Cereal Rye Variety Trial 2026

Funding provided by USDA-NIFA; Albert Lea Seed House, Green Cover Seed, North Dakota State University, KWS and FP Genetics.

In a Nutshell:

• 12 cereal rye varieties were trialed at four Iowa State University research farms.

Key Findings:

• Across all sites and varieties, hybrid cereal rye varieties averaged 84 bu/ac while open-pollinated varieties averaged 62 bu/ac.
• No one hybrid variety yielded statistically significantly higher than other hybrid varieties across sites.
• Not one open-pollinated variety yielded statistically significantly higher than other open-pollinated varieties. However, ND Gardner, ND Dylan and Elbon were consistently the lowest yielding varieties across sites.

Background

This was the eighth year that Practical Farmers of Iowa coordinated cereal rye variety trials at Iowa State University research farms at Nashua (northeast Iowa); the seventh year at ISU research farms at Kanawha (north-central Iowa); and the sixth year of trials at ISU research farms at Boone (central Iowa) and Greenfield (southwest Iowa).

In the previous seven years of rye variety trials on ISU farms, SU Cossani, SU Performer, KWS Receptor and KWS Serafino have been the top yielding varieties across sites [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7]. Overall, yields in PFI’s small-grains variety trials have varied quite a bit between years due to weather conditions and the retention and addition of higher performing varieties in the trials. In 2025, the average cereal rye yield across the three participating Iowa research farms was 53 bu/ac [7]. Wet conditions throughout late spring and summer led to challenging weather conditions and the experiment at Kanawha was abandoned.

In contrast, cereal rye variety trials conducted by the University of Minnesota which included varieties Danko, Hazlet, KWS Receptor, KWS Rixor, KWS Serafino, KWS Tayo and Rymin reported an average yield of 114 bu/ac in 2025 [8]. In 2024, the average cereal rye yield across the four participating Iowa research farms was 89 bu/ac [6]. In 2023, the average cereal rye yield across the four Iowa research farms was 42.6 bu/ac [1].

Methods

Design

Variety trials were conducted at four locations in 2026: ISU Northern Research Farm in Kanawha; ISU Northeast Research Farm in Nashua; ISU Ag Engineering and Agronomy Farm in Boone; ISU Southwest Research Farm in Greenfield. Production characteristics and some breeding history about each of the trialed varieties can be found in Table 1. SU Cossani was trialed only at Nashua, which trialed twelve varieties. Kanawha, Boone and Greenfield trialed eleven varieties. Information on winter hardiness, days to heading, plant height and ergot susceptibility can be sourced from the University of Minnesota [9].

Rye management information is provided with the results from each site. No herbicide, insecticide or fungicide were applied at any location. Rye was planted at seeding rates (lb/ac) listed in Table 1 to achieve seeding rates of 25 seeds/ft² for open-pollinated varieties and 18.4 seeds/ft² for hybrid varieties. All varieties were planted on 7.5 in. row spacing at 1.25 in. depth. Each location measured grain yield, grain test weight, plant height at harvest and % lodging. Nashua also measured and reported straw biomass. Reported yields are corrected to 14% moisture content. Cumulative monthly precipitation and average monthly temperature during the cereal rye growing season sourced from the NASA POWER dataset are provided for each location [7, 8].

We analyze and report variety results separately for each trial location. At each location, the 3-year average yield is provided for individual varieties that have been trialed at the site in previous years. At Nashua, Boone and Greenfield, this average includes the years 2026, 2025 and 2024. At Kanawha this includes the years 2026, 2024 and 2023 due to crop failure in 2025. A “% of site average” is also included to aid in comparing yields of varieties within each location; this is the 2026 yield of a variety divided by the average yield across all varieties grown at the site in 2026. We used Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) followed by a Tukey’s Significant Difference test to determine if there were statistically significant differences in yield, test weight, plant height and lodging across varieties at individual sites. Tukey’s test calculates a statistic called the Minimum Significant Differences (MSD); if the difference in yield, etc. between two varieties is greater than the MSD, we consider the yields significantly different. Statistical significance is determined at the 90% confidence level, meaning that if the experiment were repeated, we would expect to see the same results nine times out of ten.

Results and Discussion

Winter of 2025-2026 was dry and precipitation levels were almost double the average in April and half average in May at all four sites [10], [11].

Across all sites and varieties, average 2026 rye variety trial yield was 73 bu/ac. This is up from 53 bu/ac in 2025 but down from 89 bu/ac in 2024. No cereal rye varieties made test weight (56 lb/bu) this year at any of the four sites. However, all varieties at Greenfield and Kanawha had test weights of 52 lb/bu or higher and likely could have made test weight after standard grain cleaning procedures. Lodging was higher at Kanawha and Greenfield than at Boone and Nashua, especially among open-pollinated varieties.

Hybrid cereal rye varieties averaged 84 bu/ac while open-pollinated varieties averaged 62 bu/ac across all sites. Hybrid varieties were, on average, about 6 in. shorter than open-pollinated varieties. Hybrid varieties were about 5% lodged at harvest while open-pollinated varieties were about 23% lodged on average.

