Throughout the harvest season, we are updating our handy map with the latest data from 2023’s AHDB wheat Recommended List harvest results.

Use the map below to find the five highest-yielding wheat varieties at your nearest trials site.

Wheat summary

All of the AHDB Recommended List winter wheat trials have now been reported awith the average yield of the control varieties ranging from 7.99 t/ha on a site with thin stoney soils in Lincolnshire, through to 13.34 t/ha on a medium soil site in Suffolk.

Overall however, average yields were down on the five-year average of 11.04 t/ha, at just 10.78 t/ha.

Wheat variety selection

Group 4

The Group 4 (hard) varieties have finished top on fungicide-treated yield, with Champion and Insitor both finishing on 106% of controls, with Insitor having had a very good year, 2% above its five-year average.

Also above their five-year average are the third highest yielding varieties, newly recommended variety for the East and West Oxford (105%) and Dawsum (104%), with Gleam and KWS Cranium on 103%.

Other hard Group 4s have finished in line with their five-year average, except Wolverine, which has finished on 100%, just above its five-year average.

In the soft Group 4s, newly recommended for the East and West variety Redwald ended highest yielding on 104%, though this is 2% below its five-year average. Newly recommended for the North variety Zealum is the second highest yielding soft Group 4 variety, alongside Bairstow on 102%.

Skyscraper has had a disappointing year, finishing on 100%, 2% below its five-year average. The other soft Group 4s have also performed below their five-year average, with Saki (97%) and Swallow (93%) especially disappointing.

Group 3

The quality Group 3 wheats have all performed just below their five-year averages in 2023. Guium, Prince, Brium and Rashid, along with newly recommended variety Wilkinson, have all finished on 99%, with Merit on 98% and Astronomer, Barrel and Illuminate all on 96%.

Group 1

The Group 1 bread-milling varieties have had a better 2023, performing at or a little above their five-year average, probably reflecting the relatively low rust pressure this year. Zyatt is highest yielding on 99% with Skyfall above its five-year average on 98%. Crusoe and Illustrious are both on 96% just above their five-year average, with Crusoe producing the highest average protein in this low protein year.

Group 2

In the Group 2 varieties, Extase has finished highest yielding on 102%, above its five-year average, with the other group 2 varieties on their five-year averages, with newly recommended Ultimatum second highest yielding on 101% with Palladium on 100% and Mayflower on 97%.

Untreated

In the fungicide-untreated trials the highest yielding variety for 2023 is the newly recommended hard Group 4 variety for the East and West, Oxford (117%) well above its five-year average, mirroring its good performance in the fungicide-treated trials.

Second highest yielding is the Group 2 variety Mayflower (116%), with hard Group 4 varieties Champion (114%), and Dawsum (113%) also yielding well in these trials, though Dawsum is below its five-year average.

The other Group 2 varieties have yielded a little below their five-year averages, with Palladium on 113%, Extase on 112% and Ultimatum on 111%, though all are amongst the highest yielding varieties in these trials.

A number of varieties have performed well above their five-year averages in the fungicide-untreated trials, notably Wolverine (99%), Skyfall (92%) and Zyatt (95%) who’s weakness against yellow rust has not been such an issue this year.

Equally some varieties have performed well below their five-year averages, notably Saki (97%), Skyscraper (100%), Illuminate (100%) and Astronomer (103%).