DLF RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
GOOD SEED, GOOD HARVEST
The founding mission of DLF was to supply high-quality seeds for sustainable agricultural production. A hundred years later, our call to action remains the same: to develop seeds for a green future by ensuring greater quality and productivity in the field with fewer inputs.
DLF’s first seed trial site was established on a 7-acre farm in Denmark in 1911. Plant breeding commenced shortly after a small barn was constructed on the property, and it’s been the cornerstone of our company ever since. More than 10% of DLF employees worldwide work in R&D today.
Plant breeding involves evaluating, selecting and testing multiple generations of plant material to create new and better varieties. A new variety typically takes 7-10 years to develop, so researchers must always be looking to the future.
GLOBAL R&D PLATFORM
DLF has dozens of breeding and product development stations strategically positioned around the world. Our global presence allows us to react quickly to market needs, tailor products to local conditions, and stress-test our material globally to ensure performance.
Thousands of trial plots are planted each year, in hundreds of different locations, to assess the performance of new varieties against competitor products and ones currently in the market. As part of the work, DLF collaborates with leading research institutions and uses the latest technologies in artificial intelligence, remote sensing and advanced genetic analysis to make the traditional plant breeding process more efficient and precise.
RESEARCH &
DEVELOPMENT
IN NORTH AMERICA
Philomath Research Station is on the western edge of Willamette Valley’s main seed production area. Many cool-season grass species are bred at this location, including turf-type perennial ryegrass (diploid and tetraploid), tall fescue (turf and forage), annual ryegrass (turf and forage), orchardgrass, timothy, fine fescue (strong creeping and hard), red and white clover, crimson clover, daikon radish, and other cereals and cover crops. Researchers also conduct bentgrass and bluegrass trials, and evaluate secondary traits
and tolerances (wear, drought, shade, and salt).
Touchet Research Station is located in the Columbia River Basin and plays a critical role in alfalfa breeding as the principal site for all R&D seed production. Researchers breed dormant and semi-dormant alfalfa for biotic (nematodes, wilts, root rots, and aphids) and abiotic (drought and salt) stress tolerances. They also manage yield trials, nurseries, and disease and pest screenings.
West Salem Research Station breeds and tests dormant alfalfa varieties in the heart of Midwest dairy production. Selection nurseries and yield trials are used to evaluate yield, forage quality, disease resistance and persistence of new alfalfa products. The facility also houses turf and forage trials, a pathology lab and several growth rooms where many disease isolates are maintained and evaluated for their ability to infect alfalfa varieties.
Berry Research Station consists of 9,000 trial plots (8,000 turf and 1,000 forage). The hot and humid environment is optimal for evaluating disease tolerance, specifically gray leaf spot, brown patch and summer patch. The research team also collects data on forage yield and quality.
Port Hope Research Station comprises the most extensive private forage testing program in Canada. The replicated product development trials ensure only the best adapted varieties are advanced to commercial use. Ten distinct species of forage grasses and two species of legumes are evaluated for yield, winter hardiness, disease resistance and forage quality. This location also hosts turf grass and hybrid corn demonstration trials.
