Do Winter Crops Fit into Your Rotation?

Wednesday, January 21, 2026

New genetics are improving performance & survivability

By Emily Mckinlay

Producers across the Prairies are often seeking new cropping options to supplement their rotations. While winter crops aren’t new to Western Canada, improvements to genetics and management continue to solidify their place in rotations for cereal crops and livestock feed.

Better field conditions during planting, winter ground cover, and earlier feed harvest are just a few reasons that a farmer might choose to incorporate winter crops into their rotation. But, as with any new crop, adding winter varieties to a rotation has implications for planning, management, and marketing.

What benefits can winter crops offer a rotation, and what management factors need to be considered in advance to maximize the opportunities associated with these crops?

Why add winter crops to your rotation?

Winter wheat, fall rye, and winter triticale are a few winter crops that have become increasingly common in the Prairies.

The number of acres seeded into winter crops, specifically winter wheat, has fluctuated in recent years. Andrew Hector, the cereal crop agronomy extension specialist for Manitoba Crop Alliance, says that several factors have influenced these trends.

“In Manitoba specifically, fall rye and winter wheat are the biggest winter crops, along with a bit of winter triticale. In 2025, roughly 41,000 acres of winter wheat and over 130,000 acres of fall rye – both open-pollinated and hybrid – were seeded,” says Hector.

“Manitoba has traditionally had more winter wheat acres than fall rye, but that has switched. In 2013, 600,000 acres of winter wheat were seeded.”

Hector says this decrease in winter wheat acres can be attributed to the many other crop options available in Manitoba, to the introduction of higher-yielding spring wheat varieties, and to planting and harvest timing.

While winter wheat acres have decreased since 2013, there are several characteristics of winter crops that are convincing more producers to include them in their rotations.

Blair Balog, seed sales specialist for Stamp Seeds in Alberta, says that he has seen a rising interest in hybrid fall rye and fall triticale.

“This interest has increased with new genetics coming along. With improvements in traits like winter survivability, it helps ease the stress of putting seed in the ground by knowing it’ll be there in the spring,” says Balog.

“Winter crops benefit our customers by spreading out the workload. There’s a lot of pressure to get the crop in during the spring, and fall crops reduce some of that.”

Balog notes that a lot of the hybrid rye and fall triticale will be used for cattle feed. An earlier harvest window allows livestock producers to fill their silage pits earlier in the season. Hybrid rye can also enter the milling, distilling, or ethanol markets.

Planting winter crops has also helped some farmers manage weeds.

“If they are able to get a residual herbicide on the field ahead of planting hybrid rye, the crop can grow from there,” says Balog.

“Hybrid rye has an allelopathic effect that takes hold and gets ahead of the weeds. There are some issues with herbicide resistance, with wild oats and kochia, and producers are looking for ways to get ahead in their weed management.”

Hector adds that winter wheat can also be used to get ahead of weeds.

“Winter wheat has a unique growth cycle compared to spring wheat or canola. It’s a really competitive crop, and while it’s growing, it can help reduce weed biomass,” says Hector.

He adds that it can also benefit soil erosion control, early-season soil moisture use, and disease mitigation.

“Because winter wheat is planted in the fall and has living roots, it can be great to help reduce soil erosion,” says Hector.

“It utilizes early-season moisture, which is beneficial in some springs when producers can’t get in early to plant spring wheat because it’s too wet. Also, because of its unique growth cycle, winter wheat can flower earlier than spring wheat, avoiding the hot stretches during the summer, which, in cereals, aligns with a higher risk for Fusarium head blight infection. With that timing, winter wheat could miss prime Fusarium head blight risk, but that’s not guaranteed every year.”

While winter crops can offer several benefits to a crop rotation, they may also require novel management considerations and advanced planning.

Special considerations

Winter crops come with their own challenges and considerations. Farmers need to account for planting and harvest timing, soil preparation, pest and disease risks, winter survivability, marketing opportunities, and seed availability.

Before deciding to grow a winter crop, producers should have an idea of where it fits into their rotation.

“For all winter crops, but for winter wheat especially, it is important to know what you’re following in the rotation,” says Balog.

“You don’t want to follow another cereal, like spring wheat or barley. The green bridge can bring in wheat streak mosaic virus, so pay attention to that.”

Hector says that the crop’s order in the rotation is also important for planting date and conditions.

“Consider the fields that are available to plant into. Stubble matters – canola stubble is typically the top choice – and that can limit the number of fields available to plant into,” says Hector.

“Winter cereals need to be managed a little differently. When they are seeded in the fall, they have to overwinter in harsh Prairie conditions. This comes with a few considerations. The field needs to be ready to plant into in the fall, and the winter crop needs to be planted during an optimal window. Stubble needs to be present to capture a layer of snow to keep the soil temperature adequate to overwinter.”

This could mean that a producer needs to be seeding their winter crop while they are harvesting another crop. It also requires that the crop preceding the winter crop is harvested in a timely fashion, allowing time to prepare the ground for seeding in the optimal window.

Concerns about winter survival are one factor that may deter producers from incorporating winter crops into their farm management, but appropriate seeding timing is a major factor in mitigating this risk.

“With fall crops, we’ve seen that seeding timing is key to getting good growth in the fall and enhancing winter survivability,” says Balog.

Hector adds, “Seeding date is really important in winter wheat. We want the plant to have a developed crown and be at the three-leaf stage to overwinter, so we are trying to hit that optimal window for seeding to allow it time to grow. We are aiming for the last week of August to the first two and a half weeks of September.”

This window will vary for different crops and regions across the Prairies.

Weed management is another important consideration to improve winter survivability.

“It’s important to take care of volunteer weeds to have better survivability,” says Balog.

“Plan ahead on what weed management works for that crop and which acres are open to potentially lay down residual herbicides, leaving less work in the spring to take care of the first flush of weeds.”

To maximize the benefits of winter crops, planning for these management considerations should start well ahead of time.

Getting started

The preparation for winter crops starts well ahead of the field work.

Balog recommends that anyone considering seeding winter crops start planning early.

“If you are thinking about fall crops, call and ask what seed might be available,” says Balog.

“It’s good to get a plan in place before June or July, so you know that the seed is there, and you are able to enact that plan when you harvest the crop that you plan to follow. Get herbicides down and plant in adequate time.”

Hector recommends researching variety selection.

“There are a lot of considerations when choosing a variety, just like spring wheat,” says Hector.

“This includes winter hardiness. There are newer varieties of winter wheat that have been coming out, and they have been improving every year. We are seeing improved winter hardiness, and the yield potential seems to be getting better, which is very positive for winter wheat.”

Manitoba Crop Alliance continues to fund a variety of research projects to ensure winter wheat remains a productive crop in Manitoba.

Hector encourages producers to do their research and plan ahead to see the best results from their winter crops. BF

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Winter cereals such as winter wheat, fall rye and winter triticale can spread workload, provide earlier feed or grain harvest, and offer marketing options for both livestock and grain markets.
• With living roots over winter, these crops help protect soil from erosion, use early season moisture, and can out compete weeds, supporting longer term soil health.
• Success with winter crops depends on advance planning for rotation fit, seeding window, stubble and residue, weed control, and seed and market access.
• Newer genetics with improved winter survivability and yield potential make winter crops a more viable choice, but producers still need to fine tune seeding dates and management to manage winterkill risk. BF