Yet another victim of budget cuts in Oregon will come on the Klages and Stonebrink farms where wheat variety trials will be discontinued, at least for the next year. The irrigated Klages land has been used for the local wheat trials since 1994 and the dryland Stonebrink farm since 1997.

Paralleling the state’s budgetary crisis as reasons for the cutback are the drought conditions witnessed the past three years and low wheat prices.

The purpose of the tests is to determine both dryland and irrigation land yields, test weight and protein content for newer varieties of wheat as introduced to Wallowa County soils. That data can be then used by Wallowa County wheat growers on the selection of their next crop.

Many of the newer varieties recorded in the 2002 grower drill strip winter cereal trials include Coda, Temple, Edwin and Bruehl. All four are club wheats introduced in 1998 and 1999.

Soft wheats grown in Wallowa County, raised with a shorter growing season, are commonly used to make noodles, pastries and cakes. The commodity is often shipped overseas.

Stonebrink tested 13 varieties of wheat in the winter trials and Klages 10. The tables of results are included in the Sept.-Oct. issue of The Prompter/Rancher Review, a newsletter put out by Wallowa County Extension agent John Williams and Union County extension agent Darrin Walenta.

The wheat varieties do not, as a whole, distinguish themselves in the tables which as well include the industry wheat standards of Stephens and Madsen.

Anyone desiring a copy of the newsletter should contact their local extension office.

Anyone wishing statewide information regarding the Oregon Farm Drill Strip Testing Program or the statewide small plot testing program can go to www.css.orst.edu/cereals.