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OMAFRA: Using Growing Degree Days to track cereal growth

Growing Degree Days (GDDs) can be a helpful tool to track cereal crop growth and development. GDDs are calculated by adding the average daily temperatures during the cereal crop’s growing season. If the daily average temperature is equal to or less than 0˚C, the degree-day value is zero and no GDDs were accumulated for that day.

Tracking GDDs during the growing season can be a helpful tool in estimating how quickly the winter wheat crop is moving through the growth stages, equipping producers to make timely fertilizer and crop protection applications. During cooler temperatures GDD accumulations are slow, so the crop will be moving through the growth stages at a slow rate. During warm or hot temperatures, GDDs will accumulate quickly, and the crop will be moving through the growth stages quicker. It is during these warm and hot periods that timely fertilizer and crop applications are often missed. |READ MORE