• Edillilie crops show huge potential to recover from grazing and value add to cereals.
• Edillilie crops responded to late N application with higher DM production and grain yield.
• Barley was the highest producer of DM at Minnipa.
• Two other G&G regions conducted cereal grazing trials - see the "Sharing Info" section of this book.

• Wheat on wheat can be successfuly grown with relatively low risk if all factors that influence diease are considered.
• The most important are: disease carry over, variety selection, sowing time, seed treatment and burning stubbles.
• Barley on wheat is less of a problem, except for self-sown wheat in the barley sample.

• Wheat on wheat can be successfuly grown with relatively low risk if all factors that influence diease are considered.
• The most important are: disease carry over, variety selection, sowing time, seed treatment and burning stubbles.
• Barley on wheat is less of a problem, except for self-sown wheat in the barley sample.

On-Duty residues may affect the performance of subsequent susceptible crops. Cereals are considered a safe crop option following Clearfield canola as long as the On-Duty has been applied prior to the end of August and that rainfall between spraying and sowing the next winter crop has been at least 250mm.

• Increasing inputs from low to district practice significantly increased crop emergence for all four varieties, reflecting the increased seeding rate.
• Crop head density was higher under district input practice, reflecting the higher seeding rate and crop nutrition, and was positively correlated with seedling establishment.

• Burning or cultivating 2015 stubbles tended to produce higher yields, however this was only significant at Ungarie.
• High rainfall and a soft finish removed the benefit of stored soil moisture that stubble retained systems may have provided.
• Nitrogen was the limiting factor for both yield and protein for 2016.
• Growers cannot let stubble negatively impact on weed control and timely sowing.
• Growers should use crop rotation to their advantage by aiming to sow the right crop into the least antagonistic stubble.
• Stubble retained systems can require more nitrogen due to increased nitrogen tie-up.

Root diseases such as 'Take all', cereal cyst nematode, and Rhizoctonia cost cereal farmers acorss the Mallee and the Wimmera millions or dollars each year.

Grain legumes are ideally suited for direct drilling into cereal stubble. Cereal stubble does not affect grain legume growth or yield. The legume's large seed size and tolerance to variations in sowing depth allows them to safely emerge through stubble. Stubble should be left on the soil surface. Attempts to break up and bury it with repeated harrowing and workings will damage the soil structure, negating any benefit from retaining it.

• Grazed crops showed no effects from grazing in 2016 – an excellent season producing high early biomass. Crops recovered and yielded very well.
• Trojan and LRPB Arrow were the best dual purpose wheat varieties.
• Fathom, Spartacus and Rosalind were the best dual purpose barley varieties.

• A diagnostic service is available to farmers and industry for diseased plant specimens.
• Samples of all leaf and aerial plant parts should be kept free of moisture and wrapped in paper not a plastic bag. Roots should be dug up carefully, preserving as much of the root system as possible and preferably kept damp. Samples should be sent to the following address:

SARDI Diagnostic Centre
Plant Research Centre
Hartley Grove
Urrbrae SA 5064

• Oats produced the most dry matter after repeated grazings.
• Manage timing of grazing to allow cereal recovery. • Establish as much bulk as possible in a cereal pasture by increasing.
• seeding rate and consider dry sowing.

The GRDC-funded Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative recommends the use of chaff carts as part of a 10-point plan to beat crop weeds on the WeedSmart website.

• Resistance to Group B herbicides is common across western Victoria.
• Resistance to trifluralin is increasing.
• A new pre-emergent herbicides should become a fundamental part of an integrated weed management strategy to aid in control of multiple-resistant ryegrass.

 

• Current standard practices of 50 kg/ha DAP or 50 kg/ha MAP balanced with urea below the seed provides adequate P nutrition.
• With adequate soil moisture, no large differences in grain yield were observed in 2019 at Streaky Bay with different granular fertiliser treatments.

• CL Kord seed treated with EverGol Prime and 40 kg/ha DAP out-yields standard 40 kg/ha DAP and untreated CL Kord seed. Very little differences between other treatments at Penong in 2013.

• Application of nitrogen fertiliser significantly increased yield compared to no fertiliser.
• Grain protein results suggest that in 2014 nitrogen was not the limiting factor to yield especially at the higher rates; incremental increases in mean grain protein were recorded with each increase in N, up to 300 kg N/ha.
• Variety choice had a significant effect on final grain yield and protein, however individual variety response to applied N rates were relatively similar.
• There was a strong link between N rate and what was left in the soil after harvest, and the higher rates left a considerable amount.
   

• Prior to sowing, seed was treated with various products that are commercially available although no seed treatment improved crop performance relative to the untreated control.
• Rancona C had no negative effects on germination early vigour, establishment or yield of wheat when compared to other seed treatments or the untreated control.
• There was no evidence of wheat smut at the trial site this season, if disease pressure was greater we may expect to see difference in yield between treatments.

