Seed treatments give wheat crop a head start

By Mary Marsh, Kansas Wheat Communications Intern

You see advertisements everywhere. Seed companies touting the importance of treatments and what their seed can bring to the farmer. Before modern seed treatments, farmers had more issues with the storage and early stages of growth. Today, the seed treatment methods have helped farmers get more from their crops thanks to new innovations and technologies, including fungicide, insecticide and improvements in microbial activity and nutrient uptake.

These advances in seed technology help everyone from the grain handlers to the farmers to seed sellers and in the end can result in higher yields and better grain quality.

Fighting Fungi

Good soil moisture and temperature is important, but sometimes diseases can be lurking in the clods and particles. Some common fungi from the soil are rhizoctonia, pythium and fusarium. All of these can cause decreases in yields and can compromise the health of your crop. Additionally, the quality of the grain can diminish, resulting in lower prices or even being turned away from the elevator. The effects of fungi can include stunted plants, limited water uptake, head scab or head blight.

The University of Nebraska Lincoln showed that wheat with head blight caused by the fungus fusarium can reduce seed emergence by 80%. In addition, grain showing signs of smut can see a yield reduction of up to 40%. Livestock can smell the contaminated grain, and if there is enough of the compound that gives smut its rank odor may result in an explosion with combines and other equipment. For safety purposes, elevators will refuse to take in the grain that shows signs of smut.

In a valiant effort to combat these fungal-foes and the potential dangers they can impose, fungicides in seed treatments allow seeds to germinate and grow without the farmer having to worry about these fungi attacking from an early stage.

Insecticide Improvements

There are a few insects farmers really need to nip in the bud. These pests contribute to the spread of some of the worst diseases and viruses for wheat. With seed treatments that include insecticides, crops can begin to grow without being hindered by pests right out of the chute.

Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus is spread by aphids hiding in the tillers of the wheat. They can cause plant stunting, discoloration, delayed maturity and winterkill. Farmers may see a reduction in yield and grain quality. Seed treatments containing systemic insecticides are labeled for aphid control. Syngenta reported their treated seed cut back on infected tillers by five times and farmers saw higher yields. Seed treatment is also the only real way to control wireworms. Wireworm is the larval stage of click beetles. They do their damage when the wheat seed is germinating. Wireworm really like cool, moist, long-term legume or grassy cropped fields and reduced tilled fields. When a field has experienced some wireworm damage, there is a reduction in plant stands and patches of dead wheat. Since their damage is detected after planting, it is important to do the right prep-work, like wheat seeds getting a coat of an insecticide to combat these pests.

Insecticides from the get-go can make or break your crop. Having your seed treated can be a good way to help ensure your crop has the best chances of survival. 

Microbial Improvements

Seed treatments are not just limited to eliminating the threat of potential fungi or insects, but treatments can also promote and enhance the microbial activity and nutrient uptake by promoting the development of the plant later. Inoculants improve plant growth and soil biodiversity. Certain enzymes and protein can promote root growth, improve nitrogen efficiency and improve topsoil conditions. With the improvements and increased rhizobia (a nitrogen-fixing bacterium that is common in the soil), the plants will be able to get more of the nutrients available in the soil.

Companies like Indigo have been looking into using the microbes to design treatments that can help create more drought-resistant wheat. So far, their results have been positive. In one trial in 2017, they saw a yield improvement across all conditions in Kansas, all without increased water or chemical usage. They used in-plant microbes to increase productivity in water stressed areas. In the end, they saw 8% higher yields when comparing seeds that included microbes versus seed that was treated with standard chemicals alone. Their research is ongoing.

With seed treatments, farmers may need fewer fertilizers and soil amendments. Making the initial investment of treated seed can cut back on the need for more inputs, in turn cutting back on wear and tear on machines along with fuel, labor and material costs. Fewer applications means fewer times the soil will be driven over, resulting in less compaction, which promotes good conditions for seeds to emerge.

By using seed treatments to enhance the soil’s nutrients, farmers can make the most out of the power of nature. For more information on seed treatment visit with your local seed treater.