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Output Group 2: Practices

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 gas 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, our 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 to stakeholder needs, is under constant 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 technologies.

Inputs

In total, $37.7 million was invested through the Practices output group in 2006-07.

In addition, the Practices output group attracted significant co-investment from its research partners. The output group also relied on the skills and expertise of the people within partner organisations.

Outputs

New technologies and practices

Overcome subsoil constraints

Subsoil constraints (SSCs) induced by high chloride levels are a substantial impediment to wheat production in the Northern Region.

During 2006-07, the GRDC supported mapping of SSCs in Queensland. The mapping showed that 61 percent of the land used for cropping has at least a minor limitation to root growth and function (greater than 400 parts per million of chloride), while 24 percent of that land has very high chloride levels (greater than 1,000 parts per million) at a soil depth of approximately 80 centimetres.

Further GRDC-supported research is now being conducted with the aim of making the best of the situation, in terms of testing alternative crops, varieties and management approaches, without necessarily being able to ease the constraint. If wheat growers follow 'best' management practices for their particular soils the identified SSC situation will have no economic costs.

For example, in areas where SSCs limit the yield potential for wheat crops, growers could respond by reducing fertiliser inputs. Economic analysis of simulated wheat response to nitrogen suggests there is potential for Queensland growers to save $8 million each year by reducing fertiliser inputs, even in cases where the particular SSCs are not known.

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Integrated farm management practices

Improved opportunities for nutrient input

GRDC-supported field studies during 2006-07 repeatedly recorded beneficial responses in crops grown on calcareous sandy loam soils when phosphorus and key micronutrients were applied in liquid rather than granular form.

In GRDC-supported research by CSIRO and the University of Adelaide, laboratory investigations using isotopic dilution techniques revealed that micronutrients and phosphorus applied to the soil in liquid form diffused further from the point of application and remain longer in potentially plant-available forms, compared with nutrients applied in granular form.

The liquids diffuse away from the point of injection and are not chemically locked up, leading to better distribution of nutrients through the soil and an increased probability of uptake by plant roots. Granules draw the moisture to them-in calcareous soils this results in the incorporation of nutrients into less soluble compounds.

Integrated cropping and grazing practices

With dual-purpose wheat varieties becoming more prevalent in prime lamb production in south-east Australia, the integration of cropping and grazing practices has become increasingly important. In 2006-07, the GRDC supported research to identify and develop integrated practices to maximise both livestock weight gains and wheat yields. The GRDC believes that the integration of dual-purpose wheats into grazing systems in Australia's higher rainfall areas will lead to large increases in productivity and profitability.

Field studies conducted in 2006-07 by the FarmLink group, involving farmers and scientists from the NSWDPI and CSIRO, showed that the grazing of dual-purpose wheats does not reduce grain yields if animals are removed before the stem elongation stage. In a number of experiments, grain yields after grazing were actually higher than in ungrazed crops. At the same time, liveweight gains made by stock grazing winter wheat were often greater than the gains made by grazing forage oats or pasture.

The 2006-07 GRDC-supported trial also found that liveweight gains in lambs grazing dual-purpose wheats could be increased by 54 per cent by providing a magnesium supplement at low cost. The preliminary work showed that all of the wheat varieties tested were deficient in magnesium, suggesting that when animals perform poorly grazing on wheat, they could be showing a subclinical magnesium deficiency.

Acid soils could be part of the problem. While a crop's roots are in an acid topsoil they have less ability to take up magnesium, and the wheat itself can show signs of magnesium deficiency. Later, when the crop's roots are in subsoil, which usually has a higher pH, both the crop and the animals grazing it may get sufficient magnesium.

Weather and climate variability

In 2006-07, GRDC-supported research into sea surface temperatures (SST) led to improvements in the accuracy of weather forecasts.

SST to the north-west of Australia have been found to influence rainfall across the Australian grain belt. GRDC-supported research at DAFWA developed a model, based on the El Niño-Southern Oscillation Sequence, that accurately forecasts eastern Pacific SSTs a year in advance. The system can accurately predict May to October rainfall for much of the south-west and north-east of the country, with a lead time of four months.