The trial went well in 2011 because the manure coverage was good. Michael was disappointed with the results from the deep rip treatments with or without lime, because there was no significant yield difference compared to the control and hence no economic gain. However applying chicken manure at 2t/ha resulted in an increase in yield (especially from the most acidic sand rises) with a considerable economic gain/return. Therefore, as a result of these trials Michael is going to implement a strategic manure application programme with the objective of increasing his paddocks yield and profitability while reducing the impact of the sand rises. Fellow growers in the area have embraced the trial outcomes and most of them are keen to adopt a similar strategy in their cropping system since chicken manure is widely available in the area.

• Commercial viability has been difficult to demonstrate.
• Field trials demonstrated that the H Senor was able to accurately classify annual ryegrass in several broadleaf crops, including canola, faba bean, lentil and field pea.
• Other grass weeds such as brome grass and wild oats were also correctly identified as grasses in these crops.
• Broad leaf weeds were accurately classified in cereal crops, however this was more difficult due to the overlapping nature of the cereal crops at the time when the broadleaf weeds had emerged.
• Classification accuracy was lower for detection of grass weeds in cereal crops and broadleaf weeds in broadleaf crops, and these scenarios were not pursued for that reason.  

• Chickpeas and lentils should be sown in early May to achieve early growth and maximise biomass and yield.
• In 2013 at Westmere, growth was generally slow and lacked vigour, however lentils tolerated some short term waterlogging surprisingly well.
• The larger Kabuli chickpeas, like PBA Monarch, Almaz and Kalkee are likely to be the most profitable options for this region.

• Although chickpea yields were higher than previous years at Hart, the rapid finish to the season favoured earlier flowering and maturing varieties such as GenesisTM079 and Sonali.
• Ryegrass competition at 31 and 86 plants/m2 reduced chickpea grain yield by 31% and 56%, respectively.
• Breeder’s line “Chickpea 4” recorded the lowest yield loss from ryegrass competition at both sites (9% at the low ryegrass density at Hart), and also displayed 35% better tiller suppression than other varieties at Hart.
• Early vigour appeared an important trait in chickpea for improved competiveness with ryegrass, whilst short plant height was a disadvantage.

• A combination of weed competition and bird damage likely accounts for the absence of interaction between variety and crop-top application timing for grain yield in this trial. However significant treatment and variety responses were generated for grain yield, as well as a significant interaction for grain weight.
• Earlier maturing cultivars generally showed higher grain yield, favoured by the dry (but mild) finish to the season. The latest maturing cultivar Genesis114 showed the equal lowest average yield with other later maturing cultivars Genesis090, PBA HatTrick and Chickpea 3.

Grain yield results of these trials need to be treated with caution due to the adverse environmental
conditions experienced throughout the season.

• Howzat had significantly greater levels of foliar disease and pod infection levels than all resistant varieties when no fungicides were applied.
• Under high disease pressure in Howzat fortnightly sprays of chlorothalonil did not always prevent plant death from occurring.
• Maximum grain yields in Howzat treatments at Turretfield occurred in fortnightly sprays of
  chlorothalonil, however disease levels in these treatments were still higher than in untreated plots of the resistant varieties
• Resistant varieties with no fungicides applied suffered no yield loss when compared to the same varieties treated with fortnightly sprays under high disease pressure at Turretfield
• One spray at podding to reduce pod infection levels from low levels to very low levels in resistant varieties was all that was required to successfully grow the new resistant chickpeas under high levels of disease pressure last year. There was no significant difference between the fungicides used to reduce pod infection levels in the resistant types, however chlorothalonil reduced levels to a far greater extent than Mancozeb in Howzat.

• Significant levels of disease were present in the trial this year, but due to the high temperatures in November causing a short finish, it appears that potential yield differences were negated.
   

• Both desi and kabuli chickpea varieties suffered severe plant establishment reductions from fertiliser placement with the seed and with increasing fertiliser rates.
• Fertiliser rates of 20 kg P/ha and above placed with the seed had a significant negative effect on grain yields.
• Yields increased with fertiliser rate up to about 20kg/ha of P in this particular season and soil type
• Over two seasons fertiliser placement has been shown to influence plant establishment and yield of chickpea.

• Response of 13 chickpea genotypes to zinc nutrition was studied in a pot experiment under glasshouse conditions.
• When grown with no added zinc, zinc deficiency symptoms appeared 3–4 weeks after planting.
• Zinc efficiency based on shoot dry weight showed marked differences among genotypes.
• Root:shoot ratio was increased and proportionally more zinc was transported to the shoot when the soil was deficient.
• Cultivars that were very sensitive to zinc deficiency tended to have their root:shoot ratio increased by zinc deficiency more than less sensitive cultivars.
• The insensitive lines transported more than 70% of the total absorbed zinc to the shoot .
• Chickpea genotypes vary in their sensitivity to zinc deficiency.

Grain Yield results of these trials need to be treated with caution due to the adverse environmental
conditions experienced throughout the season.

