The Ohio Wheat Performance Test is conducted annually to measure yield and other agronomic characteristics important to producers. Information on wheat variety performance can be obtained in the annual Ohio Wheat Performance Test, which is available at Extension offices and online at u.osu.edu/perf.
The yield potential of currently available varieties is generally more than 150 bushels per acre. This yield is not approached, however, primarily because of a short grain-fill period caused by high air temperatures in late June and early July that kill the crop. Select wheat varieties with high yield potential, high test weight, good winter hardiness, good straw strength, and disease resistance. Information on variety performance should be obtained from multiple sources, such as seed companies and university performance trials, where multiple sites and years of testing are presented. Always plant more than one variety each year to reduce the risk of disease losses and to spread out harvest dates. Select varieties with resistance to Fusarium head blight (head scab), wheat spindle streak mosaic, powdery mildew, leaf rust, and Stagonospora leaf and glume blotch. However, because no variety is resistant to every disease, select varieties with resistance to the diseases most prevalent in your area of the state. Avoid varieties that are highly susceptible to head scab. Information on reaction of varieties to various diseases can be obtained from seed company dealers and through the annual Ohio Wheat Performance Test report (u.osu.edu/perf).