Modern cultivars of hard red spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L. emend. Thell.) are developed and selected under conditions where synthetic agrichemicals are used to minimize nutrient deficiencies and pests in the USA. The suitability of these cultivars for production in certified organic environments is unknown. Seventeen current or formerly widely-grown cultivars were evaluated for agronomic performance in two certified organic fields in both Minnesota and North Dakota during 2003 and 2004. The cultivars represented different eras of development, breeding programs, and contrasting growth characteristics, but 11 cultivars were released on or after 1995.  Cultivar treatments were arranged in a randomized complete block and replicated four times in each of the eight field experiments. Interactions between environments and cultivars were detected for grain yield, crude protein concentration, test weight, and kernel weight (P < 0.05). However, some modern cultivars were top performers in a majority of environments for each of the four traits. Cultivars developed prior to 1970 generally were low yielding and produced poor quality grain. Seedling vigor, crop stand, early-season plant dry matter, crop canopy development, and other growth traits failed to explain differences in yield between cultivars in most instances where these factors were considered. Results of this study suggest that modern cultivars of hard red spring wheat that were developed and selected using synthetic agrichemicals are adapted to environments under certified organic management. There seems to be little evidence that seedling vigor and other growth traits considered in this study can be used as primary selection criterion for cultivars suited to production in certified organic environments.