• Growing season rainfall was extremely low (157mm c.f. 230mm long term average) and there was no subsoil moisture due to low summer rainfall. Only 8mm rainfall was recorded in r (a critical period for crop growth and yield determination). There was an extremely hot
  period during October which resulted in significant flower and pod abortion. Many plots had
  died without setting pods prior to harvest. The late rainfall of 50mm in November was too late to be of any benefit.
• Emergence was similar across all treatments and varieties.
• All varieties responded similarly to the herbicide treatments.
• The most significant damage was in simazine + imazethapyr and simazine + isoxaflutole
  treatments. Simazine + isoxaflutole applied at double rates caused a significant reduction in
  crop height.
• The trial was not harvested and grain yields not recorded as there was almost no pods set (see above).

Grain Yield results of these trials need to be treated with caution due to the adverse environmental
conditions experienced throughout the season.

• See Milestone 1 for weather interpretation.
• Emergence was similar across all treatments and varieties.
• All varieties responded similarly to the herbicide treatments.
• The most significant damage was in simazine + imazethapyr, simazine + isoxaflutole and flumetsulam treatments.
• Grain yields were improved in treatments with greatest weed control, hence no yield reductions were observed in the simazine + imazethapyr and simazine + isoxaflutole treatments, where most crop damage was observed.

• There was diversity in phenology between varieties.
• Early sowing extended the crop vegetative period, but increased exposure to frost damage during the flowering phase.
• Desi varieties PBA Striker, PBA Slasher, PBA Boundary and CICA1521 were the highest yielding varieties at both sites.
• Dry conditions severely limited chickpea grain yield in 2019, but favoured early maturing varieties, particularly with mid May sowing.

Key findings:

• In a wet season, substantial yield losses (94%) from Phytophthora root rot (PRR) occurred in susceptible chickpea varieties such as PBA BoundaryA.
• Varieties with improved resistance to PRR (PBA HatTrickA and YorkerA) can also have large yield losses (68–79%) in a season highly conducive to PRR.
• Although yield losses will occur in seasons highly conducive to PRR, crosses between chickpea and wild Cicer species, such as the PBA breeding line CICA1328, currently offer the best levels of PRR resistance.

Summary

Under conditions that are highly conducive to PRR, substantial (94%) yield losses occur in susceptible varieties such as PBA Boundary.  However, significant losses (68-79%) can also occur in varieties with improved resistance to PRR (PBA HatTrick and Yorker).  Crosses between chickpea and wild Cicer species such as the PBA breeding line CICA1328 offer the best resistance to PRR.

• Pod set in chickpeas was suppressed by the cool September and October in 2009. Dry spring conditions further suppressed grain yields and grain weights of late sown chickpea crops by terminating seed fill prematurely.
• The dry season favoured early sowing, and generally favoured the early maturing Genesis079. The desi’s Genesis509 and new release PBASlasher generally performed similarly, although PBASlasher has higher long term yields and improved seed quality over Genesis509 in NVT trials.
• Earlier sown chickpeas yielded higher than those sown later. However, when sowing was delayed, yield was maximised in some varieties by increasing the seeding rate above recommended, similarly to 2008. However current chickpea densities of 35 plants/m2 for kabuli’s (small and large) and 50 plants/m2 for desi’s remain best-practice when sown early.
• Higher grain weights in chickpeas were achieved in 2009 by sowing early, particularly in larger seeded kabuli’s. However this finding was opposite to that found in the past where later sowing dates have led to larger grain weights. Increasing plant density from current recommendations did not influence yield, but reducing density to 20 plants/m2 did show a reduction in grain weight.

• There was no significant variety by seeding rate interaction.
• There was however very significant main effects of variety (p<0.0001) and seeding rate  (p<0.0001).

• There were no significant varietal differences in either the curvature or linear response to plant
  density.
• There was however highly significant main effects of variety and plant density and an overall curvature effect.

No visual herbicide damage symptoms or yield effects were evident in 2008 wheat, barley, IT canola or lentil crops sown after the application of common herbicides to chickpeas in 2007.

• Doubling row spacing in chickpeas from 9” to 18” caused an 18% reduction in yield, although there were improvements in lodging and pod loss. Variety ranking was the same for both row spacings.
• Row spacing had no influence on grain weight in 2009.

• In dry years, sow faba bean and chickpea as early as possible in the recommended sowing window.
• Grain yield declined significantly as sowings were delayed from 30th April through to 7th July.
• Faba bean was far more sensitive to delays than chickpea –they lost on average 21 kgs seed/ha/day over this period compared to only 7 kgs seed/ha/day for chickpea.

• There was a significant effect of variety, row spacing, plant population and variety x row spacing.
• The full 3-way interaction and the interactions of population by variety and row spacing were not significant.

• Results of this trial need to be treated with caution due to the low yields and adverse environmental conditions experienced throughout the season.
• Growing season rainfall was extremely low (190mm c.f. 265mm long term average) and there was no subsoil moisture due to low summer rainfall. Only 9mm rainfall was recorded in October (a critical period for crop growth and yield determination). There was an extremely hot day October 13 (37OC) followed by a frost (Oct 16, -3.4) which resulted in almost complete flower and pod abortion. Approximately 80mm rain fell in November and December, ensuring that we achieved grain yields up to 400kg/ha.
• Emergence was similar to target plant densities.
• Results highlight the yield potential of the new lines Flip 94-090c and Flip 94-509c.
• Low plant densities and later sowing tended to be higher yielding due to the late rainfall. This is the opposite trend of 2003 and needs further investigation.
• There was a greater proportion of large seed (>8mm) of Flip 94-090c at low plant densities compared with high plant densities (25% c.f. 5%).