Across all four sites, hybrids SU Cossani (90 bu/ac), KWS Rixor (90 bu/ac), SU Performer (86 bu/ac), KWS Serafino (83 bu/ac) and KWS Receptor (82 bu/ac) were the numerically highest yielding varieties. These five hybrid varieties yielded statistically significantly higher than open-pollinated SU Bebop (69 bu/ac), Danko (67 bu/ac), ND Dylan (53 bu/ac), ND Gardner (48 bu/ac) and Elbon (39 bu/ac) but not hybrid KWS Tayo (82 bu/ac) or open-pollinated Hazlet (70 bu/ac). There were no statistically significant differences in test weight across varieties. Across sites, lodging was significantly higher in ND Gardner and ND Dylan than all other varieties.

At Nashua and Boone, there were few statistically significant differences in yield between hybrid and open-pollinated varieties. At Greenfield all five hybrid verities outyielded all or most open-pollinated varieties. At Kanawha, KWS Rixor outyielded all open-pollinated varieties and the other four hybrids outyielded ND Gardner, ND Dylan and Elbon.

There were no statistically significant differences in yield between the five to six hybrid varieties trialed at individual sites, and no consistent differences across sites; no single variety had consistently numerically higher yields. There was similarly no open-pollinated varieties that consistently yielded significantly better than others across sites. SU Bebop yielded significantly higher than ND Gardner, ND Dylan and Elbon at Kanawha. Hazlet and Danko yielded higher than ND Gardner, ND Dylan and Elbon at Greenfield.

ISU Northern Research Farm, Kanawha
Previous crop: Soybeans
Replications: 3
Harvested plot size: 5 ft × 59.5 ft
Fertilizer applied: 27.5 lb N/ac, 130 lb P/ac, 150 lb K/ac applied on Nov. 5, 2025
40 lb N/ac applied on March 30, 2026
Planting date: Oct. 10, 2025
Harvest date: July 30, 2026

ISU Northeast Research Farm, Nashua
Previous crop: Soybeans
Replications: 3
Harvested plot size: 10 ft × 50-57.5 ft
Fertilizer applied: 32.1 lb P/ac and 185 lb K/ac applied on Nov. 3, 2025
32 lb S/ac applied on Jan. 16, 2026
35 lb N/ac applied on March 25, 2026
Planting date: Oct. 9, 2025
Harvest date: July 14, 2026

ISU Ag Engineering and Agronomy Farm, Boone
Previous crop: Soybeans
Replications: 3
Harvested plot size: 59 ft × 13.5 ft
Fertilizer applied: 10 lb N/ac, 5 lb P/ac, 40 lb K/ac and 2.5 lb S/ac applied on Oct. 24, 2025
40 lb N/ac, 45 lb P/ac, 60 lb K/ac and 18 lb S/ac applied on March 30, 2026
Planting date: Oct. 23, 2025
Harvest date: July 28, 2026

ISU Southwest Research Farm, Greenfield
Previous crop: Soybean
Replications: 3
Harvested plot size: 5 ft × 50 ft
Fertilizer applied: 35 lb/ac N as urea applied on March 27, 2026
Planting date: Oct. 13, 2025
Harvest date: July 22, 2026

Funding Acknowledgement

This work is supported by the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, grant number F9000315202081 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

We would also like to express our gratitude to Albert Lea Seed House, FP Genetics, Green Cover, KWS and North Dakota State University for donating seed for these variety trials

References

1. S. Gailans and S. Carlson, “Cereal Rye Variety Trial 2019,” Practical Farmers of Iowa, 2019. [Online]. Available: https://practicalfarmers.org/research/cereal-rye-variety-trial-2019/
2. S. Gailans and L. English, “Cereal Rye Variety Trial 2020,” Practical Farmers of Iowa, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://practicalfarmers.org/research/cereal-rye-variety-trial-2020/
3. S. Gailans and L. English, “Cereal Rye Variety Trial 2021,” Practical Farmers of Iowa, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://practicalfarmers.org/research/cereal-rye-variety-trial-2021/
4. S. Gailans, “Cereal Rye and Triticale Variety Trial 2022,” Practical Farmers of Iowa, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://practicalfarmers.org/research/cereal-rye-and-triticale-variety-trial-2022/
5. S. Gailans, “Cereal Rye and Triticale Variety Trial 2023,” Practical Farmers of Iowa, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://practicalfarmers.org/research/cereal-rye-and-triticale-variety-trial-2023/
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9. J. Wiersma, “2023 Winter Rye Field Crop Trial Results: Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station,” University of Minnesota, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://drive.google.com/file/d/11qo8BPRxJBp2x9rzAeDRTC52UQltXlez/view
10. A. H. Sparks, “nasapower: A NASA POWER Global Meteorology, Surface Solar Energy and Climatology Data Client for R,” J. Open Source Softw., vol. 3, no. 30, p. 1035, Oct. 2018, doi: 10.21105/joss.01035.
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