According to the UN-FAO, agricultural production must increase by 50% by 2050 to meet global demand for food. This goal can be accomplished, in part, by the development of improved cultivars coupled with modern best management practices. Overall, wheat production on farms will have to increase significantly to meet future demand, and in the face of a changing climate that poses risk to even current rates of production. Durum wheat [Triticum turgidum L. ssp. durum (Desf.)] is used largely for pasta, couscous and bulgur production. Durum producers face a range of factors spanning abiotic (frost damage, drought, and sprouting) and biotic (weed, disease, and insect pests) stresses that impact yields and quality specifications desired by export market end-users. Serious biotic threats include Fusarium head blight (FHB) and weed pest pressures, which have increased as a result of herbicide resistance. While genetic progress for yield and quality is on pace with common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), development of resistant durum cultivars to FHB is still lagging. Thus, successful biotic and abiotic threat mitigation are ideal case studies in Genotype (G) × Environment (E) × Management (M) interactions where superior cultivars (G) are grown in at-risk regions (E) and require unique approaches to management (M) for sustainable durum production. Transformational approaches to research are needed in order for agronomists, breeders and durum producers to overcome production constraints. Designing robust agronomic systems for durum demands scientific creativity and foresight based on a deep understanding of constitutive components and their innumerable interactions with each other and the environment. This encompasses development of durum production systems that suit specific agro-ecozones and close the yield gap between genetic potential and on-farm achieved yield. Advances in individual technologies (e.g., genetic improvements, new pesticides, seeding technologies) are of little benefit until they are melded into resilient G × E × M systems that will flourish in the field under unpredictable conditions of prairie farmlands. We explore how recent genetic progress and selected management innovations can lead to a resilient and transformative durum production system.

The wheat stem sawfly, Cephus cinctus Norton (Hymenoptera: Cephidae), is historically one of the most important economic insect pests in the northern Great Plains of North America. Within this geographical region, the areas subjected to greatest attack are southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, southwestern Manitoba, eastern and northern Montana, North Dakota, northern South Dakota, and western Minnesota. Cumulative grain-yield losses and annual economic losses associated with this pest can exceed 30% and $350 million, respectively. Solid-stemmed cultivars of common wheat, Triticum aestivum L. (Poaceae), tolerant of infestation, are critical for C. cinctus management, but outbreaks of this pest continue to occur even after six decades of cultivar development. Furthermore, chemical control (a primary control option for other cereal (Poaceae) insect pests) has proven ineffective; this underscores the need to integrate resistant cultivars into a comprehensive integrated pest management program. We provide overviews of wheat stem sawfly biology, recent advances in applied research, the efficacy and integration of cultural and biological management strategies, and future directions for global research activities to manage wheat stem sawfly.

Wheat occupies a special role in global food security since, in addition to providing 20% of our carbohydrates and protein, almost 25% of the global production is traded internationally. The importance of wheat for food security was recognised by the Chief Agricultural Scientists of the G20 group of countries when they endorsed the establishment of the Wheat Initiative in 2011. The Wheat Initiative was tasked with supporting the wheat research community by facilitating collaboration, information and resource sharing and helping to build the capacity to address challenges facing production in an increasingly variable environment. Many countries invest in wheat research. Innovations in wheat breeding and agronomy have delivered enormous gains over the past few decades, with the average global yield increasing from just over 1 tonne per hectare in the early 1960s to around 3.5 tonnes in the past decade. These gains are threatened by climate change, the rapidly rising financial and environmental costs of fertilizer, and pesticides, combined with declines in water availability for irrigation in many regions. The international wheat research community has worked to identify major opportunities to help ensure that global wheat production can meet demand. The outcomes of these discussions are presented in this paper.

