BROOKINGS, S.D. – Oct. 15, 2025 – The South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station and South Dakota State Foundation Seed Stocks Division have released a new hard red winter wheat variety to seed producers, offering a strong option for farmers across South Dakota and the Black Hills region. The variety, SD Vivian, will be available for farmers to purchase for fall 2026 planting.
Named for a small town in the heart of South Dakota’s wheat country, SD Vivian is a cross between SY Wolf, known for its high yield potential, and Ruth, a variety that adds 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,” said Sunish Sehgal, SDSU winter wheat breeder. “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.”
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 compared to nearly two-dozen varieties.
“Looking at the data, you can see SD Vivian really stands out,” said Sehgal, a professor in the Department of Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science. “It has way above average protein and baking quality for the yield it has.”
Despite being a high-yielding variety, SD Vivian’s protein composition remained high in field trials. In both the central and western parts of the state, SD Vivian had the fourth-highest protein composition of all varieties tested. 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 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.