1. No. 1947 •14-18 September 2015
The World’s Largest Maize Ear Contest 2015
Denise E. Costich, with contributions from Victor Vidal
On 14 August 2015, I was one of the judges
in the contest to find “The World’s Largest
Maize Ear” held in Jala, Nayarit, Mexico. The
contest is one of the most popular events
during the weeklong celebration in honor of
the town’s patron saint. This was the third
time I was a judge, and the contest has
become an annual highlight for me in my
role as one of the custodians of the world’s
maize genetic diversity. The Jala landrace will
always hold a special place in my heart, not
just because of its size, which is impressive,
but also because of the culture surrounding it
and the dedication of the people who grow it.
the “convocatoria” (list of contest
regulations) was read out loud.
There was a bit of discussion about
the rule that the maize be grown
under “natural conditions,” i.e., no
irrigation.
We judges were called to the stage,
introduced, and the convocatoria was
read once again. We split up into
three teams, and the contestants,
three at a time, were called up to
have their five ears of Jala maize
shucked and measured. The largest
ear was selected, and its length
and the contestant’s number were
written on pieces of masking tape
that were stuck on the ear. The
contestants’ names and the length
of their largest ear were announced,
and photos were taken. Most ears
were 30+ cm long, only a few were
40+. The crowd definitely kept track,
cheering loudly for their friends, and
especially for the 40+ ears. The very
I
met my friend, Dr. Victor Vidal,
INIFAP maize breeder and
enthusiastic supporter of maize
genetic resources, at the flagpole on
the main street separating the twin
towns of Jala and Jomulco. Our first
stop was the stall of the family of Don
José Antioco Elías Partida of Coapan,
the winner of last year’s contest, and
a winning contestant for many years.
We learned that sadly, Don José had
died earlier in the year. However,
two of his sons, continuing the family
tradition, entered the contest this year.
At 4:45 p.m., the contestants gathered
in the auditorium of the town hall,
and watched a video about Jala
maize, created by Dr. J. Arahón
Hernández Guzmán, a local “boy”
who got his Ph.D. at Cornell, and
is now a professor at the Colegio
de Posgraduados in Puebla. He
presented Victor and me with
copies of his video. Afterwards,
Contest winner Domingo Fránquez Flores from the nearby village of
Coapan, with a maize ear 44 centimeters long.
Photo:VictorVidal/INIFAP
Also in this issue
Page
3 Kingbird Released in Ethiopia to
Combat New Stem Rust Threat
4 Bhutan Releases Its First Winter
Wheat Variety
5 Videos Sharpen Bangladeshi
Farmers’ Interest in Farm
Mechanization
6 Statistical Support for the Turkish
Wheat Community
7 Improved Sowing for a Quality
Harvest: Certified Maize Seed
Production Training in Celaya
8 CIMMYT Goes to College
8 Recent Publications by CIMMYT Staff

2. 2 CIMMYT Informa
first farmer who came to our table
had the winning ear, at 44 cm. As the
contest proceeded, there would be
a murmur of disappointment when
another farmer had an ear that was
almost a winner.
Once all the shucking and measuring
are completed, there is always an
interval while the data from the
different teams are collated and the
winning places are assigned. During
this time, my friend Victor gave an
explanation of why some of the ears
did not produce kernels (the reason:
lack of pollination). As it happened,
one of the oldest contestants had
brought in an ear that was 48 cm long,
but none of the grain was filled, so it
had to be disqualified. However, this
showed that there is genetic potential
for still larger ears. With the approval
of the mayor of Jala, Victor proposed
that another contest be held at harvest
time, when the ears would be mature
enough to be stored and eventually
germinate. Having the contest at
harvest time would allow for further
selection and improvement of the
Jala landrace; in addition, seed of the
outstanding phenotypes could be
stored in germplasm banks.
At the end of the contest, there was a
moving ceremony in memory of the
late Don José Elías, and his family
came on stage to accept the tribute.
Three generations of proud Jala maize
growers stood before the crowd, the
youngest held in the arms of his
father, exemplifying a tradition
that keeps maize landraces alive
and well as an integral part of the
culture and food security of Mexico
and the world.
Two of the youngest contestants in the 2015 Jala maize contest
with their entries.
