By ANN ALLEN
Indiana Correspondent

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — There’s positive news for Indiana wheat growers from Purdue University’s Agronomy Center for Research and Education (ACRE).

“Spikes and heads appear normal and undamaged in several wheat plots and fields after the below-freezing temperatures of early April,” said Herb Ohm, Purdue’s wheat breeder.

“Although varying tip portions of leaves in most fields are frozen and dead, I expect wheat to recover and resume normal growth, assuming the weather warms to normal conditions as the spring season develops.”

Ohm said more than 40 wheat seedling stems that were examined on April 7-8 were one-quarter to one inch above ground surface, low enough to be protected by ground surface temperature, typically higher than air temperatures above the wheat canopy during nights at this time in the growing season.

He expects less damage north of Lafayette, even though temperatures might have been one to several degrees cooler because wheat growth is likely less advanced and spikes are likely to be at or below the ground surface.

While wheat growth appears more advanced in areas south of Lafayette because of higher night temperatures, Ohm cautions,
“Damage due to cool night temperatures throughout the state may have occurred due to more extreme conditions than at Lafayette.”

He urges wheat growers to examine their fields to verify any damage by gently pulling or cutting more advanced stems at the ground surface with a razor blade or sharp knife and slicing them in half longitudinally.

If the stem is healthy, it will appear dark green with turgid tissue. If it is freeze-damaged, it will appear slightly faded green and mushy.