A strong negative effect on crop yield was found with sowing chickpeas shallow even with light rates of Simazine and Triflualin.

• Trial not harvested in 2009 due to dry conditions and poor growth throughout the season.

• Generally early sowing and higher plant densities resulted in highest yields.
• Wider row spacing’s with standing stubble (60 and 30 cm) produced 10% higher grain yields than slashed stubble treatments (19.5 cm and 30 cm) for chickpeas in 2009.

• Chickpeas are not traditionally grown in the Victorian HRZ. Plots were not harvestable due to unfavourable weather during reproductive stages at this exposed site.
• Many pods were white and did not produce grain, as a result of cold conditions and frost.  
   

• There was a highly significant time of sowing effect across all times of sowing with the each sowing time being significantly from each other.

• The varietal effects were strongly detected with the newly released PBA varieties proving their
  superiority over older chickpea varieties.

• Wimmera rye grass. Score 4 (Early season). 2 (Mid season).
• Capeweed score 4 (Early season. 2 (Mid season).
• Drought score 5 (Mid season).
•  

• Chickpea production in Victoria will increase in 2006 due to the wide availability of the ascochyta blight resistant variety Genesis™ 090.
• This variety will provide a new small seeded high yielding kabuli chickpea option for growers, particularly those in traditional desi growing areas.
• Two new larger seeded kabulis, Almaz and Nafice, with moderate ascochyta blight resistance are good varieties for areas where Kaniva has been grown successfully.

• Chickpeas are again a valid crop option with a number of varieties with improved ascochyta blight resistance, high yields and good adaptation now available to growers.
• Variety selection must be based on ascochyta blight pressure, yield and marketing opportunities, and understanding that disease management is critical to success.

• Chickpea variety selection must be based on ascochyta blight pressure, yield and marketing opportunities.
• If considering early sowing, it is essential to select a variety with excellent ascochyta blight resistance or ensure an excellent disease management strategy is implemented. 

• The first ascochyta blight resistant desi chickpea variety, Genesis 508™, is available to growers this year.
• A small-medium seeded kabuli variety, Genesis 090™, will be commercially available in 2006.
• Both varieties have been commercialised through Australian Agricultural Commodities (AAC).
• These varieties require fewer fungicide applications to manage ascochyta blight and much reduced risk.
• Each must be considered separately based on regional yield and quality.

• There appeared to be little difference in yield between applying fungicide and nil fungicide. 
• The fenugreek variety Power gave the best yield results as expected as Power is the variety for seed production and Might is a fodder variety.

• Although it was a dry year, the results highlighted significantly less ascochyta blight infection in Genesis 090, which is rated MS as compared to PBA Striker which is rated S.
• There was also significantly higher infection in the variety PBA Striker when Bixafen + Prothioconazole or Tebuconazole + Azoxystrobin were used after the first signs of infection compared to when they were used as a preventative spray. 

• Both varieties had similar grain yields (Genesis 090: 0.28 t/ha, PBA Striker: 0.26 t/ha) and no significantly different effect of fungicide treatment (see Table 3 in attached trial report summary). There was no evidence of an interaction between the fungicide and the variety.

• Despite a dry year with low grain yields, ascochyta blight was observed in all varieties, with stem breakages visible.
• However, there was significant variation between varieties and some newer breeding lines including CICA1454 ranked equal or better than Genesis 090 (see Table 2 in attached report).  
• Although there were significant differences between varieties with ascochyta blight infection, this did not equate to differences in grain yield.
• There was only a significant difference between fungicide treatments (see Table 3 in attached report). 

• Despite a dry year with low grain yields, ascochyta blight was observed in all varieties, with stem breakages visible. There was a significant interaction between variety and fungicide treatment. This showed some newer breeding lines including CICA1352, CICA1454, CICA1156 ranked equal or better than Almaz and Genesis 090 (see Table 2 in attached Trial report).
• Grain yields varied significantly, with a significant variety and treatment affect observed. Grain yield losses up to 36% were observed in the untreated (nil) plots (see Table 3 in attached Trial report). This also highlighted CICA1156, CICA1552, ‘C1’, and CICA1652 which ranked higher for yield than the highest named variety Almaz. In a pairwise analysis only CICA1652 was significantly higher than Almaz. 

• Significantly more ascochyta blight infection and lower grain yields were observed in PBA Striker (rated S) than Genesis090 (MS). Captan and Propiconazole treatments were also less effective in controlling ascochyta blight than the tebuconazole + Azoxystrobin and Bixafen + Prothioconazole, but both the Captan and Propiconazole treatments had less disease than the untreated plots. This did not equate to significantly different grain yields due to the dry season with low grain yields overall. 

