Tanzanite
• A new purple wheat with up to 10% yield advantage over Tyrian from an autumn sowing and up to 15% over Amethyst from later plantings
• Niche market wheat with appreciably higher value than other wheat types
• A facultative wheat cultivar with a wide sowing window, May through to August
Description
TANZANITE is a high yielding purple winter wheat, bred in New Zealand by Plant & Food Research and assessed for release by PGG Wrightson Grain (PGW Grain). TANZANITE has higher yield potential than Tyrian and Amethyst and better disease resistance. TANZANITE is accepted by flour mills, due to its consistent purple colour and uniform grain size, making it suitable for use in kibbling. Purple wheat is a niche market for which contracts are strongly advised.
Yield
TANZANITE is a facultative wheat giving it a much wider sowing window than Tyrian. May sowings will generally yield the greatest, but good yields have been achieved from sowings as late as early September. In PGW trials, TANZANITE has given up to 10% higher yields than Tyrian from autumn sowings. From late winter to spring plantings, it yielded up to 15% above Amethyst with the advantage reducing if sown later than early September.
| Tanzanite grain quality (4 year mean) |
Autumn |
Spring |
|---|---|---|
| Kernel weight (1000 seed weight) | 48 | 52 |
| Test weight (kg/hl) | 76 | 77 |
| Protein content (%) (N% x 6.25) | 11.0 | 10.4 |
| Screenings (%) | 1.0 | 1.7 |
| Falling number (sec) | 363 | 383 |
TANZANITE should be given priority at harvest to preserve the colour intensity and to protect falling number.
Time of drilling
Speed of development
TANZANITE is quicker to develop than Tyrian and typically heads out a week earlier when planted between May and mid-July. TANZANITE has a weak temperature response making it suitable for planting through to mid-September.
Month planted |
Typical heading dates for Tanzanite in Canterbury |
| May | Mid-November |
| Early September | Mid - late December |
TANZANITE is a medium maturing cultivar at harvest, similar to most of the current bread wheats.
Seed rate and tillering characteristics
TANZANITE tillers well (similar to most bread wheats). Care needs to be taken with plant populations when sowing mid-winter/ spring. Seeding rates may need to be increased to achieve maximum yields (see PGW Grain wheat sowing guidelines).
Soil type, rotation and geography
Disease resistance
TANZANITE has a good general disease resistance profile but is moderately susceptible to Septoria leaf blotch. Considering this disease profile, fungicide programmes should be tailored to target Septoria leaf blotch early, especially at T0 and T1 timings for autumn sown crops. Please contact your local PGW Representative for site specific recommendations.
Disease resistance results:
Disease |
Plant and Food Research disease nursery ratings |
|---|---|
| Stripe rust | 9 |
| Leaf rust | 7 |
| Septoria leaf blotch | 5 |
| Powdery mildew | 9 |
