MAES News and Features

The University of Minnesota (UMN) has released a new yellow-hulled oat variety called ‘MN-Amber.’ MN-Amber is a high-yielding variety with high test weight, grain protein, and beta-glucan content. It has moderate crown rust resistance and excellent smut resistance and should fit the needs of the food-grade oat industry.

The Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES) and the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) have published the 2025 Minnesota Field Crop Variety Trials. Visit varietytrials.umn.edu to see variety trials for 7 different Minnesota crops.

Crops included in this year’s trial include barley, canola, oat, soybean, spring wheat, winter rye, and winter wheat.  Crops were trialed at several CFANS Research and Outreach Centers and in cooperating farmers’ fields across the state.

The story goes that in 1860, famous journalist Horace Greeley said, "I would not live in Minnesota, because you cannot grow apples there." Fast forward more than a century and a half and one of the most popular apple varieties in the United States—one widely enjoyed around the world—was created right here in Minnesota. The Honeycrisp was even named Minnesota’s official state fruit in 2006, as if to say, “How do you like them apples, Mr. Greeley?” Released in 1991 by the University of Minnesota’s renowned cold-hardy breeding program, Minnesota’s crispiest of retorts to Greeley took just 131 years to come to fruition (though the University’s first apple introduction came in 1920). 

Quality, of course, takes time. 

The unique challenges of Minnesota’s cold winters have long frustrated seasonally optimistic gardeners, farmers, and other growers of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and more. 

Still, since the University of Minnesota Department of Horticultural Science’s founding in 1888, the program has not sat idly by, having so far bred more than 400 varieties of cold-hardy adaptations.

Continue reading this University of Minnesota feature story

A native North American moth commonly found in forested areas, the soybean tentiform leafminer has expanded its diet. The insect was first sighted in Canadian soybean fields in 2016. Robert Koch, University of Minnesota Extension Entomologist, identified the soybean tentiform leafminer in Minnesota in 2021. And now it has also been found in North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska soybeans. 

“The soybean tentiform leafminer is a tiny moth whose larvae, or caterpillars, live inside and feed on soybean leaves,” explains Koch. “Through their feeding, the caterpillars are hollowing out, or mining, the leaf tissue and then those tissues die, reducing the plant’s ability for photosynthesis. A single caterpillar doesn’t destroy a large area within a plant, but over a season, the damage will add up from numerous caterpillars and multiple generations of the moth.”

Koch and Extension Educator Angie Peltier are evaluating the magnitude of the soybean tentiform leafminer threat and control methods in a project supported by the Rapid Agricultural Response Fund. Learn more about this research in this Soybean Research & Information Network story.

The Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES) at the University of Minnesota has awarded approximately $2 million from the Rapid Agricultural Response Fund (RARF) to 10 research projects that will help protect Minnesota’s agricultural sector from current and emerging threats. 

The newly-awarded RARF projects span issues across the state's agriculture industries, including responding to the crop pest European corn borer and the potato fungal disease verticullium wilt, assessing if fertilizers are contributing to nitrate in groundwater challenges, improving the utilization of high oleic soybeans as livestock feed, and preventing the spread of noxious weeds through manure.

Researchers in the College of Veterinary Medicine are using tech to help farmers improve herd management. Learn more about this research funded by the Rapid Agricultural Response Fund

The Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES) and the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) have published the 2024 Minnesota Field Crop Trials. Visit varietytrials.umn.edu/2024 to see variety trial results for 8 different Minnesota crops.

MAES has awarded $135,000 from the Rapid Agricultural Response Fund (RARF) to support two research projects in response to recent outbreaks of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in livestock. 

Led by multidisciplinary teams from the College of Veterinary Medicine and the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences, along with Extension specialists, the projects are investigating how H5N1 influenza A virus spreads among livestock and potentially into poultry and  the time required for dairy herds to produce virus-free milk, restore milk production levels, and eliminate H5N1.

With its exceptional apple scab tolerance, delightful flavor, and ease of cultivation, Triumph is the perfect addition to any backyard or home orchard. 