• The treatments resulted in highly significant differences in nodulation assessments.  The best treatments included peat applied to the seed or Tagteam or Nodulator granules applied in the seed furrow.  No inoculation or applying the product Alosca in furrow produced very few nodules.  
• Grain yield was very low (<150 kg/ha) due to the dry season and poor establishment, therefore data has not been reported. 

• There is a benefit in inoculating chickpeas where there are limited rhizobia present in the soil. Granular inoculants present an opportunity to potentially improve nodulation under dry sowing conditions and assist with sowing logistics, with no reduction in nodulation or grain yield. It is important to understand how your seeding system may impact on efficacy of inoculants, including liquid placement, seed dressings and seed box. 

• Treatments which included Nodulaid peat and Nodulator or TagTeam granular at twice the recommended rate produced the greater number and highest weight of nodules.  Nodulator and TagTeam granular applied at recommended rates and the EasyRhiz liquid treatment produced similar outcomes for both variables.  The application of Alosca at both label and twice label rate produced very few nodules and therefore total nodule weight was the lowest of all commercial products evaluated.  There were no nodules produced in the nil treatments which confirms there was not a background population of chickpea rhizobia in the soil and highlights the importance of inoculating pulses such as chickpea.
• For further results and interpretation see attached trial report summary.

Chickpea ascochyta blight infection was low due to dry seasonal conditions, which were not conducive for high levels of disease infection at Hart, 2019. Harvestability, in terms of plant height, was not reduced where chickpea was intercropped with canola. However, intercropping chickpea with linseed in a mixed row arrangement decreased the plant height of chickpea. Grain yield of chickpea as a sole crop was greater than all intercropping treatments. Further work is required to determine if the costs of disease management, weed management and crop desiccation can be reduced by adopting mix species system.

• Grain yield was very low and variable in 2018 due to low soil pH at the site and water logging in part of the trial. The removal of phosphorus from the fertiliser significantly reduced plant biomass and showed a trend towards reduced grain yield. However, results should be treated with caution due to high variability in the trial.   

• Grain yields were generally low in 2018 due to dry seasonal conditions and frost events during the vegetative and reproductive stages. There was no yield response to the soil nutrition treatments on both soil types. All the treatments except all nutrient minus phosphorus resulted in significantly higher biomass than the nil on the swale.
• The dry growing season conditions may have reduced movement and uptake of the applied macro and micro-nutrients by the crop. Hence, results should be treated with caution.

Treatments were not significant on grain yield. Grain yields were very low in 2019 due to extremely dry seasonal conditions. The dry conditions may have restricted microbial growth, movement and uptake of the nutrients by the crop. Hence, results should be treated with caution.

• NDVI indicated that on the heavier soil types (bay 1- 4), the All – trace elements treatment had the highest growth and this was significant in bays 1,3 and 4.  On the sander soils in bays 6 to 10 there appeared to be a response to the addition of nitrogen with the All – N and Nil treatments having the lowest NDVI values.
• Biomass data was collected from bays 3, 5 and 9. There was a response to nutrients in bay 3 with the all nutrients treatment having the highest biomass and no nutrients treatment the lowest.  The All-N treatment also had low biomass in bay 1.  There were no significant differences for biomass in the sandier soil types however productivity from these bays was very low.   

• Autumn-sown chickpea had grain yields of up to 1.3t/ha c.f. with 0.2t/ha for spring sowing. Neelam was the highest yielding variety autumn sown.  

•  In contrast to long term trial results, the chickpea varieties and breeding lines did not have yield benefits from earlier sowing in 2018.  Several frost events during the flowering and podding phase caused significant flower and pod abortion, particularly in the earlier sown treatments which were further advanced in the reproductive phase. However, it is worth noting that grain yields were impacted by dry seasonal conditions and mice damage earlier in the season and hence, results should be interpreted with caution.
• All varieties and breeding lines had significant ascochyta blight (AB) infection in the early sown and irrigated treatment. Among the varieties and breeding lines, CICA1454 and CICA1352 showed significantly less AB symptoms than others, while PBA Striker and ‘C2’ had the most severe symptoms.  

• In contrast to long term trial results, the chickpea varieties and breeding lines did not have yield benefit from earlier sowing in 2018. Several frost events during flowering and podding caused significant flower and pod abortion, particularly in the earlier sown treatments which were further advanced in the reproductive phase. Hence, growers should consider long-term data and additional information when making varietal or agronomic decisions. Early sowing and irrigating with 20 mm of water increased establishment, early growth and flowering, and risk of frost damage. The performance of varieties and breeding lines were similar except ‘C1’and ‘C2’ which had lower biomass and grain yield than others.

Chickpeas were the most profitable crop sown in spring producing estimated returns up to $900/ha. In comparison, many varieties sown autumn failed to produce a return. The new early flowering, cold tolerance trait may further improve yield and stability in spring sowing, once incorporated into more broadly adapted breeding material. In contrast faba bean was the most profitable crop overall, producing a gross margin of up $2800/ha, from high yield and grain prices received in late 2019.

