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Output Group 2: Practices
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Objectives
- To develop better farming practices and have them adopted faster
- To develop sustainable farming systems,adapted to each of the industry's agroecological regions, that are responsive to grower, community and catchment needs
- To develop and deliver cost-effective,robust and environmentally responsible solutions to current and potential crop threats
Overview
The Practices output group aims to develop optimal farm management practices that, when used to grow superior high-yielding varieties, will lead to increased productivity from sustainable grain production systems.
Better farming practices contribute to increased productivity by minimising yield losses caused by a broad and constantly changing spectrum of biotic and abiotic stressors, such as weeds, diseases and invertebrate pests, poor soils, and variations in climate.
The scope of the output group's activities includes developing and validating agronomic packages tailored to suit each region, to allow growers to gain the maximum advantage from the crops they grow, as well as new technologies to better manage crop threats before harvest and maintain grain quality after harvest.
Agronomic benefits continue to accrue from research on water use efficiency, improved farming systems and precision agriculture and engineering. Soil biota, subsoil constraints and nutrient uptake provide scope for improving farmer profitability, while challenges for environmentally sustainable farming practices under increasing salinity, climate variability and greenhouse emission concerns continue to evolve.
The increasing complexity of farming systems, and the need to reduce reliance on traditional chemicals to minimise the development of pest resistance, demand integrated crop protection solutions that are innovative, diverse and cost-effective.
As the genetics of both crop pests and crop hosts are better understood, the ability to manipulate pest-host interactions increases, providing farmers with vital alternatives to traditional mechanical and chemical crop protection solutions.
Another important focus is slowing the development of herbicide resistance in several important weed species. Research in this area is seeking to develop more sustainable weed management practices to delay the onset of resistance in regions and cropping systems at risk, as well as to develop alternative control strategies where herbicide resistance already exists.
The output group has a critical focus on ensuring that the latest R&D outcomes are extended to growers and other industry stakeholders. A range of on-farm participatory programs, conducted through effective partnerships and using emerging delivery technologies targeted and relevant to stakeholder needs, are under constant application and review.
Investments support education, training and other capacity-building activities that facilitate on-farm practice change and allow the grains industry to make the best use of new technology.
Inputs
In total, $36.71 million was invested through the Practices output group in 2005-06.
In addition, the Practices output group attracted significant co-investment from its research partners. We also relied on the skills and expertise of the people within our partner organisations.
Outputs
Demonstrating the benefits of zone farming
Precision agriculture assists growers to vary inputs in order to reduce their own costs and to protect the environment. It includes the use of auto-steer tractors, yield monitoring, zone farming and variable rate technology.
In 2005-06, work conducted by the CSIRO Division of Sustainable Ecosystems through the GRDC-supported Precision Agriculture Initiative demonstrated that sufficient variation in yield potential can occur-in small and large paddocks, and in low-yielding and high-yielding situations-to justify zoning fertiliser inputs on economic grounds.
The economic benefits available from targeting nutrients to match yield potential in each zone, rather than fertilising large areas to match average yield potential, are influenced by a range of factors. The wider the variation in potential yield, the greater the benefit achieved. Benefits are further enhanced if there are differences in soil fertility status between zones, if the low-yielding zone dominates the paddock, or if the value of the crop decreases relative to the price of fertiliser.
Accounting for seasonal influences on yield potential is crucial in maximising the benefits of variable rate application of nutrients. As managing paddock, farm, seasonal and climate variability becomes an increasingly important element in grain farming, related information can be of considerable value to many growers.
Auto-steer allows the accurate seeding of a new crop in the previous season's rows. Photo: Robert Ruwoldt, Murtoa, president of the Victorian No-Till Farmers Association
Lifting crop water use efficiency
Work by the Bureau of Rural Sciences and the Department of Agriculture and Food in Western Australia (DAFWA) has provided a framework for auditing the likely impact of management practices on yield and farm profitability. The work has examined yield trends and water use efficiency for cereals, over the past decade, in each statistical local area and agroecological zone of the Australian grain belt.
The work shows that enormous potential yield gains become available to the grains industry when constraints to achieving maximum water use efficiency are removed. The findings reported in 2005-06 provide a strategic framework for the output group to identify zones that can achieve major gains in water use efficiency and yield. The types of practices required to achieve healthy crop growth and removal of soil constraints, two key features of any effort to maximise water use efficiency, are highlighted. This will assist in developing strategies to achieve increased profitability and sustainability for the greatest number of growers collectively managing the largest area of cropping land.