Triumph® apples have a pleasantly tart flavor, coupled with a well-balanced sweetness, making it great for fresh eating or adding a burst of flavor to your favorite recipes. Triumph® also boasts two genes that fight against the dreaded apple scab fungus, reducing the need for chemical sprays and making it an eco-friendly choice for organic growers and homeowners looking for lower maintenance trees.

Triumph® was released in 2021, and in the years since, licensees have grown out rootstocks and are now supplying trees to interested local garden centers. “Since Triumph® is such a new variety it may not be widely available just yet but check with your local nursery or garden center to see if they are planning to carry it,” explains Bedford. “Be sure to let them know that you’re interested in growing a Triumph® tree.”

As the year progresses and labs buzz with activity, the Research Analytical Laboratory (RAL) at the University of Minnesota is ready to assist researchers across a wide spectrum of disciplines. 

Located on the St. Paul campus within the Crops Research Building, the facility offers comprehensive analytical services, specializing in soil, plant, and water samples. Whether you're delving into environmental studies, agricultural research, or any other scientific inquiry, RAL provides state-of-the-art equipment and expert assistance to ensure the success of your projects. 

Ex​plore RAL’s offerings, including but not limited to soil fertility analysis, plant nutrient assessments,​ and water quality testing​.

The Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES) and the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) have published the 2023 Minnesota Field Crop Trials. Visit varietytrials.umn.edu/2023 to see variety trials for 8 different Minnesota crops.

Researchers from the University of Minnesota and the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa discovered fish from 18 out of 19 testing sites in northern Minnesota contained contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) such as pharmaceuticals, hormones and personal care products. This research illustrates the ubiquity of pharmaceuticals in the environment and their potential impacts on fish — both in expected environments like wastewater but also in more surprising places, like undeveloped lakes.

The University of Minnesota apple breeding program announces its 29th apple release: the MN33 variety, which will be sold under the brand name Kudos™.

Kudos™ is a beautiful red apple with a unique combination of traits including an excellent crisp, juicy texture and a sweet, well balanced flavor with occasional tropical overtones. It was developed by crossing the U of M hits Honeycrisp and Zestar!®, making it a sibling of the popular SweeTango® apple. 
 

The Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES) at the University of Minnesota has awarded approximately $2.6 million from the Rapid Agricultural response Fund (RARF) to 13 research projects that will help protect Minnesota’s agricultural sector from current and emerging threats.

Since emerald ash borer (EAB) was first detected in North America in 2002, the invasive beetle has killed hundreds of millions of mature ash trees. After an attack, branches and trunks weaken and the trees become more likely to fall. Though this degradation has historically been attributed to damage from the beetles, new research from the University of Minnesota confirms that fungi play a significant role in the process. 

For almost 60 years, the University of Minnesota has maintained a one-of-a-kind herd of Holsteins. Scientists have now shown these unique “unselected” Holsteins offer considerable potential to help improve health traits of dairy cows. This includes a greater resistance to mastitis, a common infection in dairy cattle that significantly affects global milk production and can cause major health concerns for afflicted cows.  

University of Minnesota students conducted crucial genome sequencing for the newly discovered soybean gall midge — a pest that is threatening the soybean crop, one of the most widely cultivated and consumed throughout the world. This small fly has been found in major soybean-producing states in the Midwest, including Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Missouri. 

Grape growers and wine lovers take note: The University of Minnesota is releasing its sixth cold-hardy wine grape, Clarion.

The Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station (MAES) and the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) have published the 2022 Minnesota Field Crop Trials. Visit varietytrials.umn.edu/2022 to see variety trials for nine different Minnesota crops.

Crops included in this year’s trial include barley, canola, corn grain, corn silage, oat, soybean, spring wheat, winter rye, and winter wheat. Due to a delay in processing data, a full report for winter wheat will be available in mid-December.

A team of researchers, led by University of Minnesota Professor Jerry Shurson, developed and validated a new surrogate virus assay for African Swine Fever virus (ASFV). This surrogate virus assay will allow researchers to better understand how ASFV survives in feed ingredients and to explore strategies to inactivate the virus and decontaminate facilities in the event of a potential ASFV contamination.