•  Due to extremely dry seasonal conditions and temperature events, grain yields were very low in 2018. The commercial varieties Kaniva, Genesis090, PBA Striker and Sonali yielded better than most breeding lines. Among the breeding lines, ‘CT1’ and ‘CT2’ had grain yields equivalent to Genesis090 and PBA Striker. 
   

The resulting time of sowing (TOS) information will be used to confirm and update current agronomic recommendations for chickpea in this region.

• Chickpea yields varied with variety, row spacing and seeding rate.
• Under the dry conditions of 2007, Genesis 509 sown at 35-45 seeds/m2 inn 44 cm or 66 cm row spacing’s performed best.

• As in 2007, dry seasonal conditions did not favor chickpea production in 2008 and consequently early maturity and low grain yields were observed.
• Ryegrass competition of 33 plants/m2 at maturity reduced grain yields of chickpeas by 48%, and 120 plants/m2 reduced grain yields by 82%.
• Genesis079 was the highest yielding variety and is well adapted to short season environments.
• These results confirm previous findings showing chickpeas as a poor competitor, and the unsuitability of control measures such as weed-wiping and crop-topping.

The choice of vigorous, leafy, nutritious forage crops available for low to medium rainfall environments to supply nutritious green feed to sheep during the winter and spring months continues to expand. Forage cereal crops provide feed during winter; vetch is useful from late winter into spring and forage brassicas provide from late spring into summer. To help decide which forage to grow from the broad range available, first plan the time of greatest need (time of year, duration), intention to harvest silage, hay or grain and the rotational requirements of the paddock in which forage is to be planted.

• Henley was the highest yielding variety across the 3 sites.
• Gairdner was the only variety to meet malt requirements at all three sites.

• 45Y22RR was the top performer across both sites, yielding at 120% of the site mean at Inverleigh and 109% at Westmere.
• The Mid and Mid to Late season varieties of Thumper, Hyola 555 & Crusher TT have performed consistently well over the past 3 seasons across a number of trials in the Lake Bolac area. Hyola 656 TT will be one to watch after showing promise at both SFS sites in 2012.
• Hyola 50 & Garnet conventional varieties have proved to be reliable performers over the past 4 years, regularly yielding 3t/ha and over.
• 45Y86 CL was the standout Clearfield variety in 2012, with Hyola 575 CL remaining a consistent performer over the past 2 years.

• Bannister and Echidna yielded significantly higher than Mitika and Yallara.
• Oats can provide another option in rotation and can be hay.
• Susceptible varieties of oats such as Mitika need to be monitored for red leather leaf

• Surface applied liming will only move to address subsurface acidity if pH(Ca) in the topsoil is kept greater than 5.5
• Surface applied lime movement is very slow and may take many years to treat subsurface acidity
• Check the plant back period for legumes if using sulphonyl urea herbicides as surface applied liming makes the pH level in the top 2.5 cm high and will affect its break down 

• Lime quality is affected mainly by its neutralising value and particle size and solubility plays a minor role affecting performance in the first 6 to 12 months
• A high quality lime has a NV above 90% and contains a high proportion of particle sizes less than 0.1 mm
• There are calculators available that can help growers compare the cost effectiveness of limes 

• Positive crop production responses still remain at Cadgee five years after amelioration treatments were applied.
• Application of clay improved establishment and flowering biomass, regardless of incorporation depth (shallow, 10 cm and spaded, 30 cm), compared to the control and the spaded lucerne treatments (see Fig. 1 in attached trial report).
• Grain yield response to clay application increased with the depth of incorporation, and were doubled in the spaded clay + Luc treatment compared to the control, adding 1.58 t/ha in 2018.
• Over the long term, this treatment has produced an additional 95 % grain (4.5 t/ha) since 2014 (four years grain data; Fig. 2). 
• Changes in soil chemical, hydrological and physical characteristics as a result of spading and lucerne and clay addition were the focus of 2019 soil measurements at the site.
• A full report detailing temporal trends and long term soil fertility changes will be released soon.
   

• Incorporating clay into the sand has led to yield increases that are improving with time.
• Yield response to clay application increased with the depth of incorporation; a cumulative increase of 0.74 t/ha (23%) over the control was achieved when clay was incorporated in the top 10 cm (Fig. 1 Shallow clay), increasing to 1.41 t/ha (44%) when the clay was incorporated to 30 cm (Fig. 1 Spading + clay).
• A similar response was achieved when 10 t/ha of Lucerne hay (organic matter (OM)) was spaded in, resulting in a 1.62 t/ha (50%) increase in yield (Fig. 1 Spading + OM).
• The combination of OM plus clay gave the best grain yield result in all years, with a cumulative 2.95 t/ha (92% increase) achieved across the 2014, 2015 and 2017 seasons (Fig. 1 Spading + Clay + OM).
• Spading alone led to cumulative decreases in yield of 0.39 t/ha (-12%), which is in contrast to results on Mallee sands, where the effect of spading has remained positive over time.
• Changes in soil chemical, hydrological, physical and biological characteristics as a result of clay and OM addition are the focus of 2018 soil measurements at the site.
• The response to deep disturbance and placement of OM and nutrition, in contrast to spading, is the focus of future research conducted by PIRSA at Murlong on the Eyre Peninsula in 2018.