Judging Team #2 in action, shucking and measuring Jala maize on
stage, including Denise Costich (CIMMYT), and Victor Vidal (INIFAP)
on the right.
Three generations of the family of the late Don José Antioco Elías
Partida, accepting an award recognizing Don José’s contributions.
Photo:VictorVidal/INIFAPPhoto:VictorVidal/INIFAP
Photo:DeniseCostich/CIMMYT

3. CIMMYT Informa 3
Kingbird Released in Ethiopia to Combat New Stem Rust Threat
Linda McCandless
F
armers in Ethiopia are
banking on Kingbird, the
latest variety of wheat to be
released by the Ethiopian Institute
for Agricultural Research (EIAR).
Kingbird is resistant to Ug99,
the devastating race of stem rust
first identified and subsequently
race-typed as TTKSK in 1999,
and TKTTF, a new stem rust race
identified in 2012 that raged through
so many Ethiopian farmers’ fields in
2013 and 2014.
The scourge of wheat farmers the
world over, stem rust can quickly
turn a wheat field into black stalks
empty of grain when environmental
conditions are optimal.
The new variety was evaluated at
multiple locations in Ethiopia during
the 2014 season and approved for
release in 2015. “Kingbird offers new
hope for resource-poor farmers in
stem rust prone areas of Ethiopia,”
said Fentahun Mengistu, EIAR
Director General. “It is expected
to replace the varieties Hawi and
Pavon-76 in lowland areas, and
complement Kakaba, Ogolcho,
Shorima and a few other mid-
altitude varieties.”
As Ronnie Coffman, vice-chair of
the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative
(BGRI), the international network
of scientists, breeders and national
wheat improvement programs
that cooperated on the release
of Kingbird, pointed out, crop
diseases do not respect international
boundaries. “Wheat farmers the
world over are threatened by
outbreaks of new races of yellow
and stem rust of wheat on an almost
yearly basis. It takes persistent and
continually evolving international
efforts to protect staple crops like
wheat on a global scale.”
“Kingbird’s multi-disease resistance
attributes combined with good
bread-making quality and good
yield performance led to its release
in South Africa and Kenya a few
years back,” said Ravi Singh, senior
wheat scientist at CIMMYT, whose
team is instrumental in making the
initial crosses for most new wheat
introductions in the developing world.
The pipeline for developing varieties
such as Kingbird has been directed
by the Durable Rust Resistance in
Wheat (DRRW) project at Cornell
University, acting as BGRI secretariat,
since 2008. CIMMYT, the international
Center for Agricultural Research in
the Dry Areas (ICARDA), national
agricultural research systems, and 22
other institutions assist in the effort.
Generous support is provided by the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and
the UK Department of International
Development (DFID).
To read more on Kingbird’s
development and spread and the
efforts to protect world wheat
production, check out the BGRI blog,
“How Kingbird moved across East
Africa.” A poster abstract by Zerihun
Tadesse, wheat breeder at the EIAR,
may be found here.
Rust-resistant wheat varieties, new
rust races, surveillance, monitoring,
and gene stewardship will be
topics at the 2015 BGRI Technical
Workshop, 17-20 September, and
the International Wheat Congress,
20-25 September, both in Sydney,
Australia. Follow the conversations at
#BGRI2015 and #IWC9.
Photo:LindaMcCandless/Cornell
CIMMYT wheat breeder Bekele Abeyo (left) talks to Ethiopian farmers Kadir Abdela and wife
Bayisu Kadir about how their wheat crop is faring against yellow rust and stem rust.
CIMMYT wheat breeder
Sridhar Bhavani talks
about the recently
discovered virulence
of TKTTF on Robin in
Kenya, and Digelu in
Ethiopia, and the new
Kingbird release here.

4. 4 CIMMYT Informa
I
n Bhutan, wheat is an important cereal for farmers
at high altitudes, where its area of cultivation
is considerable. However, in recent years, the
winter wheat area has declined owing to numerous
circumstances, including not having a better variety. This
may be due to the fact that spring wheat has been the
focus of most research and development efforts to date.
However, of late, the national wheat program has
been paying equal attention to winter wheat research
and development in collaboration with CIMMYT and
ICARDA. But while ICARDA’s winter wheat nurseries
are still being evaluated, CIMMYT-Nepal has helped to
introduce cultivars that have recently been released in
cooler regions elsewhere. One such genotype is Danphe
(KIRITATI//2*PBW65/2*SERI.1B).