The Wheat Initiative (WI) and the WI Expert Working Group (EWG) for Agronomy (www.wheatinitiative.org) were formed with a collective goal to “coordinate global wheat research efforts to increase wheat production, quality, and sustainability to advance food security and safety under changing climate conditions.” The Agronomy EWG is responsive to the WI’s research need, “A knowledge exchange strategy to ensure uptake of innovations on farm and to update scientists on changing field realities.” The Agronomy EWG aims to consolidate global expertise for agronomy with a focus on wheat production systems. The overarching approach is to develop and adopt a systems-agronomy framework relevant to any wheat production system. It first establishes the scale of current yield gaps, identifies defensible benchmarks, and takes a holistic approach to understand and overcome exploitable yield gaps to complement genetic increases in potential yield. New opportunities to increase productivity will be sought by exploiting future Genotype × Environment × Management synergies in different wheat systems. To identify research gaps and opportunities for collaboration among different wheat producing regions, the EWG compiled a comprehensive database of currently funded wheat agronomy research (n = 782) in countries representing a large proportion of the wheat grown in the world. The yield gap analysis and research database positions the EWG to influence priorities for wheat agronomy research in member countries that would facilitate collaborations, minimize duplication, and maximize the global impact on wheat production systems. This paper outlines a vision for a global WI agronomic research strategy and discusses activities to date. The focus of the WI-EWG is to transform the agronomic research approach in wheat cropping systems, which will be applicable to other crop species.

The wheat stem sawfly [Cephus cinctus Norton (Hymenoptera: Cephidae)] (WSS) has been a serious pest of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) since the late 19th century. Adoption of solid‐stemmed cultivars, which are available only in the spring bread wheat class in Canada, can mitigate damage but the trait that confers resistance tends to be variable. Five other classes of wheat are grown within the geographical range of C. cinctus and are vulnerable to WSS infestation, and the entire production area for durum (T. turgidum L.) in western Canada, Montana, and western North Dakota lies within the geographic range of C. cinctus. Our objective was to test the hypothesis that the response of hollow‐ and solid‐stemmed cultivars to sowing density (150, 250, 350, or 450 seeds m⁻²) would differ and subsequently affect infestation patterns of WSS and an endemic parasitoids. The lowest rates of infestation occurred in the hollow‐stemmed durum cultivar AC Avonlea and declined with increased sowing density. Wheat pith expression was optimized at the lowest sowing density but the same level produced low and variable grain yield. In the solid‐stemmed cultivar Lillian, pith expression was most stable at 250 or 350 seeds m⁻². For all cultivars, grain yield was optimized at the higher seeding rates of 350 and 450 seeds m⁻². Solid‐stemmed wheat should be seeded at low to moderate density to maximize resistance to WSS, but hollow‐stemmed cultivars should be seeded at higher seeding rates to optimize yield, lower WSS infestation, and to increase overall crop competitiveness.

Fusarium head blight (FHB) is a devastating disease of wheat because of direct detrimental effects on grain yield, quality, and marketability and production of mycotoxins (e.g. deoxynivalenol or DON). Conditions most favourable for the development of FHB are high humidity, frequent rainfall and relatively warm night temperatures at heading, especially in regions where host crop residues are present. These risk factors have resulted in a significant westward expansion of FHB in the Canadian prairies, while favouring continued development in Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes. Since cultivar selection is a key integrated pest management (IPM) strategy, a systems approach that couples genetic resistance with management tactics is required. Thus, successful FHB mitigation is an ideal case study in Genotype (G) × Environment (E) × Management (M) interactions where more resistant cultivars (G) are grown in at-risk regions (E), and unique approaches to management (M) for sustainable wheat production are required. Since no cultivar is completely resistant to FHB, greater attention to management strategies is needed. The over-arching principle for FHB management is the manipulation of agronomic factors that facilitate completion of critical crop developmental phases, such as flowering, while doing so rapidly and uniformly, as a consequence of early sowing and increased seeding rates. These strategies and the adoption of practices involving proper fungicide selection, and optimal application timings and methods will lead to improved yield stability and quality in high-risk environments. This paper explores the potential synergies that exist for FHB mitigation when appropriate genetics are combined with an array of key agronomic strategies.