During the year, the GRDC also supported training programs, delivered through the CSIRO Division of Sustainable Ecosystems, to provide growers with the tools to estimate available water and water use efficiency on their farms. This work, conducted in association with grower groups such as the Birchip Cropping Group and Mingenew-Irwin Group, is providing a range of approaches to maximise yield based on seasonal rainfall and stored moisture.
Using new pasture legumes to improve nitrogen fixation
The availability of adapted pasture legumes is crucial to the viability of mixed enterprise (cropping-livestock) farming systems, as pasture legumes contribute 85 percent of crop nitrogen and provide significant animal production benefits. In 2005-06, four new pasture cultivars were released by the partners of the GRDC-supported National Annual Pasture Legume Improvement Program (NAPLIP).
The new releases were:
- Mintaro
-a subclover (Trifolium
subterraneum subsp. brachycalycinum) bred by the South
Australian Research and Development Institute
(SARDI) and DAFWA. It is adapted to mediumrainfall
areas (400 millimetres to 500 millimetres)
with neutral to alkaline soils. - SARDI Persian-the first Persian clover (Trifolium resupinatum) to be launched by the program, bred by SARDI. Persian clover will offer growers a pasture that is suited to heavy, waterlogged, alkaline clays. It also shows some salinity tolerance. An ability to flower early means it is the first Persian clover to provide good levels of seed-set and regeneration in medium-rainfall areas.
- Moonbi and Wilpena-the first cultivars of
sulla (Hedysarum coronarium) to be developed
in Australia. They were bred by SARDI, the
Queensland Department of Primary Industries
and Fisheries, and the New South Wales
Department of Primary Industries. Sulla is a
short-living perennial that survives for two to
three years and readily regenerates from seed.
Winter and spring production, especially in the
second year, make sulla ideal for a short-term
pasture phase that complements lucerne in a
crop-pasture rotation. The cultivars are
deep-rooted and aphid resistant.
Producing healthy yields by creating healthy soils
The Liebe Group in the northern agricultural region of Western Australia is developing and promoting integrated farm management practices to help identify and alleviate soil constraints. The group is focusing on sustainable dryland agriculture and conducting proactive research on effective management of the soil by integrating the findings from the GRDC's five-year, $10 million Soil Biology Initiative into the local farming system.
Grower members of the Liebe Group identified three main research priorities: enhancing biological and organic matter fertility, addressing soil compaction, and addressing subsoil constraints such as soil acidity.
A shallow leading tine deep ripper and modified airseeder bin were used in a one-pass operation to alleviate any physical hardpan present and to place lime throughout the profile to reduce subsurface acidity. The configuration of the ripper, which uses three tines arranged in line such that each tine rips the soil at a progressively greater depth, allows placement of soil ameliorants at three predetermined depths. The ripper and airseeder bin are also capable of injecting and mixing other soil ameliorants such as dolomite, gypsum or immobile nutrients into the soil profile.
Liebe Group project coordinator Ben Parkin, Latham grower and Liebe Group member Peter Bryant and DAFWA researcher Chris Gazey with the shallow leading tine ripper, designed to rip soils at progressively deeper intervals, decreasing draft forces and producing better soil tilth.
Last year's trials showed that removing soil compaction and reducing subsurface acidity by placing lime at a depth of 30 centimetres resulted in an 18 percent increase in yield.
The shallow leading tine ripper, manufactured by Agrowplow Pty Ltd to specifications developed by DAFWA, has since been combined with a modified belt spreader, and improvements to the delivery boots on the tines have ensured a more uniform placement of lime through the soil profile.
Boosting northern farming systems by promoting chickpeas
A new booklet, Northern Grain Production: A farming systems approach, developed by Pulse Australia with GRDC support, uses research results and grower testimonials to promote the benefits of chickpeas in farming systems in northern New South Wales and southern and central Queensland.
As there is no one person a grower trusts more than another grower, 13 successful chickpea growers, representing the area from New South Wales's Macquarie River Valley to central Queensland, were interviewed about their experiences with the crop. The publication also drew on collective industry expertise to integrate information on weed management in chickpeas, the crop's role in crown rot management, and the amount of soil nitrogen that growers can expect chickpeas to contribute.
Released in 2005-06, the booklet has been very popular in the GRDC's Northern Region, where chickpeas are currently the most preferred-and best adapted to the region's climate, soils and conservation farming systems-of all rotation crops.