Danphe’s performance during its multi-location
evaluation in the highlands of Bhutan (1200-2600 masl)
was very promising. The new variety on average yielded
30% more than the local cultivar called Kaa, which
means wheat in the local language. In addition, Danphe
produces big grains, is short in height and lodging
tolerant, which are farmers’ preferred traits. Up to now,
farmers have had to manage with Kaa, which is very tall,
Bhutan Releases Its First Winter Wheat Variety
Sangay Tshewang and Arun Kumar Joshi
Bumthang farmers in a field of newly released wheat variety
Danphe in Bhutan. Photo: Sangay Tshewang.
small-grained and low yielding. Farmers who attended
the field days unanimously preferred Danphe over the
local cultivar.
In view of such an astonishing performance and of
farmers’ preference for Danphe, the 18th Technology
Release Committee of Bhutan’s Ministry of Agriculture
and Forests authorized the release of this line under the
name Bumthang Kaa Drukchu. Bumthang is the name
of the target area (the district), Kaa means wheat and
Drukchu means sixty (60).
Ganesh Chhettri, a committee member from the
Department of Agriculture, remarked that such an
accomplishment in such short time was not expected, as
winter wheat was never adequately attended to. Further,
he commented that wheat production in this ecosystem
will surely increase now that farmers have a higher
yielding variety.
CIMMYT is considering providing about 1500 kg of
Danphe seed to Nepal to fulfill farmers’ needs for
the ensuing season, and promote the new variety’s
dissemination and adoption.

5. CIMMYT Informa 5
Editors: AlmaMcNab,GenevieveRenard,KatelynRoett
TranslatorandEditor:MaríaConcepciónCastro-Aragón • GraphicDesigner:MarceloOrtiz-Sánchez
Videos Sharpen Bangladeshi Farmers’ Interest
in Farm Mechanization
M. Shahidul Haque Khan and Kh. Shafiqul Islam
View more CSISA-ANEP
training videos below.
• Bed Planter
• Strip Tillage
• Power Tiller Operated-
Seeder
• Reaper Machine
Q
uality video can be
an effective way of
enhancing training
messages and sharing complex
agronomic information with a
large audience. The USAID-funded
Cereal Systems Initiative for South
Asia-Mechanisation and Irrigation
(CSISA-MI) and the EU-supported
Agriculture, Nutrition and Extension
Project (ANEP) in Bangladesh
recently produced five new farmer-
focused videos on efficient irrigation
technologies, machine-aided line
sowing, strip tillage, bed planting and
mechanized harvesters. The videos
contain comical but educational
dramas with farmers as actors; they
focus on practical messages on how
to calibrate, use and maintain the
machines, which are drawn by two-
wheeled tractors, and describe how
machinery service providers can
make money by selling machine
planting and harvesting services to
farmers at a low cost.
“Our research shows that machinery
training videos can be an effective
way of generating farmer interest in
experimenting with and purchasing
appropriate machinery,” explained
CIMMYT agronomist Tim Krupnik.
“CIMMYT’s private sector partners
also agree, buying-in and paying
cable television companies to screen
the videos for advertising purposes,
adding value to our efforts.” Most
recently, The Metal Ltd., a private
sector machinery manufacturer and
CSISA-MI partner, aired the “Reaper”
video on television in Bangladesh to
an audience of over 75,000 people
during 11 days. Technical support
was provided by CSISA-MI’s NGO
partner iDE, which arranged to
show the video during the July
vacation, when farmers tend to be at
home watching television with their
extended families.
Beyond advertising, the videos are
crucial for training farmers on how to
use complex machinery. According to
CIMMYT training specialist Kamrun
Naher, the videos are high quality
and well produced. In each technical
training course, they serve both as the
ice-breaker and the primary lesson.
“After watching the videos, service
providers and farmers understand the
machines’ usefulness,” she said.
“Farmers need to visualize and learn
how technologies work in order to
show interest in experimenting with
and adopting them. Videos can help
open that door,” commented Tim
Krupnik. Mohammad Rafiqul, a
farmer in southern Bangladesh who
recently bought a wheat harvester
through CSISA-MI’s private sector
partners, agrees. “I should thank the
video you showed me. I was inspired
by it and bought the machine, though
at first my family was against the
investment.” In his opinion, the video
should be screened more widely
to increase the use of machines on
Bangladeshi farms.
