on the three-year average from 2015 to 2017 but the oil, glucosinolate and seed shedding data are based on the average of trials from 2015 to 2016.

The trials assess the relative performance of up to 23 varieties annually (listed in actual list) and were grown at three Department centres and two external sites during each of the three evaluation years. The trials use 85 seeds per square metre for conventional varieties and 55 for hybrid varieties.

Following this evaluation period, the varieties are assessed and those that satisfy the recommendation criteria can be put on the recommended list once there is seed available. The recommended varieties and their characteristics are shown in Table 1. Anastasia and Sensation are fully recommended while DK Extrovert, PX113 and SY Harnas are only provisionally recommended.

Variety notes

Anastasia (R): A conventional variety, new on the recommended list with a full recommendation and it is the highest seed yielding variety on the list. Its early season vigour is good. It is the tallest of the five recommended varieties but it has very good lodging resistance and very stiff stems. It is early to flower but has a moderate maturity rating. It has good light leaf spot resistance. It was bred by Limagrain Verneuil Holding and is handled here by Seedtech.

DK Extrovert (PR-1): A new hybrid that has come on with provisional recommendation this year. It has good seed yield and good early season vigour. It has only moderately stiff stems giving it moderate lodging resistance and therefore requires effective growth regulation. It is very early flowering and is early maturing. It has the highest light leaf spot and shedding resistance scores on the list. It was bred by Monsanto LLC and is handled here by Goldcrop Ltd.

PX113 (PR-1): A semi-dwarf hybrid and new on the list this year with provisional recommendation. It has moderate seed yield which is common for semi dwarfs. Early vigour is good and, not surprisingly, it is the shortest variety on the list. These confer very good lodging resistance and stem stiffness. It is moderately early to flower but has an early maturity rating. It also has good light leaf spot resistance. This is a DuPont Pioneer-bred variety and is handled here by the company.

Sensation (R): A longserving hybrid at this point and it appears to be in the process of being phased out. It has moderate yield and its early season vigour is only medium. It has very stiff stems and very good lodging resistance. It is early to flower but has a moderate maturity rating. It has good light leaf spot resistance. It was bred by RAGT2n and is handled here by Goldcrop Ltd.

SY Harnas (PR-1): Yet another new hybrid with provisional recommendation this year for the first time. Seed yield is good, as is early vigour. However, it has only moderately stiff stems and so is prone to lodging and therefore requires effective growth regulation. It is early to flower and mature and it has good light leaf spot and shedding resistance scores. This variety was bred by Syngenta and it is handled here by Goldcrop Ltd.

  • This list applies to the winter planting of oilseed rape 2017.
  • Results include variety performance in 2017.
  • Four new varieties are recommended this year – Anastasia is a conventional variety while DK Extrovert, PX113 and SY Harnas are hybrid varieties.