Location: Crop Production and Protection
Project Number: 0500-00053-005-257-G
Project Type: Grant
Start Date: May 1, 2026
End Date: Apr 30, 2030
Objective:
Prepare western U.S. wheat for emerging Fusarium head blight (FHB) risk by identifying hidden susceptibility in elite varieties, validating key resistance genes in California-adapted backgrounds, and developing new breeding populations that combine strong disease resistance with high yield and grain quality.
Approach:
Test elite wheat under managed disease conditions to estimate baseline risk, introduce and evaluate major resistance genes in adapted varieties, and build multi-parent populations that combine diverse resistance sources. Multi-location field trials and genetic tools will deliver regionally adapted, breeding-ready lines for U.S. production.