Richer

Barley

Variety Description

Varieties used for comparison: 'Chambly', 'Oceanik' and 'Sagamie'

Summary: At booting, the flag leaf of 'Richer' is narrower than that of 'Sagamie'. At the beginning of ripening, the plants of 'Richer' are taller than the plants of 'Chambly'. Excluding the awns, the spike of 'Richer' is longer than that of 'Chambly'. The length of the first segment of the rachis is medium to long for 'Richer' whereas the first segment of the rachis is short for 'Chambly' and 'Sagamie'. The curvature on the first segment of the rachis of 'Richer' is weak to medium whereas the curvature on the first segment of the rachis is absent or very weak for 'Chambly'. The rachilla hair on the kernel of 'Richer' is short whereas it is long on the kernels of 'Oceanik' and 'Sagamie'.

Description:

YOUNG PLANT: semi-erect or intermediate growth habit at tillering, absent or very sparse pubescence on lower leaf sheaths
PLANT: six row, spring feed barley, spike emergence occurs early in the season

FLAG LEAF (AT BOOTING): absent or very low to low frequency of plants with recurved flag leaves
FLAG LEAF SHEATH: absent or very sparse pubescence
AURICLES: very weak to weak intensity of anthocyanin colouration, absent or very sparse pubescence on margins

SPIKE: absent or very weak to weak glaucosity, semi-erect attitude, parallel shape, medium to dense, glume and awn of the median spikelet are longer than the grain
LEMMA AWNS: very weak to weak intensity of anthocyanin colouration of tips, longer than lspike, rough spiculations on margins
FIRST SEGMENT OF RACHIS: medium to long, weak to medium curvature

KERNEL: short rachilla hairs, husk present, absent or very weak to weak anthocyanin colouration of nerves of lemma, weak spiculation of inner lateral nerves of dorsal side of lemma, glabrous ventral furrow

Origin & Breeding History: 'Richer' (experimental designation OS13-12,20) originated from a cross conducted in Sainte-Rosalie, Quebec between the varieties 'Chambly' (female parent) and 'Oceanik' (male parent) in 2004. The resulting progeny, coded as 'SO04-6', was crossed with 'Oceanik' in 2006 at the same location. The F1 to F4 generations were mass cultivated in Ste. Rosalie, Quebec from 2007 to 2010 where seed selections were made based on grain density at each generation. Spikes were selected from the F5 plants based on their apparent disease resistance and lodging resistance. From 2012 to 2015, the line designated as OS13-12,20 was initially evaluated in agronomic trials with selections based on yield, thousand kernel weight and Fusarium head blight resistance. OS13-12,20 was advanced into screening trials in 2015 and further evaluated in registration trials conducted by the Quebec Recommending Committee for Cereals in 2016 and 2017.

Tests & Trials: The comparative trials for 'Richer' were conducted at Céréla Inc. in St-Hugues, Quebec, during the 2019 and 2020 growing seasons. Each trial was arranged in a RCB design with 2 replicates. Each 4.5 metre squared plot consisted of 5 rows, each row 5 metres long with an inter-row spacing of 0.19 metres. The seeding density was 375 seeds per squared metre resulting in a total of at least 3375 plants per variety each year. Measured characteristics were based on 25 and 20 measurements per variety in 2019 and 2020, respectively. Mean differences were significant at the 5% probability level based on a Tukey Test.

Comparison tables for 'Richer' with reference varieties 'Chambly', 'Oceanik' and 'Sagamie'

Flag leaf width (mm)

Plant height (stem plus spike, including awns) (cm)

Spike length (excluding awns) (cm)

Click on image for larger view

Barley: 'Richer' (top left) with reference varieties 'Chambly' (top right), 'Oceanik' (bottom left) and 'Sagamie' (bottom right)

Click on image for larger view

Barley: 'Richer' (top left) with reference varieties 'Sagamie' (top right), 'Oceanik' (bottom left) and 'Chambly' (bottom right)

Click on image for larger view

Barley: 'Richer' (top left) with reference varieties 'Sagamie' (top right), 'Oceanik' (bottom left) and 'Chambly' (bottom right)