Northern Region growers are expected to increase the area planted to chickpeas in 2006, partly because of the high levels of crown rot in cereals experienced in 2005 and the potential role of chickpeas in managing the disease.
Managing weeds by integrating technologies
Weeds are the most costly crop protection challenge faced by grain growers. The Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) for Australian Weed Management estimates that weed control measures and production lost to weeds cost the wheat industry alone around $700 million each year. Weed management practices are under constant pressure as farming systems evolve, as new problem weed species emerge and as herbicide resistance continues to threaten growers' traditional selection of chemical tools.
As well as providing strong support for the CRC for Australian Weed Management, during 2005-06 the GRDC invested in several ongoing regional projects, which seek to lessen reliance on single reactive chemical tools for weed control by maximising the diversity of weed management techniques and encouraging the adoption of integrated weed management.
In Western Australia, alternative weed control strategies under trial include methods of reducing the number of weed seeds that are returned to the soil each year. Techniques such as mechanical removal of weed seed heads, weed seed collection at harvest, windrow burning, and periodic deep ploughing are being explored and developed. On-farm demonstrations of successful strategies are an essential extension method for promoting adoption.
Chemical weed control methods are also under continuous review and development. New mixtures of herbicides that help to control hard-to-kill weeds and reduce the likely development of herbicide resistance are becoming increasingly important as the number of new herbicides reaching the market declines.
In Queensland, improved application equipment and methods are being developed and assessed to reduce the risk of off-target herbicide damage caused by spray drift. The challenge of this work is to maintain the efficacy of the products while reducing their tendency to move away from the site of application.
Managing annual ryegrass, Australia's most important weed in broadacre cropping, remains a key objective. New spray technologies, such as shielded sprays in wide row cropping systems, continue to be developed and demonstrated in rotational crops.
Novel technology to combat the damaging weed wild radish is being explored through a new collaborative initiative between the GRDC, the University of Melbourne and the CRC for Australian Weed Management. This project seeks to trick wild radish plants into rejecting the pollen required to fertilise seeds by making that pollen appear to come from the plants' own reproductive organs. The research is high risk but, if successful, has the potential to significantly improve our ability to combat one of the most persistent and intractable weeds of rotational cropping in Australia.
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In 2005-06, supported by long-term GRDC investment, the Australian Cereal Rust Control Program continued to identify new sources of rust resistance and to perform screening services for researchers and breeding companies seeking improved resistance to rust diseases. To complement this breeding approach to cereal foliar disease control, the GRDC also continued to invest in state-based pathology services that monitor disease outbreaks, identify new disease pathotypes and heightened risks, and provide growers with up-to-date recommendations for disease management.
A strong linkage with the New Zealand-based Foundation for Arable Research is allowing researchers in the Southern Region to develop better disease management practices based on more effective fungicide application and the strategic management of the crop canopy through timed fertiliser applications. Canopy management may have particular relevance to high-rainfall zones, and Australian growers have shown intense interest in the principle, which is being explored under a variety of Australian conditions.
Crown rot is another disease of wheat that can cost Australian growers dearly. It is estimated to cause production losses worth around $56 million each year. Crown rot has proved difficult to tackle using the genetic resistance approach. Management is largely achieved by crop rotation. In recent years, GRDC-funded research under the Crown Rot Initiative has demonstrated the roles of non-host crops and stubble breakdown, as well as the nitrogen and moisture status of the soil, in limiting the disease. In the most recent research, effects of precision row placement and biological and chemical seed treatments have been tested with promising results.
A predictive model for crown rot risk was also developed under this initiative, and made available to growers and advisers in 2005-06. A combination of easily measured indices, adjusted prior to sowing to account for summer rainfall, will allow growers to predict the likelihood of infection more accurately, leading to better crop rotation and management decisions.
Wheat streak mosaic virus can have a major impact on yield.
Wheat streak mosaic virus was first conclusively identified in Australia in 2003 and has since been identified in all cereal-growing states. The disease had little impact under Australian conditions until 2005, when an outbreak in the high-rainfall zone of New South Wales damaged early-sown dual-purpose wheats over an area of at least 5,000 hectares. Many affected crops failed to produce any marketable yield. The outbreak was unexpected, and indicated more serious potential for damage than had been anticipated.
In 2004-05, the GRDC initiated a project at the University of Melbourne to better understand the epidemiology of wheat streak mosaic virus and its vector, the leaf curl mite. As a result of this work, a large preserved collection of leaf curl mites has been accumulated, and the taxonomy, distribution and host range of this vector in Australia is becoming clearer.
