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REGISTRATIONS OF CULTIVARS

Registration of ‘Everett’ Quackgrass

Dep. of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, University of Minnesota, 411 Borlaug Hall, 1991 Upper Buford Circle, St. Paul, MN 55108

* Corresponding author (ehlke001{at}umn.edu)

‘Everett’ quackgrass [Elytrigia repens (L.) Nevski] (Reg. no. CV-223, PI 630974) was released by the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station on 1 Feb. 2001. Everett is an advanced-generation synthetic cultivar selected for high rhizome production.

Quackgrass is a competitive perennial cool-season grass which is classified as a noxious weed in Minnesota. Quackgrass is characterized by rapid establishment and extensive spreading by rhizomes with the potential for seed reproduction. Ten biotypes selected in northern Minnesota were characterized for growth and development by Westra and Wyse (1981). The biotypes differed in forage quality, forage yield, persistence, leaf width, shoot number and yield, shoot-to-rhizome mass ratio, and ability to spread by rhizomes. A subset of the 10 biotypes was evaluated for potential forage production (Sheaffer et al., 1990). The authors concluded that quackgrass would be a viable alternative to other cool-season forage grasses such as reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) and smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss.), since forage yield and quality were not consistently different. On the basis of the growth habit and extensive rhizome development consistently observed, quackgrass is also a very desirable species for land stabilization and reclamation. Quackgrass is commonly used for this purpose in Europe, and the market potential for a quackgrass cultivar selected for high rhizome-to-shoot production appeared promising for the seed producers in northern Minnesota.

Everett quackgrass is a four-clone synthetic cultivar selected from among the 10 biotypes originally evaluated by Westra and Wyse (1981). The selection criteria included high rhizome-to-shoot dry weight ratio; low shoot, root, and total dry weight; and high rhizome bud number evaluated at Roseau and Rosemount, MN in 1978. On the basis of these data, biotypes 1, 4, 6, and 7 were selected to produce the synthetic. Five vegetative clones of each of the four biotypes were transplanted into an isolated crossing block on the Baumgartner Farm near Roseau, MN. Seed was harvested individually from each plant in 1994, and equal quantities of seed were composited to form the Syn₁ generation. Syn₁ seed was used to establish approximately 400 plants in the greenhouse in 1995 which were later transplanted into an isolated crossing block on the Baugartner Farm near Roseau, MN. Seed was harvested and bulked by individual plant in 1996 to form the Syn₂ generation. The Syn₂ seed was direct-seeded at Roseau, MN, in 1997 in isolation on the Baumgartner Farm to produce Breeder seed.

The performance of Everett quackgrass was compared with common quackgrass, ‘Palaton’ reed canarygrass and ‘Orion’ orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.). These grasses were evaluated in monoculture and in binary mixtures with alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) at Grand Rapids and St. Paul, MN, from 1996 to 1998. Forage yields of Everett in monoculture (5.1 and 10.7 Mg ha^-1 at Grand Rapids and St. Paul, respectively) were similar to common quackgrass but were lower than Palaton reed canarygrass and Orion orchardgrass. Forage crude protein, acid detergent fiber, and neutral detergent fiber of Everett averaged 160, 333, and 530 g kg^-1, respectively, over three harvests across the two locations in 1987, and few differences were observed among the grass species for forage quality parameters. In replicated trials conducted at Roseau, MN, the seed production potential of Everett quackgrass was good, averaging 412 kg ha^-1 and was not different from three common quackgrass populations.

Breeder seed of Everett will be maintained by the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station, St. Paul, MN. Foundation and Certified seed classes will be allowed: Foundation seed may be produced for three consecutive years, and Certified seed may be produced for five. An exclusive release of the Everett marketing rights has been granted to Norfarm Seeds, Inc. Roseau, MN. All seed of Everett is required to be sold as Certified seed in the state of Minnesota per directive of the Minnesota Commissioner of Agriculture, Minnesota Department of Agriculture. In Europe, quackgrass is an approved species on the Grass and Legume Seed Scheme by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. U.S. Plant Variety Protection for Everett will not be sought.

NOTES

Contribution from the Minnesota Agric. Exp. Stn. Registration by CSSA.

Accepted for publication June 30, 2002.

REFERENCES

• Sheaffer, C.C., D.L. Wyse, G.C. Marten, and P.H. Westra. 1990. The potential of quackgrass for forage production. J. Prod. Agric. 3:256–259.
• Westra, P.H., and D.L. Wyse. 1981. Growth and development of quackgrass (Agropyron repens) biotypes. Weed Sci. 29:44–52.

This Article Full Text (PDF) Free Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Web of Science (1) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Wyse, D.L. Articles by Vellekson, D.J. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Wyse, D.L. Articles by Vellekson, D.J. Agricola Articles by Wyse, D.L. Articles by Vellekson, D.J.