Sunflower hybrids PAN 7080, PAN 7090, PAN 7102CLP and PAN 7180CLP looking good in Western Free State.

Hannelie Tait, Pannar's representative in Hoopstad, shares this promising crop of the sunflower hybrids PAN 7080, PAN 7090, PAN 7102CLP and PAN 7180CLP at Robyn Boerdery, Hoopstad. The sunflowers were planted on 3 January at 38,000 plants per hectare.

Pannar's sunflower package offers some of the best genetic potential and technology on the market with excellent yield potential at all yield levels and exceptionally good yield stability under different production conditions. The package offers options for early planting and flowering dates to help manage the risk of Sclerotinia infection. Technology options include conventional and Pannar sunflower hybrids with the Clearfield^® Plus trait, as well as a hybrid with a high oleic acid content.

PAN 7090 is a new three-way cross conventional hybrid that has consistently delivered a top performance in Pannar P3 trails, demonstrating good yield potential, oil content, stability and adaptability. It is recommended as part of the main planting for all sunflower production regions.

PAN 7180CLP is the Clearfield^® Plus conversion of the well-known PAN 7080 and has the same base genetics. PAN 7180CLP has the same yield performance as PAN 7080 but offers some agronomic improvements in terms of Alternaria and even Sclerotinia tolerance. Significantly fewer Sclerotinia problems were experienced on the parental lines. PAN 7180CLP replaces PAN 7156CLP. PAN 7180CLP complements the Clearfield^® Plus hybrid package very well with its good yield potential and agronomic properties. Together with PAN 7102CLP and PAN 7160CLP, the three hybrids form a well-rounded package that can help to better manage the risk of Sclerotinia infection. In the Clearfield Plus package, PAN 7102CLP flowers first over a short period (10 days), PAN 7160CLP flowers second, but flowers over a much longer period (up to 18 – 21 days) and PAN 7180CLP flowers last, providing optimal Sclerotinia management. The number of days to physiological maturity follows the same sequence as set out above for the flowering dates. This means that the hybrids' harvest window is spread over a slightly longer period. Sunflower sometimes has a way of staying wet and then drying down completely within a day or two to below 8%, which in turn makes combining very difficult as excess plant material accumulates on the combine’s header causing grinding and impeding the flow of material into the combine. If a package consists of these three hybrids, this will help facilitate the harvesting process because the sunflowers will dry down over a longer period.

Ask your representative for a custom hybrid recommendation for your farm or visit www.pannar.com.