Pea growers will have two new options for next year's growing season, with the commercial release of PBA Noosa and PBA Taylor – Agriculture Victoria's latest high yielding pea varieties.
Agriculture Victoria research scientist Babu Pandey said PBA Noosa and PBA Taylor are the result of 12 years of research undertaken by Agriculture Victoria's pulse breeding team at Grains Innovation Park in Horsham.
"PBA Taylor will be the best variety to grow in environments prone to virus diseases as it has resistance to two viruses – pea seed-borne mosaic virus and bean leafroll virus," Dr Pandey said.
"However, it is susceptible to fungal diseases (blackspot, downy mildew and powdery mildew) and bacterial blight. Proactive disease management is needed to maximise yield potential in higher risk environments."
PBA Taylor is a mid-flowering and early to mid-maturing field pea, slightly later than PBA Wharton but earlier than Kaspa.
Dr Pandey said it is the highest yielding field pea variety across most cropping regions as of 2021 and it outclasses the existing dual virus resistant variety PBA Wharton, except in regions with high boron and salinity constraints.
The grain is suitable to market as 'Kaspa type' grain, which is exported to the Asian sub-continent to produce dahl, flour and roasted snack food. The grain is also suitable for stockfeed.
"PBA Noosa is a high-yielding, blue pea variety ideal for the domestic splitting market, boasting a 25 per cent long-term yield advantage over Excell," Dr Pandey said.
"It is a semi-leafless and semi-dwarf plant, with a good level of resistance to downy mildew and tolerance to salinity."
This pea's structure has improved harvestability compared with its predecessors, featuring a non-shattering pod which will reduce harvest losses.
PBA Noosa has significantly slower bleaching than other blue pea varieties. This trait of holding its colour helps growers receive a premium price for their products.
PBA Noosa and PBA Taylor will be marketed and managed by PBSeeds and Seednet respectively, and the varieties will be produced in commercial quantities in time for the 2022 growing season.
Both varieties are adapted to most pea growing regions in Australia, around western Victoria, South Australia and New South Wales, and will be suitable for both export and domestic markets.
Developed by conventional plant breeding techniques, Agriculture Victoria scientists have bred varieties for different end uses such as for grain and hay.
PBA Noosa and Taylor are the tenth and eleventh varieties developed under the Pulse Breeding Australia (PBA) initiative.
New variety releases require a multi-disciplinary research approach from Agriculture Victoria's field pea breeding team, seed phenomics and quality laboratories and Southern Pulse Agronomy, all of which are supported by the Victorian Government and Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC).