A summary of the main results from the first season at the Moora trial are presented in Figures 1 and 2.  Due to technical issues, the trial was not seeded at the same time as the rest of the paddock, which was supposed to be used as an untreated control. For this reason, a comparison of the treatments to a control treatment without tillage and clay spreading is not available.  A statistically significant effect of tillage on early plant establishment was found when analysing the plant counts measured about four weeks after sowing (Figure 1, left). All the treatments with the off-set disc (in combination or not with clay spreading) had more plants per linear meter in comparison to the one-way plough treatments. This is likely due to uneven seeding depth following tillage with the one-way plough (deep tillage) compared to the shallower tillage with the off-set disc. Surprisingly, incorporation of subsoil clay at any given rate did not show any significant effect on early plant establishment although this result could be explained by the wetter than usual weather in April-May reducing the severity of soil water repellence.

Again, when looking at the tiller counts recorded 8 weeks after sowing (Figure 1, right) the addition of clay at different rates did not affect the number of tillers. However, the wheat growing in the one-way plough treatments overcame the initial delay in germination giving higher tiller number than those recorded in the treatments with the off-set disc (except for the treatment with 250 t/ha of clay). This trend continued at harvest, with the one-way plough treatments producing higher yields (4.5-4.6 t/ha on average) than the off-set disc treatments (4.1-4.3 t/ha on average) at any given rate of subsoil clay.

Due to the low rates of clay spreading and the low cost of the incorporation methods, all treatments provided a positive return of investments in the first year (ROI= ($/ha gain – $/ha total direct costs) / $/ha total direct costs), based on mean values in Table 1. Not surprisingly, the best ROI in the first year was obtained by the one-way plough treatment without clay spreading (1.42 $/ha), followed by the off-set disc without clay spreading (1.22 $/ha) and the treatments clay spread at 50 t/ha incorporated with one-way plough (1.17 $/ha). These estimates are indicative only, as indirect costs and interests on the initial capital investment are not included in the calculations. For more accurate estimates of ROI, yield results from multiple seasons and crops will be collected in the next 3 years.

 

A summary of the main results from the first season at the Moora trial are presented in Figures 1 and 2.  Due to technical issues, the trial was not seeded at the same time as the rest of the paddock, which was supposed to be used as an untreated control. For this reason, a comparison of the treatments to a control treatment without tillage and clay spreading is not available.  A statistically significant effect of tillage on early plant establishment was found when analysing the plant counts measured about four weeks after sowing (Figure 1, left). All the treatments with the off-set disc (in combination or not with clay spreading) had more plants per linear meter in comparison to the one-way plough treatments. This is likely due to uneven seeding depth following tillage with the one-way plough (deep tillage) compared to the shallower tillage with the off-set disc. Surprisingly, incorporation of subsoil clay at any given rate did not show any significant effect on early plant establishment although this result could be explained by the wetter than usual weather in April-May reducing the severity of soil water repellence.

Again, when looking at the tiller counts recorded 8 weeks after sowing (Figure 1, right) the addition of clay at different rates did not affect the number of tillers. However, the wheat growing in the one-way plough treatments overcame the initial delay in germination giving higher tiller number than those recorded in the treatments with the off-set disc (except for the treatment with 250 t/ha of clay). This trend continued at harvest, with the one-way plough treatments producing higher yields (4.5-4.6 t/ha on average) than the off-set disc treatments (4.1-4.3 t/ha on average) at any given rate of subsoil clay.

Due to the low rates of clay spreading and the low cost of the incorporation methods, all treatments provided a positive return of investments in the first year (ROI= ($/ha gain – $/ha total direct costs) / $/ha total direct costs), based on mean values in Table 1. Not surprisingly, the best ROI in the first year was obtained by the one-way plough treatment without clay spreading (1.42 $/ha), followed by the off-set disc without clay spreading (1.22 $/ha) and the treatments clay spread at 50 t/ha incorporated with one-way plough (1.17 $/ha). These estimates are indicative only, as indirect costs and interests on the initial capital investment are not included in the calculations. For more accurate estimates of ROI, yield results from multiple seasons and crops will be collected in the next 3 years.

The topsoil sand at Yanda was severely repellent (Figure 1, left), as measured by the molarity of ethanol droplet test (MED). Clay spreading and tillage (either combined or separated) significantly reduced the severity of water repellency. When the subsoil clay was not incorporated by tillage or was incorporated using an off-set disc, the soil water repellency generally decreased with an increasing amount of subsoil clay. However, low-repellency (MED<1) was obtained only at rates over 150 t/ha of subsoil.

