Petkus is a
rye breeding location with a very long and rich tradition.
Ferdinand von Lochow bred rye here for the
first time in 1881.
He selected plants, propagated them and thus
created new varieties.
The soils here are
relatively light and low in nutrients.
We also have a relatively pronounced pre-summer drought,
which naturally makes Petkus ideal for breeding traits that relate
in particular to stress resistance.
And then we have, for example, drought stress resistance,
as well as winter hardiness and frost resistance.
You can therefore also say that Petkus is a model location for climate change.
Here, we can already see what we won’t be able to see at other
locations until years later.
Moreover, we at Petkus have always selected plants that can cope with biotic stress,
such as brown rust and ergot.
They are the main pathogens in rye.
The general goal in creating resistances is to enable sustainability.
After all, if we incorporate genetic resistances in rye,
farmers can reduce the use of chemical pesticides.
They no longer need to worry about when the right time to apply them is.
That also means lower CO₂ emissions in rye production,
and a further objective of that is to protect the environment, since
no other living creatures are harmed.
In particular, we’re currently
incorporating a genetic means of growth regulation in rye
in order to make rye plants shorter and thus make them
significantly less prone to lodging. That also means
farmers will no longer need to use growth regulators.
That’s also a benefit in view of the EU’s current policy, the Green New Deal,
one aim of which is to reduce the use of pesticides and chemicals in general.
Rye breeding doesn’t stop once we’ve created a variety:
We also accompany our varieties during the approval process and
beyond with our testing network
and provide farmers with additional information,
which they can then use to plan their cultivation activities.
I’m a hybrid rye breeder here at KWS
and I joined the company because of the thrill in helping to enhance
the varieties, improve food production
and do something directly for mankind and farmers.