After the 2005 outbreak, this project was allocated additional resources to accommodate the increased sampling, analysis and field research program that the outbreak precipitated. Further work in 2006-07 is expected to begin to unravel the many questions that remain about the causes and potential for re-occurrence of the 2005 epidemic, and what measures may need to be taken to reduce the future spread and impact of this disease.
Pulses and oilseeds, as rotational crops, play a critical role in maintaining the viability of cereal cropping systems as well as contributing to overall farm production. Fungal and viral diseases can seriously limit production in rotational crops, as they can in cereals. In 2005-06, the GRDC continued to invest in regionally based pathology support programs for pulses and oilseeds that augment breeding programs and assist farmers to respond effectively to disease outbreaks.
Management of blackleg in canola depends on varietal selection, avoidance of close rotations and strategic use of fertiliser-applied fungicides or seed dressings. The GRDC invests in several research projects that are improving growers' blackleg management through better understanding of the variability of the pathogen and its capacity to counter the genetic resistance mechanisms of plants. In 2005-06, work on the disease management effects of burning canola stubble showed that fire has little effect on the carryover of infection from one season to the next. Growers are now advised against this management practice, because the risks of wind erosion of soil resulting from burning outweigh any advantages they may derive from lowering disease inoculum.
Blackleg infection in canola crops can be reduced by sowing different canola varieties possessing different blackleg resistance mechanisms in rotation.
A second but increasingly prevalent disease of canola is sclerotinia. Fungicide trials conducted in New South Wales are demonstrating the efficacy of a range of treatments. Equally importantly, models developed from field data are beginning to explain the epidemiology of this highly unpredictable disease. The New South Wales Department of Primary Industries is conducting a project that aims to develop better forecasting methods for disease severity, along with integrated control strategies.
Ascochyta blight is a widespread and damaging disease of chickpeas and other pulses. In Western Australia, fungicide trials in low, medium and high rainfall zones have further refined management packages that were previously recommended for desi chickpeas with moderate disease resistance.
In addition, an updated version of the Chickpea Disease Management Strategy for Southern Australia was released in November 2005, to reflect the results of further work by the Victorian Department of Primary Industries pathology team based in Horsham.
Strengthening guidelines to protect Australia from new pest incursions
With support from the GRDC and the Grains Council of Australia (GCA), the National Grains Biosecurity Plan was launched by Plant Health Australia in August 2005. The GRDC invests in the activities of this national coordinating body for plant health to protect Australia's export markets, to ensure that pest threats to Australian graingrowers are identified and quantified, and to ensure that contingency plans will be in place in the event of an incursion.
Through strong collaborations with other GRDC research partners, Plant Health Australia has developed guidelines for pest-specific contingency plans that address the issues of diagnostics, impact, allied industries and ecosystems, selection of control treatments, surveys, risk mitigation protocols, eradication, and stand-down when an eradication attempt has failed. With these tools (and with one plan in place) the project is now aiming to prepare 15 priority emergency plant pest contingency plans over the next three years. Preparation of the first five plans are well underway.
In addition, the project is developing a national surveillance plan for the Australian grains industry. Surveillance capability and protocols are vital not only for early detection of new pest incursions, but also to demonstrate to Australia's export markets the integrity of the grains industry as a reliable supplier of pest-free produce.
Case Study
Integrated weed management workshop puts growers in control
In 2005-06, 211 advisers participated in the two-day integrated weed management workshops developed in collaboration with the CRC for Australian Weed Management.
In 2005-06, 211 farm advisers were trained in integrated weed management (IWM) through a collaborative project involving the GRDC, the CRC for Australian Weed Management and Sydney-based consultancy ICAN Pty Ltd. The objectives were to encourage more rapid farmer adoption of improved weed management practices, and to slow the development of herbicide resistance and the resultant loss of valuable herbicides by providing advisers with better knowledge and skills in IWM.
Feedback from advisers was extremely positive. Approximately two-thirds of workshop participants gave the two-day course top marks for overall value and for the quality of instruction received. The course is mapped to national competency standards. Participants electing to be assessed receive credit for two units at Level 5 (diploma level) from Yanco Agricultural College. As an added bonus, and as a clear sign of industry acceptance of the course, the competency can also be used to re-accredit with AgSafe.
