Organic Oats Variety Evaluation
Jennifer Mitchell-Fetch, AAFC Brandon
To evaluate oat varieties for organic production.
Ongoing testing for oat performance under organic growing conditions has resulted in the development of two new varieties especially suited for organic cultivation, namely AAC Oravena and AAC Kongsore. AAC Oravena is the first oat cultivar developed under organic management. Both varieties have good yield and lodging resistance, and are licensed to Grain Millers Canada Corp.
Research suggests that selection of cereal crops specific to organic agriculture should be conducted on organically managed land [1,2]. Conventional management systems may mask or confound certain plant characteristics, resulting in selection of sub-optimal cultivars for organic production systems. Organic management conditions were used for the trial at PCDF, although the site was not certified organic.