“The videos were prepared primarily
as training materials and to influence
farmers positively towards the
machines,” explained Rezaul Karim,
who directed the videos. Usually
farmers are not well disposed towards
a new idea or machine. “Our target
was to remove their fear about the
machines and make them feel that
these machines are going to make
real changes in their lives, and we
succeeded.”
For more information on the use of
videos in training programs, see:
Bentley, J., Van Mele, P., Harun-
ar-Rashid, Md. and T.J. Krupnik.
2015. Distributing and Showing
Farmer Learning Videos in
Bangladesh. Journal of Agricultural
Education and Extension. DOI:
10.1080/1389224X.2015.1026365.
Watch the training video on
axial flow pumps here.

6. 6 CIMMYT Informa
Statistical Support for the Turkish Wheat Community
Abdelfattah Dababat and Beverley Gogel
T
he soilborne pathogens (SBP)
program at CIMMYT-Turkey,
a Grain Research Development
Corporation (GRDC) funded project,
hosted two biometricians from
the GRDC project Statistics for the
Australian Grains Industry (SAGI):
Beverley Gogel, a senior biometrician
at the University of Adelaide, and
Chong You, a biometrician at the
University of Wollongong. Their
visit, spanning from 31 August to 4
September, was sponsored under the
umbrella of the CIMMYT Australia
ICARDA Germplasm Evaluation
(CAIGE) project.
The main objective of the visit was
to advise on how to improve the
program’s experimental design and
data analysis under the framework
of the GRDC-SBP, CIMMYT
project. Gogel and You visited
experimental locations in the different
environments where the SBP group
is testing/screening wheat materials
against SBPs. They gave very valuable
suggestions and recommendations
on how to increase efficiency and
improve estimates associated with
the targeted research questions. The
outcome of this statistical support will
ultimately improve trial design and
analysis and, hence, the results of the
full trial process.
At the same time, Abdelfattah A.
Dababat, in collaboration with
the Transitional Zone Agriculture
Research Institute, organized a two-
day workshop titled “Understanding
linear mixed models from the ground
up: Statistical tools for the Turkish
National Breeding Programs” to a
group of 13 participants, including
breeders, pre-breeders, physiologists
and pathologists from Turkey,
CIMMYT, and ICARDA. Gogel
introduced the experimental trial
designs used in Australia and
described how to analyze both single
trials and trials in multiple sites using
the ASReml software. Chong You
gave a presentation on QTL analysis
and described improvements over
the current methodologies used by
Turkish national breeding programs.
Special thanks to the GRDC for
funding this statistics workshop
and to the Turkish Ministry of
Food, Agriculture and Livestock
for hosting and facilitating
the workshop, especially the
Transitional Zone Agriculture
Research Institute, Eskisehir.
Workshop participants in Eskisehir, Turkey.
Photo:TransitionalZoneAgricultureResearchInstitute

7. CIMMYT Informa 7
Improved Sowing for a Quality Harvest: Certified Maize Seed
Production Training in Celaya
Alberto Chassaigne
R
epresentatives of Mexican
maize seed companies
attended a training course
on certified maize seed production in
Celaya, Guanajuato, Mexico, from 17-
20 August 2015.
Based on seed companies’ training
requests in 2015, the MasAgro Seed
Systems Unit decided to provide
training in certified seed production.
The training agenda included the
following subjects: maize hybrid
development, production planning,
production and contract areas,
maintenance of parental lines,
isolation, sowing for production,
roguing, detasseling, pollen control,
harvesting, drying and seed health.
These subjects were addressed by
CIMMYT experts and experienced
national seed producers.
Experts from Mexico’s National Seed
Inspection and Certification Service
(SNICS) explained the certification
process and rules, as well as its cost,
and then gave practical examples of
how to classify the genetic quality of
maize in seed production plots.
