{"id":127307,"date":"2025-08-07T21:05:20","date_gmt":"2025-08-07T21:05:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/127307\/"},"modified":"2025-08-07T21:05:20","modified_gmt":"2025-08-07T21:05:20","slug":"orange-blossom-special-the-rust-stops-here","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/127307\/","title":{"rendered":"Orange Blossom Special: The Rust Stops Here"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new wheat variety blends familiar genetics with fresh resistance and agronomic traits \u2014 but emerging pathogens raise new questions.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Stripe rust and leaf rust continue to pressure wheat growers across the Southern Plains, with shifting pathogen populations and unpredictable infection timing threatening both yield and grain quality.<\/p>\n

As growers weigh fungicide costs, disease timing and variety resistance, researchers are working to develop cultivars that offer broader protection and stronger agronomic performance.<\/p>\n

Oklahoma State University\u2019s latest Clearfield wheat release, Orange Blossom CL+, enters the landscape with a familiar genetic base \u2014 and a few new traits aimed squarely at today\u2019s rust-related risks. The release follows years of internal development and field trials. The variety features a familiar genetic backbone and brings a combination of higher yield, early stripe rust resistance, and test weight comparable to its predecessor, Doublestop CL Plus.<\/p>\n

Building on a Trusted Foundation<\/strong><\/p>\n

Brett Carver<\/a>, OSU wheat genetics chair and regents professor, says the decision to build on Doublestop CL Plus genetics was intentional.<\/p>\n

\"\"Brett Carver, OSU Ferguson College of Agriculture wheat genetics chair and regents professor. (Photo by Mitchell Alcala\/OSU Agriculture)<\/p>\n

\u201cGenetically speaking, we stayed close to home with Doublestop CL Plus when breeding Orange Blossom CL Plus,\u201d he says. \u201cThese two varieties share about 66% of their genes in common. Thus, we could really focus on grain yield and disease resistance with the confidence of knowing we had a strong foundation.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Carver, Orange Blossom CL+ is likely one of the last Clearfield varieties developed at OSU using a closed-loop breeding system, where all parents carried two-gene CL Plus herbicide tolerance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis allowed me to ratchet up selection pressure for grain yield with the assurance we would not sacrifice past gains in key traits like herbicide tolerance,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Early Stripe Rust Resistance Expands Protection Window<\/strong><\/p>\n

The stripe rust resistance package is a notable feature, with protection appearing earlier than in most wheat varieties grown in the region.<\/p>\n

\u201cStripe rust resistance in Southern and Central Plains wheat varieties is largely of the \u2018adult-plant\u2019 kind, which does not usually kick in until after anthesis or flowering,\u201d Carver says. \u201cIn some years, that\u2019s enough \u2014 but in years like 2024 and 2021, we needed protection earlier in crop development to have a better chance of realizing yield potential.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Orange Blossom wheat growing at Oklahoma State University. (Photo by Mitchell Alcala\/OSU Agriculture)<\/p>\n

This earlier resistance could offer an advantage for growers in seasons with high early disease pressure, particularly when fungicide use is limited.<\/p>\n

Evolving Leaf Rust Pathogens Prompt New Breeding Strategies<\/strong><\/p>\n

Data from the 2023\u20132024 growing season also highlighted new challenges. Carver, who was recently named Big 12 Faculty Member of the Year<\/a>, and his team observed reactions to leaf rust in Orange Blossom CL+ that suggest emerging pathogen races are shifting the resistance landscape.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe already knew this, but the leaf rust reaction we saw on Orange Blossom CL+ late in the 2023\u20132024 season provided a stark reminder of the importance of deepening and broadening our leaf rust packages moving forward,\u201d Carver says. \u201cFor leaf rust, we have to add more stuff to the stew by combining different kinds of resistance into each variety, such as all-season resistance and adult-plant resistance.\u201d<\/p>\n

That ongoing effort is led by OSU wheat pathologist Meriem Aoun.<\/p>\n

\"\"OSU wheat pathologist Meriem Aoun leads the ongoing efforts to combat rust in wheat. (Photo by Mitchell Alcala\/OSU Agriculture)<\/p>\n

\u201cOrange Blossom CL+ is resistant to prevalent leaf rust pathogen races in Oklahoma. Based on molecular markers, Orange Blossom CL+ does not carry any of the known leaf rust resistance genes commonly deployed in hard winter wheat grown in the US Great Plains,\u201d she says. \u201cWe are quickly working to identify and characterize the novel leaf rust and stripe rust resistance genes in this cultivar.\u201d<\/p>\n

Deeper Planting Flexibility Emerges After Release<\/strong><\/p>\n

Carver says the variety also showed deeper planting ability, which may be useful in drier planting windows. This trait, identified after the initial release, is linked to a longer coleoptile.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe deeper planting ability of Orange Blossom CL Plus stems from its longer coleoptile, which can be an asset in either [grain-only or dual-purpose] system,\u201d Carver says. \u201cWe did not know this important fitness characteristic until after its release, and we credit our wheat extension specialist Amanda Silva for discovering it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Carver emphasizes that planting flexibility could benefit producers working in dual-purpose grazing and grain systems by increasing access to soil moisture during fall droughts.<\/p>\n

\u201cBroader fitness allows wheat producers greater freedom to operate,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n

Quality Profile Suited for Commodity Blending<\/strong><\/p>\n

When it comes to quality, Carver says Orange Blossom CL+ has above-average milling characteristics, while baking performance is described as average.<\/p>\n

\u201cIts quality profile is well fit for a commodity system where varieties of varying functionalities are blended,\u201d Carver says. \u201cOrange Blossom CL Plus will certainly raise the value of the blend for test weight and protein but may need help from other varieties with greater dough strength.\u201d<\/p>\n

New Research Facilities to Support Breeding Innovation<\/strong><\/p>\n

Looking ahead, the OSU Wheat Improvement Team is preparing to expand research capacity with the proposed Agronomy Discovery Center in Stillwater. The facility will include new greenhouses and lab space for multiple research teams, including wheat quality and pathology.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn short, the Agronomy Discovery Center will allow the wheat improvement team to intensify its breeding efforts with access to more breeding tools and allow us to expand our operation by utilizing a greater portion of the calendar,\u201d Carver says. \u201cWe\u2019ll be able to shift financial resources from protection of the breeding program to innovation within the program. We believe the latter will have greater direct impact on our wheat industry.\u201d<\/p>\n

The variety\u2019s name is a play on the famous 1930s fast-paced musical piece \u201cOrange Blossom Special\u201d by Ervin T. Rouse. The song was primarily played on the fiddle and uses double stops, a musical technique of playing two notes simultaneously on a stringed instrument. Orange Blossom CL+ is available in limited supply through OSU Foundation Seed Stocks, with broader commercial availability expected to follow.<\/p>\n

Learn more about OSU Foundation Seed Stocks.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A new wheat variety blends familiar genetics with fresh resistance and agronomic traits \u2014 but emerging pathogens raise…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":127308,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[74605,815,50,52599,77922,159,74606,6552,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-127307","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-genetics","8":"tag-featured-u-s","9":"tag-genetics","10":"tag-news","11":"tag-plant-breeding","12":"tag-plant-breeding-innovation","13":"tag-science","14":"tag-seed-world-u-s","15":"tag-traits","16":"tag-united-states","17":"tag-unitedstates","18":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114989519646036863","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127307","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127307"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127307\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127308"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127307"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127307"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127307"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}