KWS Gimlet is a step-on for two-row barleys

Visitors to this year’s KWS stand at Cereals had the opportunity to inspect a new high-yielding winter barley from KWS.

The leading AHDB-Candidate variety in 2018-19 official trials, KWS Gimlet is scheduled for addition to the AHDB Recommended List in the autumn of 2018.

A two-row feed variety with Barley Yellow Mosaic Virus (BYMV) resistance, KWS Gimlet is unlike other two-row varieties from KWS, explains KWS Sales & Cereals manager, Will Compson.

Mr Compson said: “KWS Gimlet is high-yielding feed type with a range of appealing characteristics that will make management easy and support its appeal on farm.

“A treated yield of 107 per cent of controls and the joint highest untreated yield thanks to its robust all-round disease resistance, suggest KWS Gimlet will find favour with growers across the UK.”

KWS Gimlet

A three-way cross between KWS Glacier, California and Matros, KWS Gimlet is taller than its parents at about 97cm, typically one to two days earlier to mature than KWS Glacier and is higher yielding than KWS Orwell.

Mr Compson explained that for the past five years, KWS Orwell has been the benchmark variety by which KWS has measured its candidates as has shown excellent yield consistency across a range of seasons. KWS Gimlet has constantly yielded one to two per cent higher than KWS Orwell in KWS trials during this time.

“It has five to six more grain sites per ear than other KWS two-row varieties and demonstrates a faster growth habit that marks it out as being distinct from other two-row types.

He added: “We believe its consistent performance owes much to its combination of favourable characteristics including all-round disease resistance and high grain sites per ear combined with its favourable specific weight.”