Bayer expects to release short-stature corn version next season

Wind events have affected crops in the Midwest in recent years, leading to greensnap and lodging of corn, but a new hybrid line developed at Bayer Crop Science should help prevent some of these problems in the future.

Bayer’s short-stature corn is part of its Smart Corn System, and Bayer expects to have a breeding version available in 2023 and a biotech version available in 2027, with yields like their taller counterparts. ″We have taken a technical approach to our elite corn products and are keeping the benefits of our regular hybrids, but making them shorter,″ says Bob Reiter, head of research and development for Bayer Crop Science.

Reiter says it takes companies effort to make products for farmers, and there’s a level of risk taken to develop a product. The development of short-stature corn started in Bayer’s research plots in Mexico. He says the breeding version of the short-stature corn may not have the exact performance as the biotech version will once it is on the market.

The breeding version has some differences from the biotech version — mostly when it comes to the distance internode between leaves. The biotech version is expected to be more uniform and more consistent, like the hybrids currently available. ″Leaf size and architecture is basically the same as current hybrids. We are continuing to learn more about the plant and think there could be more benefits than we are currently aware of,″ Reiter says.

Read the full report at farmprogress.com.