In addition, work at DAFWA and the University of New South Wales found that rainfall in the wheat belt of western and eastern Australia is related to irregular SST to the north-west of Australia. By incorporating the regional SST pattern into a regionally based forecasting system, the research team improved the accuracy of growing season rainfall predictions to early February.

The improved long-range forecasting was made available to growers through the DAFWA website, www.agric.wa.gov.au.

Natural resource management practices

Efficient nutrient uptake

The poorest performing parts of a paddock are also the parts with the greatest risk of nitrogen leaching. GRDC-supported research conducted by CSIRO in Western Australia during 2006-07 provided growers with economic and environmental reasons to modify nitrogen application on these parts of the paddock.

In a combination of field experiments, the research team used precision agriculture (PA) tools and modelling to assess the impact of spatial and seasonal variation on a range of fertiliser application options. Yield maps and electromagnetic maps were used in conjunction with simulation models and real-time weather data to account for site-specific mineral nitrogen in the soil. This information can now be used for site-specific fertiliser recommendations.

Field work in the central grain belt of Western Australia showed that areas with low water storage capacity resulted in both low wheat yield and a large loss of nitrogen due to leaching. Simulation studies showed that splitting the application of nitrogen, rather than applying all nitrogen at seeding, resulted in reduced nitrogen loss and increased grain yield.

Improved catchment management of salinity and water quality

The GRDC invests in three partnership projects investigating ways to improve catchment management, each involving the local catchment board or equivalent, state programs and agencies, the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality and CSIRO.

To assess the value of different options in salinity management, the projects are testing and modelling:

• land use options, such as agroforestry plantations, biodiversity plantings, perennial pastures or alley cropping
• management practices, such as opportunity cropping or phase farming
• engineering options, including banks to channel overland flows, local drains or evaporation ponds.

For each project, the data and tools used and the processes of community engagement and participation, as well as the results, are being recorded in detail. They will provide a valuable guide for other grain-growing catchments where communities wish to tackle the problem of dryland salinity.

Some important lessons have been learnt in this work. For example:

• large-scale community projects benefit from clear strategic direction
• it is important to objectively assess salinity risk before making major investments in management works
• the negotiation of options is important in persuading farmers to 'buy in'
• consistent and relevant soil and landscape information is a fundamental requirement for landscape-scale natural resource and production management
• it is important to formalise arrangements for access to all relevant information before commencing catchment-scale planning
• strong technical support is a key element of interpreting complex landscape information and implementing change.

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Management of weeds, diseases and pests

Weeds

Integrated weed management (IWM) assists in managing herbicide resistance while providing growers with a diverse mix of cost-effective weed management tools. IWM can include herbicide rotations and various non-herbicide methods, such as enhanced crop competition, weed seed collection, or the collection, windrowing and burning of chaff to minimise weed seed numbers.

GRDC investments, including support for the Western Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative and the CRC for Australian Weed Management, continued to play an important role in improving intelligence on herbicide resistance and developing IWM strategies during 2006-07.

More effective weed control options are vital to address the economic, environmental and social demands that farmers face in dealing with weeds as they increasingly adopt conservation farming methods, such as no-till seeding.

Experiments conducted at the University of Adelaide demonstrated the impact of tillage methods on weed seed germination. Small-seeded weeds (such as Indian hedge mustard, sow thistle and silver grass) emerge in much greater numbers if a no-till narrow opener system is used. Larger seeded weeds (such as bedstraw, wild radish and annual ryegrass) emerge in greater numbers where wider seeding furrows increase the level of soil disturbance.

Better understanding of weed seed responses to the environment allows growers to tailor weed control in integrated programs that manage weed burdens while reducing the risk of certain species becoming resistant to herbicides.

Diseases

In 2006-07, GRDC-supported research by NSWDPI produced significant reductions in crown rot infection in cereal crops by using inter-row sowing with autosteering accurate to 2 centimetres. The tests also confirmed the value of matching variety resistance to inoculum levels: a 12 percent yield advantage was achieved by growing the best partially resistant wheat variety available.