The GRDC played a pivotal role in supporting the proposal to develop the training package. In an excellent example of cross-industry collaboration, the CRC for Australian Weed Management supports the project by providing 'key speaker firepower' to keep the course at the cutting edge. Crop protection company Bayer Crop Science recognises the benefits of IWM and has sponsored several IWM workshops.
The course is comprehensive. To impart so much information effectively in only two days, a highquality technical resource is needed to support the training. The Weeds CRC has developed a world-class, 350-page manual, which sets a new standard as a detailed and innovative weed management reference. The manual is available as PDF files downloadable from the CRC's website, www.weeds.crc.org.au, and will be published in hard copy in 2006-07.
Further workshops will be offered in 2006 and 2007.
Case Study
Oilseed industry development officer responds to growers' needs
Felicity Pritchard, new industry development officer, works with grower groups in Victoria and southern New South Wales to help expand oilseed production.
In 2005-06, the GRDC and the Australian Oilseeds Federation (AOF) invested in the establishment of an oilseed industry development officer position for Victoria and southern New South Wales.The position will allow for the delivery of agronomic extension that will enhance farm and crop management best practice, particularly in relation to disease management, pest management and yield improvement, ultimately assisting in the expansion of oilseed crops.
The need for an industry development officer arose, in part, out of concern held by the GRDC and the AOF that growers needed more confidence in growing canola. A run of late breaks and recent low prices have led to a reduction in the area sown to canola.However, canola still has an important place in crop rotation, and the GRDC believes that most growers through more careful management of their inputs, particularly fungicides and fertiliser, can achieve more profitable returns at lower risk. The AOF also wants to remove the perception that canola is a risky crop to grow.
Felicity Pritchard is now working with graingrowers, grower groups, advisers, oilseed marketers and researchers to assist in the flow of information and feedback between the various groups within the industry, with the ultimate aim of boosting the production of dryland and irrigated oilseeds in Victoria and southern New South Wales.
Felicity's role is likely to also extend to developing agronomic packages for other oilseeds, such as canola-quality mustards and, possibly, biodiesel crops.
Case Study
Model farming systems save topsoil
Dan Rattray collecting a runoff sample from a 'nested' catchment study exploring impacts of management on water quality from grain farms. Such data helps to build an understanding of catchment processes, leading to improved strategies to minimise off-site impacts of agriculture.
The GRDC has been a major investor in research to understand and quantify the environmental impacts of sustainable cropping systems. The GRDC-supported project to improve water quality in grain-farming catchments is just one example. It aims to extend best management practices within grain farm catchments as a basis for improved water quality and protection of aquatic environments.
In 2005-06, Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries soils scientist and project leader Dan Rattray, together with fellow researchers David Freebairn and Norm Gurner, used a computer model to assess the impact of land use on water quality in the Felton Valley, south of Toowoomba. The model was developed to design practices that improve water quality at both the farm level and the catchment level.
Felton Valley farmers, through their Landcare group, had developed an action plan for reducing erosion in their valley and were looking to prioritise the necessary remedial activities before asking for financial help from government. Some 60 percent of the Felton Valley's 17,000 hectares is cropped, and spatial analysis by Dr Rattray's team identified about 400 hectares which were 'steep'-that is, they had more than 5 percent slope.
The computer model was linked to geographic information systems (GIS) software that allowed the catchment group and the scientists to visualise where the erosion 'hot spots' were and to assess the likely impact of managing these at the local and catchment levels.The computer model showed that when steeper country had less than 5 percent stubble cover, and was subject to traditional cultivation, erosion losses could be as much as 30 tonnes to 40 tonnes of soil per hectare. But it also showed that, if all cropping in the valley was carried out under minimum tillage methods, total erosion would fall to 5,000 tonnes and sediment loss at the end of the valley to 650 tonnes.
The farmers-and government-must have been impressed, because already 80 hectares of the 'steep' cultivation area have been converted to permanent pasture, three farmers are converting their machinery to reduce tillage, and $50,000 has been allocated by the Natural Heritage Trust for soil conservation structure repairs. Dr Rattray and his fellow scientists have proved the worth of their computer model in defining the natural resource management benefits of conservation tillage practices.
