The development of hybrid wheat continues, but at least one company is ramping up its pollen management program. BASF, which is developing new hybrid wheat varieties, is teaming with PowerPollen to improve cross-pollination and enhance the wheat development program.

PowerPollen has developed proprietary tools to capture and preserve pollen, which has a short life once it leaves the plant. With that technology, companies can take control of their pollination effort in new ways, which can help boost seed production or plant research.

The technology is already at work in corn breeding, but it has shown the ability to collect, preserve and apply wheat pollen at a commercial scale. This could increase the pollination efficiency for BASF’s hybrid wheat seed production.

In a media statement announcing the relationship, Gustavo Gonzalez, director of global wheat strategy for BASF, notes, “Hybrid wheat demonstrates BASF’s commitment to transforming wheat for long-term success through a globally driven, advanced breeding platform adapted to local needs.”

Long the goal of plant breeders, hybrid wheat poses a range of challenges. The BASF media statement notes that adding PowerPollen preservation and application technology expands the potential for hybrid wheat and improved productivity.

Related:Maximizing pollen to boost corn seed output

Adds Todd Krone, co-founder and CEO, PowerPollen: “When applied to commercial hybrid seed corn production, PowerPollen’s technology increases yields and enables production of hybrids that conventional methods are unable to produce. The goal is to achieve similar results in wheat to accelerate the hybridization of this staple crop.”

More about PowerPollen

Pollen from any plant has a limited “shelf life,” which has hindered efforts in the past to capture pollen for later use in plant seed production. PowerPollen has overcome that challenge with proprietary tools to capture and preserve pollen for longer periods of time.

This allows breeders to make sure they maximize pollen when needed for the plant. For example, corn may silk and tassel at a specific time, but that timing may not always match. By capturing a portion of the pollen and returning to the field to apply it a second time can help boost seed output.

The company claims that its technology has been shown to increase seed yields as much as 44% in commercial hybrid corn.

Learn more at powerpollen.com. To learn more about BASF North American operations, visit basf.com/us.

Sources: BASF, PowerPollen, which are solely responsible for the information provided and are wholly owned by the sources. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.