Pioneer breeds another front runner: P1225PW finds a place under full irrigation in the more temperate eastern part of the Orange River irrigation area

AJ Steyn, Pioneer Agronomist

Photo 1: P1225PW under full irrigation in the Orange River irrigation area with good leaf health.

Benine Ackermann

**This article was translated from the original Afrikaans article. Read original article here.

The hybrid P1225PW was planted for the first time in strip trials in the Northern Cape irrigation area during the 2023-24 season and performed well in an early trial in the Luckhoff area against proven irrigation hybrids.

The cultivar was initially developed for dryland in the eastern production areas but is also being increasingly used further west, as well as tested in trials for adaptability and yield potential under full irrigation.

The base genetics have been planted for the past three seasons and show good adaptability in the cooler parts of the western irrigation area. The PowerCore™ version completes the platform, offering resistance especially against Busseola usca and Chilo partellus, as well as the convenience of Roundup Ready® application for farmers. Figure 1 shows the yields obtained from a planting date of 4 October 2023.

Treatments

The trial was fertilised with 333 kg nitrogen (N), 65 kg phosphorus (P), and 113 kg potassium (K). The plant population was 95 000 seeds/ha, and full irrigation was applied. The harvest date was 7 March 2024.

Photo 2: Grain of P1225PW.

Important agronomic characteristics

Yield potential and grain quality:

The cultivar shows excellent yield potential with very good grain quality as shown in Photo 2, packing 18 to 20 rows of kernels on the cob, which results in good yield. Good kernel mass also contributes to the yield.

Head height to plant size ratio:

Under irrigation, the heads are carried at about ±48% of the plant height. This makes the cultivar quite acceptable for irrigation. Plants that carry their heads too high (above 50% of plant height) under irrigation can have an increased risk of lodging.

The plant height of 2,44 m is acceptable for irrigation. The later the planting date is shifted, the higher the heads will usually be carried, but with normal planting dates in the first half of December, the cultivar compares well with established irrigation hybrids.

Stand ability:

P1225 and P1225PW show good stand ability on dryland and under irrigation because the heads are carried relatively low on the plant.

Leaf disease resistance:

P1225 carries the Ht-N gene, which is responsible for good leaf disease resistance (Photo 3). Here you can see how plant resistance causes a yellow dead layer around the Northern leaf blight lesion, isolating it so it does not spread further. The infected plant tissue inside dies off, but the spread of the disease is limited.