Small grain crop growers will be introduced to a recently developed variety of wheat Thursday in Aurora.

The Cornell Cooperative Extension will host its annual Small Grains Management Field Day at the Robert Musgrave Research Farm on Poplar Ridge Road. The free event will feature a variety of soft white wheat resistant to sprouts and scab.

The variety has been a few years in the making.

“It's the first variety that we've released that has some sort of resistance to these diseases,” said Gary Bergstrom, a professor of plant pathology.

Humid New York weather tends to feed the longtime problem.

“It's such a significant problem, there's no single answer,” Bergstrom said.

The field day will also feature talks on growing methods, storage and pest control by researchers, vendors and farmers.

“It's a nice cross section of different parts of the industry,” Bergstrom said. “It's a great networking opportunity.”