New SDSU wheat variety combines high yield, quality, drought tolerance

The South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station and South Dakota State Foundation Seed Stocks Division have released a new wheat variety to seed producers. The new hard red winter line will be available for farmers to purchase for fall 2026 planting. 

SD Vivian is a variety named for a small town in the heart of South Dakota’s wheat country that combines the best traits from two varieties. It is a cross between SY Wolf, a variety that covered nearly 30% of all South Dakota wheat acres in the 2010s and was known for its high yield potential, and Ruth, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln variety that adds quality in the form of higher protein content and drought tolerance. 

“Even being a higher-yielding wheat, Vivian keeps above-average protein content, thus maximizing both grain yield and grain protein at the same time,” Sunish Sehgal, SDSU winter wheat breeder, said. “In addition, Vivian demonstrates moderate to good resistance to drought, stem rust and Hessian fly. It has a broad adaptation and has been proven to thrive throughout the state.” 

Thrive it did. In 31 field trials conducted across the state during three growing seasons (2023-25), SD Vivian was No. 1 in yield in the central and western parts of South Dakota and third in the eastern part of the state. 

“Looking at the data, you can see SD Vivian really stands out,” Sehgal, a professor in the Department of Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science, said. “It has way above average protein and baking quality for the yield it has.” 

Despite being a high-yielding variety, in field trials conducted across three growing seasons, SD Vivian’s protein composition remained high compared to the nearly two dozen varieties tested. In the eastern part of the state, SD Vivian was in the top half, coming in ninth overall. In both the central and western parts of the state, SD Vivian had the fourth-highest protein composition of all varieties. Other high-yielding varieties like SD Andes and Winner came in in the middle or bottom third of composition rankings. Varieties that came out on top for protein composition yielded 1.3-13.6 bushels an acre less than SD Vivian, depending on location. 

The field trials showing Vivian’s success were conducted on producers’ farms and two more on South Dakota experiment stations. All locations are no till and follow producer practices in order to ensure the greatest results for South Dakota farmers. 

“South Dakota producers fund our program, so I want to return a quality product back to them,” Sehgal said. “The success of the varieties belongs to them. I am just the inventor. They are the ones who should benefit from it.” 

South Dakota is split nearly evenly, growing both hard winter and spring wheat, with winter wheat averaging a little more than 55% of acres each year. Both types of hard wheats grown in South Dakota, red and white, are used primarily for bread making. 

The full winter wheat variety trial results are available online. Regular updates about the SDSU winter wheat breeding program can be found at the X account, @WheatInnovation.