Sundre, Alberta, Canada
April 30, 2024
Drought tolerant, nitrogen-efficient and standing strong – just a few of the reasons a new feed barley variety is generating some excitement in the field. Add to the powerful combination a high yielding factor, and an independent Alberta seedgrower and distributor believes the newcomer is a perfect fit for the times.
It’s the first year AB Standswell barley is readily available to farmers, after being granted registration in 2022. Mastin Seeds secured the marketing rights to the six-row variety, developed by the Field Crop Development Centre, now headquartered at Olds College.
“It’s a bushy semi-dwarf, good for both grain and forage,” explains Bob Mastin, who farms and sells seed at Sundre, AB. He likes to focus on early maturing and forage varieties in his seed offerings.
With the recent drought years on the prairies, Mastin knows the water use efficiency of Standswell will be attractive, but he’s also excited about its nitrogen use efficiency. As pressure grows on agriculture to reduce inputs, having a choice to move the needle in that direction, without having to sacrifice on yield, is a double bonus.
With more than 40 years as a seedgrower, Mastin has specialized his distribution business in finding ‘hidden gems’ – varieties that may have been overlooked by bigger players. He entered seed marketing by putting forward a creative bid on a feed barley he named Sundre, when he was awarded its rights. Within two years, it became the number one six-row barley in western Canada. Others in his stable include Pintail Winter wheat, and Cerveza malt barley.
“I was looking for a replacement for Sundre barley,” says Mastin. “It’s been around nearly fifteen years, which is a long time in the variety game. It’s still relevant but I was looking for something new.”
The first year this promising variety was up for bids, no one picked it up and Mastin noticed it when the opportunity came around again. He grabbed the chance to bring it forward, and then had to come up with just the right name. Given the package of attractive qualities, it wasn’t easy to pick just one to catch growers’ attention.
“Every farmer I know is wanting a barley variety that stands up. Barley is one of the worst cereal crops when it comes to lodging problems. While this variety has several good traits, every farmer has standability at the top of their wish list. And this one definitely ‘stands well’!”
On average, Standswell uses nine per cent less nitrogen than the average barley. This is a new trait focus, and likely to become even more important in the future. Yet, Mastin points out, the feed barley is a real performer for BOTH grain yield and forage production, which puts it in a category of its own. It also has a plumper seed, to go with its smooth awn, which makes it ideal for swath grazing, greenfeed, or silage.
Mastin Seeds did have a very limited supply of Standswell last season for restricted sales, and those who got a ‘sneak preview’ of the variety’s potential were impressed. Shane Wolfe is a local farmer who grew a 35-acre test field for silage last year.
“In less-than-ideal conditions, I took off 14 MT per acre,” says Wolfe.
The Standswell barley also delivered the highest nutritional values he’s ever had for straight barley silage. Wolfe was so pleased he’s tripling his Standswell acreage this year, and plans to combine instead of silaging the crop, to harvest the high grain yield. Another neighbor, Bruce Jones, grew 40 acres of Standswell last season in a region known more as cattle country than for crop production. Yet he got 130 bushels an acre, which was the best barley crop he’d ever grown.
With fears still looming about 2024 being another dry year, Mastin has already seen farmers changing their cropping plans to include more barley. With Standswell’s water use efficiency, as well as its ability to perform with nine percent less nitrogen, Bob Mastin expects Standswell to become a big winner for feed barley varieties for both cattle and grain producers.
For more information:
Bob Mastin (403) 556-2609 or at info@mastinseeds.com
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