Nuseed founded its canola breeding program more than 15 years ago in Australia, and that foundation has accredited an unmatched level of genetic diversity to the program. Nuseed canola possesses a level of genetic diversity from many different sources.
“Basing the Nuseed canola breeding program off of our Australian program provides a new source of genetics for the North American grower,” says Roger Rotariu, Nuseed Marketing Lead, North America. “And it greatly enhances our ability to fight blackleg.” Rotariu says that the worst blackleg infected field he has ever seen in North America wouldn’t exceed the least infected field he has seen in Australia, noting that the severity of the disease in Australia greatly surpasses what growers contend with in North America.
The efficacy in fighting the disease is something that Nuseed is no stranger to. Where many companies are working with three to five resistance traits, Rotariu shares that Nuseed is currently working with up to 27 resistant trait combinations, providing a huge genetic advantage for growers fighting blackleg.
“Our blackleg resistance trait portfolio, products like NC471 TF, is just the tip of the iceberg,” Rotariu says. “When the product was registered this past year, it had the lowest incidence of blackleg coming through the Canadian registration system. It is significantly advanced in blackleg control.”
Maturity is another advancement Nuseed has set its sights on to help growers get canola out of the field before unpredictable fall weather sets in. With the introduction of NC155 TF, Nuseed offers growers a TruFlex™ canola with Roundup Ready® technology that is extremely early maturing, high yielding. The hybrid also flowers earlier and longer which allows for exceptional pod set while maturing quickly to allow for quicker harvestability.
And what good is an early maturing hybrid without improved harvestability? Nuseed is meeting grower challenges from every angle, including increased harvestability through improved plant stand.
“In the Australian market, 95% of canola is straight cut, not swathed,” Rotariu says. “Those are the genetics we are bringing to North America. Our products stand very well and have a real advantage of running through the combine. It’s about efficiency and comes down to a grower being able to run their combine at 3.5 miles per hour versus 5 miles per hour with our genetics.”
