Variability is nothing new to growers, aside from posing a constant challenge. They tend to have a firm grasp of those parts of their fields that are the most variable, whether due to soil type or topography. But other than by investing in precision planting equipment or a variable-rate application system, dealing with those challenges is no simple matter.
Nick Toll has tried another option. The Blenheim, Ontario-area producer is the fourth generation on the family farm, managing a corn, soybean and winter wheat rotation, with some additional acres for winter canola, seed corn and alfalfa. The family also operates a 500-head commercial ewe flock, and his brother finishes a few cattle.
Toll has been planting Croplan WinPak soybeans from WinField United Canada for the past three years, taking advantage of the company’s approach of blending two complementary varieties.
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It’s not an entirely new theory for spreading risk. For years, agronomists, crop advisors, researchers and extension personnel have urged growers to plant more than one soybean variety (or hybrid) across their fields. The logic is simple, and mirrors the WinPak concept of balancing growth characteristics or strengths of different varieties. The difference is the company’s approach to alleviate the work of pairing and packaging varieties.
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Seed is selected based on specific attributes in a field, with high yield potential on more productive soils while providing more consistency for the challenging spots. A single bag contains two varieties from the same trait platform — either Roundup Ready 2 Xtend or Enlist E3s. The goal is to find a complementary performance from each: one variety might have better standability, while the other performs better under drier conditions. The varieties will also have similar maturities to ensure consistent dry-down in the field.
First launched in the U.S. more than 10 years ago, Croplan WinPaks are now available across Canada in the 2200 to 3375 CHU regions, with nine paired options for the eastern half of the country and four in the West.
For Toll, the WinPak option means he doesn’t have to invest in variable-rate planting technology and can stay with a no-till drill for his soybeans.
“A lot of our fields have varying soil types from one end to the other, so the WinPak allows us to get at least half of the correct seed on the varying knolls or bottoms,” says Toll, who farms with this father Ian and brother Ben. “I believe it takes a bit of drought concern out of the equation as well. One of the varieties is more defensive and will hold its own in less-than-ideal conditions, whereas the other variety will excel when conditions are favourable.”
A changed approach
When Croplan WinPak first launched with limited availability in Canada in 2019, there were references to “defensive and offensive” characteristics as part of the blends. But according to Kaitland Miller, WinField personnel have more recently adopted the “complementary” term to describe the benefits.
“Varietal mixtures can be advantageous as you have two soybean varieties working for you in the field,” says Miller, WinField United’s market development manager for Ontario. “There can even be a synergistic effect on an individual product level. For example, the CP2421WPX has improved field stability paired together in a WinPak, as one soybean component is able to hold up the other high-yielding soybean component, improving harvestability and yield.”
That happens to be the varietal blend that Toll plants. One variety is CF3176, a taller, top-performing clay variety which also yields well in loam soil but can grow a little taller and be prone to lodging. The partner variety is CP2320, a shorter, bushier-type soybean that chases top-end yield on lighter and loamier soil.
Toll maintains the blended concept alleviates some concern about drought. It may be anecdotal, but he echoes Miller’s contention of a synergistic effect with the complementary varieties, almost a 1 + 1 = 3 relationship.
“Not only will they perform well on their ideal soil type, but the 2320 will actually help hold up the 3176 in ideal conditions, allowing them all to excel without lodging,” he says, noting he doesn’t have actual data to show an advantage. “But the varieties in the WinPaks we grow are varieties we had grown on their own in the past that performed very well for us.”
Single charge
Miller says there’s no added cost for the WinPak service.
“We keep it simple for the grower — we do the research and logistics work so the grower simply plants the combined varieties as they come out of the bag or tote, pre-blended for their convenience. We must also ensure we have similar seed sizing for each WinPak component, not to mention the extra effort that goes into the blending and packaging.”
Research by WinField indicates pairing two varieties provides a consistent two- to three-bushel per acre yield advantage, on average. Miller says interest in the Croplan WinPak option has picked up in the past few years as word has spread from growers who see the benefits on their farm.
“To keep it simple, the number one response I get from growers is, ‘That makes sense,’” she says. “I love that answer because agronomically, the WinPak concept helps farmers manage field variability and risk mitigation. They know planting several varieties is a good idea, and this way is easy.”
– This article was originally published as ‘ A new option for variability’ in the 2023 edition of Soybean Guide.
