The winter rye variety ´Sangaste´ is one of the oldest varieties in the world created by Baltic German innovator Count Friedrich Georg Magnus von Berg (1845-1938) in Sangaste, Estonia. He was a progressive landowner and started rye breeding in 1875, which is considered the beginning of the ´Sangaste´ rye variety. He chose for parent plant material a rye variety brought from Probstei, Germany, and crossed it with local rye (not preserved landrace). Von Berg selected winter-hardy high-yielding plants with a long straw and heads. In 1889, ´Sangaste´ winter rye won a big gold medal - Grand Prix - at the World Exhibition in Paris.

It is important to note that Count von Berg had an assistant, Constance Kalm. She was very interested in breeding process and assisted von Berg in his breeding activities. The experimental fields of winter rye in Sangaste mansion were destroyed in 1944, but Constance managed to preserve the currently known rye variety in her breeding garden.

Piltide autor: Liina Laurikainen-Päri