| Investment strategies | Achievements |
|---|---|
| New technology | Through GRDC-supported projects:
|
| Agronomy | Achievements in relation to agronomy included:
|
| Integrated controlmethods | Western Australian researchers continued to develop integrated control strategies for wild radish that improve crop yields, have effects on other weeds and reduce the tendency for wild radish to become herbicide resistant. Results to date show that well timed 'crop-topping' herbicide applications can reduce wild radish seed set and are simultaneously effective for wild radish and annual ryegrass in short-season lupin crops. Weed head trimming using a standard header can further reduce wild radish seed set and is an example of the novel practices being developed for future integration into increasingly complex farming practices. |
| Biosecurity | As a result of the GRDC's support for Plant Health Australia, protocols were set in place for the preparation of contingency plans for the highest priority emergency plant pests considered most likely to gain entry to Australia and affect the grains industry. Fifteen such plans are to be completed in the next three years.With the support of Plant Health Australia, the CRC for National Plant Biosecurity and the GRDC, the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries developed a new, highly accurate molecular test for Karnal bunt. Misidentification of this disease in Pakistan threatened Australian exports in 2004, and the new test was developed to prevent such an emergency from re-occurring. The test will reduce the time taken to accurately identify the disease from two weeks to less than one day. |
| Commercialisation | With support from the GRDC, the CRC for Australian Weed Management has developed a novel seeding machine for conservation farmers. The StubbleStar®cuts through heavy stubble burdens more reliably, and disturbs less soil, than conventional tined seeding equipment. The seeder gives farmers greater capacity to adopt minimum tillage under difficult stubble-handling conditions, and is the subject of two patents, with more pending. Specialists in technology commercialisation were appointed to the project, and a suitable manufacturing company is being sought to enter into a licensing agreement to manufacture and distribute the StubbleStar®.Two candidate antifungal genes and a caterpillar control gene discovered in the GRDC-CSIRO venture Grain Protection Genes are the subject of patents and have progressed through plant proof-of-concept stage. All three genes show sufficient promise to warrant transfer for testing in appropriate crop models. A herbicide resistance gene candidate was also isolated and a provisional patent application was filed. |
| Indicators | Performance |
| Implementation of a stratified surveyto measure current on-farm practicessuch as the use of gypsum and limefor soil amelioration, controlled traffic,precision agriculture, variable ratetechnology, nutrient budgeting, riskmanagement tools, the monitoring ofwater use and deep drainage, and thesowing of perennial pasture species | The 2005-06 tracking survey found that the late arrival of last year's opening rains had a big impact on preseason management practices among graingrowers:
|
| Faster adoption of new practices,including targeted sustainableon-farm practices and technologies, by graingrowers | In 2005-06, 89% of growers surveyed were undertaking activities or initiatives to ensure the long-term sustainability of their farms. Recognition of the role of the GRDC in influencing the adoption of these actions increased, from 48% to 53% of survey respondents. |
| Increased number of farmers involved in grower groups | The 2005-06 tracking survey found that 43% of growers, up from 42% in 2004-05, were members of formal or regular farm discussion groups. The proportion was highest in Victoria, where 59% of growers were members.In addition, the number of surveyed growers who stated that what they heard through grower groups was the major influence in motivating on-farm change increased from 46% to 64% during the year. Grower groups remain the most influential source of information. |
| Enhanced management options forcereal foliar and root diseasesacross agroecological zones | The GRDC-sponsored publication Cereal Growth Stages: The link to crop management details important new information on the timing of cereal foliar fungicide spraying, the role of fungicides alongside other disease management strategies, and the potential for using canopy management in high-rainfall zones to minimise the effects of leaf disease epidemics.The latest GRDC annual survey results indicated that the number of growers who feel better equipped to deal with disease management issues has risen by 4% to 82% of growers surveyed. |
| Increased farmer awareness andadoption of weed management practices that delay the development of herbicide resistance | Some 94% of growers surveyed claimed to recognise the importance of the GRDC having an investment role in delaying and managing herbicide resistance. Farmers have become more proactive in their preventative strategies, with those taking positive action to delay the onset of herbicide resistance increasing by 3% to 88%. |
| Identification of new approaches to crop protection, including the use of genetic manipulation of weeds, pathogens, invertebrate pests or crop hosts | Increasing knowledge and understanding of plant and pest genetics are expanding growers' options for crop protection. Recent analyses at the University of Adelaide have demonstrated significant genetic differences between wheat lines in their ability to compete with weeds. For example, commercial cultivars such as Janz and Wyalkatchem are particularly sensitive to weed competition. This project is working toward providing farmers with a new weed management tool: the competitive ability of the crop itself. A major achievement in 2005-06 was developing the ability to assess crop tolerance to weeds in single-row plots. This will allow effective assessment of weed competitive ability even when seed is limited. |