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Great Lakes wheat grower network boosting production with high management strategies

An extension educator says a large plant biomass has been key in maximizing grain fill and reaching higher wheat yields.

Michigan State University’s Dennis Pennington tells Brownfield, “Sometimes we’ve tended to let wheat go a little bit in the spring before we start to push it.”

“But, I think to get the kind of yields like they’re getting in the UK, we have to start pushing that crop a little earlier in the season and make sure there’s not anything restricting the uptake of these nutrients.”

He says lowering the seeding rate can be another factor that contributes to increased production.

“To try to produce the right combination of those yield components—the seeds per spikelet, the spikelets per head, and the number of heads per unit area,” he explains.

Pennington has been developing the Great Lakes Yield Enhancement Network for the past five years, building off the success in the United Kingdom. He says the support farmers find amongst each other has benefited more than just their yields.

“The goal of the network is to get growers together, talking to each other, learning from each other,” he shares. “Really, it’s sort of set up as a peer-to-peer learning network.”

Farmers from Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Ontario participated during the past season.

The top yield of the program in 2025 was achieved by Nick Suywn with 182.7 bushels/acre in Wayland, Michigan.

Growers recently met to review last year’s season and ongoing research as part of the Michigan Wheat Program’s Annual Winter Grower Meeting.