A certification inspection exercise
was conducted in one of Monsanto’s
seed production plots. Monsanto
representatives gave detailed
explanations of the agronomic
management of their production
plots and the technical and scientific
support provided for precision
agriculture. Later, SNICS trainers
gave step-by-step instructions on
how to conduct inspections of seed
production plots for certification
purposes. For this exercise, teams
of participants toured the 6-hectare
plot and were given a manual
(especially developed for the exercise)
on developing maize varieties and
characterizing male and female
plants; they also learned the criteria
used for sampling and selecting the
variables to be assessed. The teams
shared their results and standardized
plot inspection and evaluation
criteria.
According to the participants, the
course exceeded their expectations,
and they vowed to immediately start
applying their new knowledge to
improve their seed production and
quality control processes.
Photo:AlbertoChassaigne
Manuel Velázquez explains the steps involved in producing maize seed.
Photo:AlbertoChassaigne
Monsanto technicians explain precision agriculture management of a certified seed
production plot.
Photo:AlbertoChassaigne
José Manuel Chávez Bravo, Seed Certification
Director (SNICS), leads the inspection exercise in a
maize seed production plot.

8. 8 CIMMYT Informa
Informa is published by CIMMYT Communications Department. We welcome your input, preferably in both English and Spanish. The deadline for submissions is 9 a.m. on the
Wednesday before publication. We reserve the right to edit all contributions. Please send proposed material CIMMYT-International-Communications-Department@cgiar.org
/cimmyt /cimmyt /cimmyt /cimmyt /cimmyt /cimmyt
CIMMYT Goes to College
Katie Lutz
For the past two years, Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, has been
using two CIMMYT manuals as a resource in its Agrilife Research Department
undergraduate program. Students in Crop Stress Management 402, a senior level
course for undergraduates working towards a degree in Plant and Environmental
Soil Science, gain knowledge from “Physiological Breeding I: Interdisciplinary
Approaches to Improve Crop Adaptation” and “Physiological
Breeding II: A Field Guide to Wheat Phenotyping.”
According to Dirk Hays, professor and chair of the Molecular
and Environmental Plant Sciences Department at the University,
the manuals are used during a course in which genotypic
responses to crop stress are measured in the greenhouse and
field, and crop stress monitoring is part of the crop management
strategy. “This is one of the best stress phenotyping and
measurement manuals currently available,” said Hays.
In addition to visits from students and scientists, and the sharing of
knowledge and research, CIMMYT and Texas A&M have had a long
partnership. Among other things, a strong bond between the two
organizations was forged with the 1980s appointment of Nobel Peace
Prize laureate and former CIMMYT wheat scientist Norman Borlaug
as professor and researcher at the University.
Recent Publications by CIMMYT Staff
Knowledge Center
Adoption and impacts of sustainable
agricultural practices on maize yields
and incomes : evidence from rural
Zambia. 2015. Manda, J.; Alene, A.D.;
Gardebroek, C.; Kassie, M.; Tembo,
G. Journal of Agricultural Economics.
Online First.
Crop production and soil water
management in conservation
agriculture, no-till, and conventional
tillage systems in Malawi. 2015.
TerAvest, D.; Carpenter-Boggs,
L.; Thierfelder, C.; Reganold,
J.P. Agriculture, Ecosystem and
Environment 212 : 285-296.
Evaluation of artisan training in
metal silo construction for grain
storage in Africa: Impact on uptake,
entrepreneurship and income.
2015. Ndegwa, M.K.; De Groote, H.;
Gitonga, Z. International Journal of
Educational Development 43 : 12-21.
Farmers’ climate change adaptation
options and their determinants in
Tigray Region, Northern Ethiopia.
2015. Hadgu, G.; Kindie Tesfaye
Fantaye; Mamo, G.; Kassa, B. African
Journal of Agricultural Research 10
(9): 956-964.
Phenotypic and genotypic
characterization of CIMMYT’s 15th
international Fusarium head blight
screening nursery of wheat. 2015.
Osman, M.; Xinyao He; Singh, R.P.;
Duveiller, E.; Lillemo, M.; Pereyra,
S.A.; Westerdijk-Hoks, I.; Masatomo
Kurushima; Sui-Kwong Yau;
Benedettelli, S.; Singh, P.K. Euphytica
205 (2) : 521-537.
Stay current on new articles related
to maize/wheat/conservation
agriculture, CIMMYT journal articles,
CIMMYT library’s acquisitions and
related news at the Knowledge
Center’s blog here.