Eldorado

Oat

Variety Description

Varieties used for comparison: 'Casino', 'Nitro' and 'Turcotte'

Summary: At the 5 to 9 tiller stage, the pubescence on the lower leaf sheath of ‘Eldorado' is of medium density whereas the pubescence on the lower leaf sheath is dense for ‘Nitro' and absent to very sparse for ‘Casino'. The pubescence on the lower leaf blade of ‘Eldorado' is absent to very sparse whereas the pubescence on the lower leaf blade is of medium density for ‘Nitro' and sparse for ‘Turcotte'. At booting, the leaves of ‘Eldorado' have strong glaucosity whereas the leaves of ‘Turcotte' have weak glaucosity and those of ‘Casino' and ‘Nitro' have a medium intensity of glaucosity. The frequency of plants with recurved flag leaves is of medium frequency for 'Eldorado' whereas it is high for 'Turcotte'. The flag leaf of ‘Eldorado' is shorter and wider than that of ‘Nitro'. The pubescence on the stem above and below the upper culm node of ‘Eldorado' is sparse whereas it is absent or very sparse for ‘Casino'. The plants of ‘Eldorado' head later than the plants of ‘Turcotte' and earlier than the plants of ‘Casino and ‘Nitro'. After heading at the green stage, the plants of ‘Eldorado' are shorter than the plants of ‘Nitro'. The panicle of ‘Eldorado' is shorter than that of ‘Nitro'. The angle between the rachis and dominant side branch of the panicle of 'Eldorado' is 30 to 45 degrees whereas it is more than 45 degrees on 'Casino' and ‘Nitro'. The lemmas of ‘Eldorado' have a weak tendency to be awned whereas the reference varieties have an absent to very weak tendency to be awned. At maturity, the lower glume of ‘Eldorado' is shorter than the reference varieties. The basal hairs on the primary kernels of the upper spikelet of ‘Eldorado' are short whereas there are no basal hairs on the primary kernels of the upper spikelet for ‘Nitro' and ‘Turcotte'. The thousand kernel weight of ‘Eldorado' is greater than that of 'Turcotte'. The primary kernel of ‘Eldorado' is shorter than that of ‘Casino' and ‘Nitro' and wider than that of ‘Nitro' and ‘Turcotte'.

Description:

PLANT: naked type (hull-less), spring type, erect juvenile growth habit at 5 to 9 tiller stage, medium frequency of plants with recurved flag leaves

STEM: sparse pubescence above and below the upper culm node

LOWER LEAVES: medium pubescence on sheath, absent to very sparse pubescence on blade
LEAF: medium green, absent to very sparse pubescence on margin of leaf below flag leaf, strong glaucosity at green stage

PANICLE: equilateral/symmetrical orientation of branches, medium density, semi-erect to horizontal attitude of branches, 30 to 45 degree angle between rachis and dominant side branches, few hairs or spines on lower node
SPIKELET: abscission separation, semi-nodding attitude, three grains
RACHILLA: long between primary and secondary floret
GLUME: weak glaucosity
LEMMA: very weak glaucosity, large extent of lateral overlap on palea, yellow at maturity, absent to very sparse pubescence on lateral and dorsal surface, weak tendency to be awned

KERNEL (PRIMARY KERNELS FROM UPPER SPIKELETS): short basal hairs, cream colour
SCUTELLUM: pointed tip, large
GROAT: medium density of pubescence

Origin & Breeding History: ‘Eldorado' (experimental designation 17ANS05) originated from the cross made between the line MF9910-172 and the variety ‘Idaho' at the Semican Research Centre in Princeville, Quebec, Canada during the winter of 2006 and 2007. It was developed using a modified bulk breeding method. From 2008 to 2012, selections were made from the F1 to F5 generations grown in the field in Princeville, Quebec based solely on the specific weight. The seeds from selected individual F5 panicles were planted as row plots in 2013 and the F6 plants were selected based on yield, specific weight, early maturation, lodging resistance and resistance to diseases. In 2014, one line designated as 17ANS05 was advanced to preliminary trials conducted from 2014 to 2016 and further advanced into the registration trials of the Réseau Grande Culture de Québec from 2017 to 2021. Breeder seed was established at the F11 generation in 2020.

Tests & Trials: The comparative trials for ‘Eldorado' were conducted at the Semican Research Centre in Princeville, Quebec, in 2023 and 2024. There were 3 replicates arranged in a RCB design. The plots were 4.3 square metres and consisted of six 4 metre long rows spaced 0.177 metres apart. The seeding density of 62 seeds per linear metre resulted in a total of approximately 4464 plants per variety. The measured characteristics were based on 20 measurements per variety per year. Mean differences were significant at the 5% probability level based on LSD values.

Comparison tables for 'Eldorado' with reference varieties 'Casino', 'Nitro' and 'Turcotte'

Flag leaf length (cm)

Flag leaf width (cm)

Days to heading (days from planting to when 50% heads have fully emerged from boot)

Plant height after heading at green stage (including culm and panicle) (cm)

Panicle length (at green stage) (cm)

Lower glume length (at maturity) (cm)

Kernel weight (grams per 1000 kernels) (g)

Kernel length (primary grain) (mm)

Kernel width (primary grain) (mm)

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Oat: ‘Eldorado' (centre right) with reference varieties ‘Nitro' (left), ‘Casino' (centre left) and ‘Turcotte' (right)

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Oat: 'Eldorado' (centre) with reference varieties 'Casino' (furthest left), 'Nitro' (second from left) and 'Turcotte' (furthest right)