Spyridon Mourtzinis, Shawn P. Conley, and John M. Gaska
Department of Agronomy, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Oat cultivation in Wisconsin has declined considerably in the last eight decades; nevertheless, it continues to be an important crop in the north central states where 65% of the oats harvested for grain in the United States each year are produced. Oats planted in Wisconsin totaled 255,000 acres in 2013 and grain production accounted for approximately 11% of the total oat production in the U.S. Planted acres in the 1930s to the 1960s exceeded 1.98 million in Wisconsin alone and 3.95 million nationwide (NASS, 2013). Primary uses for oat in Wisconsin are for establishing alfalfa underseedings, livestock forage and grain, and straw. The uses of oat also extends from livestock feed to use in human nutrition. Oats are highly nutritious with the highest protein quantity and quality of the cereal grains, the oil from oats has a highly desirable fatty acid com - position, and the fiber (β-glucan) is beneficial in lowering cholesterol levels (Lockhart and Hurt, 1986). Along with high total grain yield, the nutritional quality of the grain is equally desirable for growers planning to market the crop for human consumption. High β-glucan content is desirable in the human diet (Peterson et al., 1995). It has been identified as a component that can lower serum cholesterol (Davidson et al., 1991; Klopfenstein and Hoseney, 1987). Oat varieties with a more concentrated soluble fiber may provide a sufficient amount of the β-glucan component. Therefore, β-glucan content has been proposed as a target for plant breeding programs (Lim et al., 1992; Peterson et al., 1995). Recent oat breeding efforts, such as those at UW-Madison, have focused on increasing yield and nutritional quality as well. The objectives of our stud - ies were to examine the effect of various agronomic management practices on oat yield and quality. These practices included:
- Varieties
- Seeding rates
- Chemical seed treatments
- Foliar fungicides
To read more click on the link below:
http://www.coolbean.info/library/documents/OatMgmtFungicide_2015_FINAL_web.pdf
Source:wisc.edu