Growers
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Wheat ResearchThe primary mandate of the California Wheat Commission is to support research that improves California wheat quality and marketability. The Commission's partnership with University of California researchers has always been critical to the viability of the wheat industry in California.
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The California Wheat Commission is the industry partner for a 4 year (2010-2014) U.C. Discovery Grant awarded to U.C. Wheat Breeder Jorge Dubcovsky***. The project is titled "Improving California Wheat Quality and Nutritional Value" and includes research on reducing cadmium uptake in Durum wheat, increasing the concentration of resistant starch in the grain, and increasing grain protein concentration and quality. The Commission's total 4-year funding of $480,000 ($120,000/year) is matched by $336,000 of additional funding from the State of California.
This is the second U.C. Discovery Grant that was awarded to Jorge Dubcovsky in partnership with the California Wheat Commission. The first 4-year grant, ending in 2010 was titled "Molecular tools to engineer California wheat varieties resistant to stripe rust (Puccinia striiformis)". This grant was matched dollar-for-dollar by the State for $610,800 total. The purpose of the grant was to use molecular markers to map stripe rust resistant genes and as a result, several new genes for stripe rust were discovered. Most of the wheat varieties now marketed are resistant to stripe rust.
In the fall of 2012, the California Wheat Commission awarded eight mini-grants ranging from $4,000 to $14,500 each in response to a call for proposals to the University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) system. Below is a listing of the winning proposals submitted by Farm Advisors and Specialists from across the state.- Use of Chlorophyll Meters to Assess Nitrogen Fertilization - Kern County - $10,000 - continuation of last year's project
- Weed Management in CA Wheat - SJ Valley and N. CA- $10,000 - continuation of last year's project
- Effects of Nitrogen Fertilization Practices on Protein - San Joaquin Valley - $10,000 - continuation of last year's project
- Impact of N Fertilization Treatments on Residual Soil Nitrate Accumulation - San Joaquin Valley, N. CA, and Imperial Valley - $14,500 - continuation of last year's project
- Wheat Field Variation and Nitrogen Fertilization Practices - San Joaquin Valley and N. CA - $4,000 - continuation of last year's project
- Nitrogen Fertilization on Spring Wheat - Siskiyou County - $10,000 - continuation of last year's project
- Seeding Rate and Planting Rate Effects on the Yield Spring Wheat - Siskiyou County - $5,200
- Variety Performance in Organic Environments - Marin County - $10,000
The California Wheat Commission also awarded one $5,000 internship to Sonia Rios, who will continue to work with Farm Advisor Steve Wright in Visalia. The goal is to get more young people interested in pursuing a career as a Farm Advisor.
A $50,000 U.C. Riverside project to develop optimal wheat plant root size for water and nutrient-use efficiency was approved in FY2010/11. Due to delays in contract signing, the researcher continued the project into the 2011/12 year with the original funding. The first year's report, for this two-year project, can be found here. The second year of this project will be occuring in the current fiscal year (12/13).
FY 11/12 and 10/11 University of California Cooperative Extension mini-grants and internship award project reports can be viewed in the Archive of Research Projects link.
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***California is fortunate to have Jorge Dubcovsky lead the Wheat Breeding Program and Molecular Genetics laboratory at the University of California, Davis. You can view some of his wheat research projects and released wheat varieties on his website . Dubcovsky, originally from Argentina, is a world-renowned wheat breeder. Dubcovsky is the Project Leader of a team of researchers that was awarded a $5 million/year five-year ($25 million total) grant in January of 2011 from the USDA Competitive Grants Program. Their project will develop methods and new cultivars to minimize the damage of climate change on crop production. Their long-term objective is a 10% reduction in both nitrogen and water use in barley and wheat production through the development of improved varieties adapted to the climate of the coming century.
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