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Including winter canola (Brassica napus L.) crop into cereal-based crop rotations can diversify the current agricultural systems in the United States (US). In addition, canola can help to satisfy market demand for plant-based edible oil, thus better understanding of oil productivity of canola in the US production areas is relevant for further study. Canola seed oil concentration is a function of the genotype (G), environment (E), management (M), and their interaction (G × E × M). The overall aim of this research study was to identify suitable production environments with increased canola seed oil concentration and opportunities to increase cropland area in the US. The objectives of this research were: i) characterize the environmental variability of seed oil concentration in the National Winter Canola Variety Trials (NWCVT), ii) identify geographical regions and states within the continental US with potential for production of winter canola with high seed oil concentration and the link with yield, and iii) explore the potential development of varieties with stable high seed oil concentration and high yield. In this study, the E component accounted for 75% of the total variation in seed oil concentration, with the G factor only explaining 8%. Overall, seed oil concentration averaged 398 g kg-1 but ranged from 311 to 461 g kg-1. The US Midwest and Great Plains regions were shown to have a greater frequency of medium (> 389 g kg-1) and high canola seed oil concentration (> 411 g kg-1). Genotypic variation for both seed oil concentration and yield was found with an opportunity to achieve high oil and yield under varying environments. Our findings suggests that there is significant potential to further expand the area of canola cropland to increase oil productivity and focus should be on breeding high yielding varieties with stable high seed oil concentration. • Environment explained most of the oil concentration variability in winter canola. • Precipitation and photothermal quotient explain the oil concentration variability. • Large winter canola production area with potential for high oil concentration in US. • Potential to develop varieties with stable high seed oil concentration and yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Successful winter canola (Brassica napus L.) production creates diversity and provides crop rotation alternatives for producers. Stand establishment and winter survival are among the main determinants of success in winter canola production. The objective of this research was to investigate the impact of environment, crop management, genetics and their interactions on canola stand establishment, survival, yield, and oil and protein content. Two datasets were analyzed: results from the National Winter Canola Variety Trials conducted from 2003 to 2012 and data from experiments conducted for 3 yr (2010-2012) in Manhattan, KS, to assess the impact of planting date, tillage, and cultivar on canola yield and survival. Canola has the potential to yield up to 7 Mg ha-1; however, actual yields were usually in the range of 0 to 4 Mg ha-1. The average oil content of canola seeds was 40%, but the potential extended to 47%. Environment, defined as a combination of year and location, was responsible for the majority of variation in yield, oil content, stand establishment, and survival of winter canola. Planting in mid to late August and early September benefited yield most of the time compared with planting late in September or October in the Great Plains and Midwestern United States. Only with extremely early or late planting did tillage improve winter survival and yield compared with no-till. Crown height of canola was greater in no-till treatments compared with conventional tillage treatments, but a significant relationship was not observed between crown height and winter survival or yield. Cultivars differed significantly in yield, survival, and crown height, but no cultivars were consistently superior in no-till conditions or with plantings outside of the recommended time frame. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]