Six years of adaptive and on-farm spring cereal research in Newfoundland

Livestock farmers in Newfoundland use most available land for forages. The local production of feed grains is negligible and expensive imported feed a ccounts for almost one half of farm operating expenses. Here, our objective s were to develop basic agronomic principles of mechanized spring grain pro duction and to demonstrate grain production techniques to the Newfoundland farming community. Barley seeding date trials were conducted at five enviro nments in eastern and western Newfoundland between 1996 and 1998. The relat ionship between soil pH and barley grain yield was explored through grid so il and yield sampling in two large fields in both 1997 and 1998. Between 19 93 and 1998 over 20 livestock farmers throughout Newfoundland cooperated wi th the Newfoundland Grain Project, growing and comparing varieties of barle y (Hordeum vulgare L.), spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and oats (Avena saliva L.) on their farms. Late seeding of barley in the spring/summer res ulted in linear grain yield reductions. A levelling off of yield response d id not occur at greater cumulated growing degree days, possibly because opt imum accumulation for maximum barley yield potential does not occur in Newf oundland. Resistant regression lines, describing the relationship between s oil pH and grain yield were developed for two barley varieties, indicated t hat Sterling reached a yield plateau around a soil pH 6 in 1998, while Chap ais reached a yield plateau at soil pH 5.4 in 1997. Barley is well adapted to Newfoundland growing conditions, normally providing a high-yielding, mat ure grain of good feeding quality. Farmers collaborating with the project w ere generally impressed with the potential of growing barley for grain and some are now regularly doing so.