Leaf, stem and stripe rust remain the most damaging diseases for cereal crops. The GRDC continued to support research into practical management strategies through its investments in regional pathology support programs, and a collaborative project between Southern Farming Systems and the New Zealand based Foundation for Arable Research. These programs complement the genetic approaches to rust resistance that are under constant development through the Australian Cereal Rust Control Program.

For effective rust management, growers are advised to adopt a preventive strategy which considers seasonal conditions and yield potential, crop rotation, sowing time, ability to spray on time and profitability. The key elements of practical rust control include selecting appropriate varieties, controlling over-summering hosts (the 'green bridge'), planning a control strategy ahead of sowing, and applying one or two well-timed foliar sprays where required. These messages have been clearly and vigorously extended to growers.

As one of the elements of this extension effort, the GRDC's Agribusiness Trial Extension Network supported a research team to develop a model management strategy for stripe rust in wheat. The research found that the timing of fungicide application is crucial in minimising the impact of stripe rust.

As part of a Central Queensland Sustainable Farming Systems project, the GRDC supported the publication of a management protocol to help ensure central Queensland remains free of the fungal disease ascochyta blight, which has been responsible for serious chickpea production losses throughout southern cropping areas. The published protocol provides a step by step guide on how to deal with suspected and confirmed cases in central Queensland.

Pests

Integrated pest management (IPM) for invertebrate pests of cropping systems reduces grower costs and provides environmental benefits. Examples of IPM approaches under development in 2006-07 include work by the South Australian Research and Development Institute on broadacre control of the etiella moth in lentils. This pest causes serious losses, particularly to export trade, as damaged lentils suffer a severe price penalty.

A successful management package has been developed, outlining pest identification methods, a monitoring technique using species-specific pheromone traps, and control strategies based on timed pesticide applications.

Consultants and advisers have readily adopted these management recommendations, ensuring rapid implementation of the new strategy, optimal timing and effectiveness of etiella control measures, and reduced likelihood of crop damage and grain rejections.

Risk management

Incursions of new pests and diseases, such as wheat streak mosaic virus, are a constant threat to the Australian grains industry. The GRDC is contributing to the management of biosecurity risks posed by potential weed species by investing in a national surveillance plan to detect plants that have the potential to harm the grains industry. This includes developing contingency plans and increasing biosecurity awareness in the industry.

In 2006-07, Plant Health Australia embarked on a project to develop contingency plans for the five most significant potential exotic threats to the grains industry. The project will deliver a total of 15 plans over its three-year term, and will address such damaging global pests as karnal bunt, fusarium wilt of canola, barley stripe rust, Russian wheat aphid and khapra beetle.

The cost of weeds in Australian cropping systems is estimated to be $1.5 billion each year. Funded by the GRDC, the CRC for Australian Weed Management has developed a decision-support framework that can assist policy decisions in determining an economically optimal response when a new weed incursion with potential impact in the grains industry is detected. This work has significantly improved industry preparedness for weed incursions.

Workshops

Building on the success of the IWM workshops described in the 2005-06 Annual Report, the GRDC, in conjunction with the CRC for Australian Weed Management and Independent Consultants Australia Network, brought senior consultants from the grains industry together in 2006-07.

A workshop was held in Adelaide from 30 October to 1 November 2006, as an opportunity to present and discuss current knowledge on IWM and potential new weed control approaches, and to prioritise future research needs. The organisers received extremely positive feedback from the participants, and the outcomes from the workshop will assist in developing future research, development and extension and improving the adoption of IWM practices.

Also in 2006-07, a series of workshops were held to enhance information flow, build networks and improve understanding of common issues between the GRDC and agribusiness.

The first workshop was conducted in Perth and involved representatives from a range of commercial and independent consultancy services, including members of the Australian Association of Agricultural Consultants Western Australia. The discussion included the potential role of an information repository, and the further development of market-focused commercial advice based on 'honest information'.

Workshops were also held in Wagga Wagga (New South Wales) and Melbourne, to discuss options to improve the information delivered to growers through agribusiness channels. The workshops concentrated on the training and professional development of agribusiness people, methods of packaging information to meet agribusiness and client needs, and emerging issues in relation to research, development and extension.

