Determining agronomic suitability of European flax (linseed) cultivars in Manitoba
MFGA, PCDF, PESAI, WADO, BASF, Limagrain NL, van de Bilt zaden en vlas
The current study was developed to examine agronomic attributes (yield, height and maturity) of
European-origin flaxseed cultivars and to see if they have a competitive advantage and agroclimatic fit within Manitoba flax production areas.
Flax is a temperate industrial oilseed crop grown mainly in Canada, China and Russia. Currently available genetic resources may accelerate the accomplishment of breeding objectives such as yield, early maturity, disease resistance and seed oil content (Hall et al., 2016). Canadian Prairies produce more than 40% of the world’s flax for oil and are the largest exporters of linseed in the world (Irvine et al., 2010; Booker and Lamb, 2012). With the declining popularity of flax as a rotational crop choice in Manitoba, farmers need incentive to grow and increase production area under flax. A longstanding concern is that current flax cultivars are not keeping up with yield advances, similar to gains made in canola, soybeans and to a lesser extent, cereals. This disparity is what encourages a switch away from flax and into higher-yielding, more profitable crops. Flax does have an important role to fill in Manitoba. As a non-host crop for many of the major diseases in western Canada, flax is well suited to break disease cycles and provide a stable, steady return as part of a balanced rotation. With the closure of private breeding programs at Nutrien Ag Solutions, and the public breeding programs at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, only a single breeder of flax remains in Canada at the Crop Development Centre. With the introduction and evaluation of European lines, there may be the possibility of a higher yielding cultivar, or a cultivar with more desirable quality characteristics may be found to be well suited to Manitoba’s agro-climate.