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Output Group 2-Practices

Investment strategies	Achievements
Agronomic packages for new crop varieties	The GRDC provided information on the performance of new varieties under a range of management regimes in the 2006 season to growers in the Western Region and Southern Region.
Making the most of inputs	A workshop held in December 2006 reviewed the outcomes of the GRDC-supported Soil Biology Initiative. Reports were tabled on the economic impact of subsoil constraints in the Northern Region (Queensland Department of Natural Resources) and the economic benefits of precision agriculture (CSIRO).
Farm machinery	In 2006–07, the GRDC supported the development of an implement control system design for improved seed and fertiliser placement accuracy, to be integrated into an autonomous tractor which incorporates the use of GPS systems, tilt sensors and laser rangefinders with an operational safety sub-system an integrated approach to variable rate pesticide application, based on mapping crop biomass using near-infrared crop scanners and direct chemical injection spray application systems.
Adapting to climate change	In partnership with the Australian Greenhouse Office, the GRDC supported the establishment of a free-air carbon experiment at Horsham (Victoria) to evaluate the impact of elevated carbon dioxide on cereal crop performance. The importance of adapting to climate change through the management of climate variability has been highlighted.
Validation and adoption	The GRDC’s achievements in relation to validation and adoption included the: development and extension of approaches to better integrate livestock into cropping systems through the Grain and Graze program development of a blueprint for doubling sorghum production communication of findings from localised farming systems research to growers through research compendiums and results manuals identification of the key profit drivers in northern cropping systems.
Protecting the crop	As a result of GRDC supported research: a national surveillance plan was developed for emergency plant pest threats to the grains industry improved herbicide resistance intelligence and understanding of resistance development mechanisms were built to manage the risks of herbicide resistance in the grains industry A diverse range of integrated weed management options were delivered to agronomists and consultants to improve weed control options in conservation farming a test to detect wheat streak mosaic virus in bulk seed samples of wheat was successfully developed to identify seed at risk of carrying disease into the next crop effective integrated pest management approaches such as broadacre control of the etiella moth in lentils and mirid populations in soybeans were developed to reduce grower costs and provide environmental benefits.
Indicators	Performance
Useful results from the continuation of a stratified survey to measure current on‑farm practices such as the use of gypsum and lime for soil amelioration; controlled traffic; precision agriculture; variable rate technology; nutrient budgeting; the application of risk management tools; the monitoring of water use and deep drainage; and the sowing of perennial pasture species.	In order to minimise the effects of drought on the GRDC’s R&D program and industry capacity in 2006–07, the corporation made a number of targeted savings. This included suspending the annual collection of survey data to measure the GRDC’s performance. It is intended that this activity will resume in 2007–08.
Enhanced management options for cereal foliar and root disease across agroecological zones.	Further refinements to rust management practices, including the management of the crop canopy through strategic post-emergence nitrogen applications, were delivered to growers to provide more effective integrated disease management strategies for stripe rust.
Enhanced farmer capacity to deal with weed, disease and pest constraints on profitable grain production.	The GRDC conducted a number of integrated weed management (IWM) workshops across several states and agroecological zones. The initial stages of a comprehensive cereal rust implementation plan commenced. The national invertebrate pest initiative (NIPI) gained significant momentum with the establishment of a sound interactive network of collaboration scientists and extension staff. This included increased interaction with  industry and grower groups delivering various training workshops.
Increased farmer adoption of weed management practices that delay the development of herbicide resistance.	Active learning workshops were conducted in central Queensland resulting in 93% of surveyed growers indicating that they would change their weed management practices to reduce the risk of developing herbicide resistance.
Identification of new avenues of pest control through the genetic manipulation of the pathogen, weed or invertebrate pest, or its host plant.	The acquisition of the genome sequence of the blackleg fungus through an Australian–French collaborative project led to the prediction of the longevity and effectiveness of particular blackleg resistance sources in canola. Resistance genes become ineffective, resulting in severe yield losses, once the frequency of virulent isolates in a fungal population reaches a particular threshold. Virulence markers have been identified from the fungal genome sequence and are being used to rapidly screen field populations. The results, including data on changes in the frequency of virulent isolates over time, have been provided to canola breeders for use as a guide to the effectiveness of the particular resistance sources being deployed in breeding programs.

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