In contrast, spading (either at standard speed of the tractor or at half speed) was the most effective method for the alleviation of soil water repellency. In these treatments, the MED values were completely reduced to zero (non-repellent soil) and, most importantly, this was achieved independently from the presence, or not, of clay-rich subsoil. The significant reduction of the soil water repellency however did not convert to better plant establishment measured five weeks after sowing (Figure 1, Right).  This result could be explained by the wetter than usual weather recorded during April-May 2016 that reduced the impact of the soil water repellency on plant establishment. Nevertheless, tiller counts collected five weeks after plant counts showed a significant effect of tillage on the number of tillers. In particular, the spader treatments (standard and ½ speed) had the most tillers while the control had the fewest.

This trend was repeated with the barley grain yields at harvest time (Figure 2). Both tillage and rate of clay spreading, significantly improved grain yield in comparison to the control treatments (no clay and no tillage). The lowest yield were recorded in the control treatments and in the off-set tillage only (no clay) with an average of 1.41 t/ha and 1.36 t/ha respectively. The shallow tillage (or incorporation) using off-set discs did not yield significantly differently from the treatments with no incorporation at any given rate of subsoil clay. Clay spreading at 250 t/ha followed by spading at standard speed produced the highest yield on average (2.93 t/ha). Nonetheless, all treatments with spading (standard and ½ speed) were able to yield over 2.5 t/ha, even without the addition of subsoil clay (Figure 2). 

Field observations showed that the trial was also affected by frost, which explained the lower than expected yields. Head samples were collected in early November 2016 from all the treatments (except spading at ½ speed) for the assessment of frost induced sterility (FIS= number of sterile florets / total number of florets) and the results are shown in Figure 3.

The results on FIS showed that frost damage might be one of the main reasons of low yields and responsible of the large yield differences between treatments. The control treatments and the off-set treatment (no clay) had over 60% frost induced sterility. Even though increasing amounts of subsoil clay significantly reduced FIS (Figure 3c), the treatments with no incorporation or with incorporation by off-set discs still recorded FIS values above 50%. Spading was the most effective treatment to significantly reduce frost damage to below 40%, regardless of the presence or not of subsoil clay (Figure 3a and b).

Spading was the most successful treatment in this first year of the trial at Yanda. Most importantly, spading was able to produce the highest yields and significantly reduce the frost damage regardless of the addition subsoil clay. This was particularly evident when estimating the simple return of investments on the first year of the trial (ROI= ($/ha gain – $/ha total direct costs) / $/ha total direct costs), based on the mean values presented in Table 3. Because of the high crop-specific costs with barley at Yanda (500 $/ha) and the yield reduction due to frost, spading alone at standard speed was the only treatment that gave a positive ROI on the first year (+0.4 $/ha) followed by negative ROI with spading at ½ speed (-0.18 $/ha) and the control (-0.35 $/ha). These estimates are indicative only, as indirect costs and interests on the initial capital investment are not included in the calculations. For more accurate estimates of ROI, yield results from multiple seasons and crops will be collected in the next 3 years.

 

Conventionaland TT canola and many pulse crops are very sensitive to traces of sulfonylurea (Glean, Logran or Ally) remaining in the boomspray (tank, hoses and filters). It is recommended to clean out the boomspray using the recommended procedures with bleach. However, if a sensitive crop (such as regular canola) is to be sprayed after using one of the SU herbicides then it is suggested to also clean the boomspray with an EC formulated herbicide or insecticide.

• Due to unreliable crop establishment, accurate data could not be generated.
• Oil data was however obtained which is given in the following table. 

• DPI-Horsham are currently breeding Clearfield® tolerant Juncea canola varieties
• The Clearfield® tolerant varieties express a high level of tolerance to recommended rates of the imidazolinone herbicides.
• These Clearfield® tolerant varieties will most likely be commercially available in 2009.

• Janz significantly outyielded both Jnz CL and Declic.
• Janz CL was also significantly higher yielding than the Declic. 

• Clearfield chemistry significantly increased brome grass control, at this timing compared to the SU's.
• Clearfield offers control, not suppression.
• There are many factors that must be weighed up before deciding upon the weapon of choice for brome grass control.

Grain yield losses of up to 40% can be caused by clethodim at particular rates and timings. Early application timings were the best to avoid crop damage. Variation does exist between herbicide tolerant crop types (Conventional, Clearfield and TT) and their level of sensitivity to clethodim

• The greatest height reduction was achieved by the Cycocel and Moddus in combination which included an application at the start of stem elongation (GS 30).
• Reduced height was correlated wtih an increase in lodging resistance and was achived without penalty; there was a minor trend for yield increases with PGR treatments.
• Cycocel was associated with a minor reduction in screening >3.2mm.

Mouldboard ploughing changed the soil structure, inverting the top 30cm of soil and creating a new profile including soil pH. Interestingly there was also a pH response to deep 
ripping.

• Break crops faced a range of tough environmental conditions in the Mallee in 2015 including multiple frost and heat shock events.
• Timely rainfall in April and hence early sowing resulted in excellent biomass production with most crop options producing on average more than 2 t DM/ha and several break crop options producing greater than 2.5 t DM/ha.
• The highest grain yields tended to be crops with the quickest maturity such as lentils (0.73 t/ha), vetch (0.64 t/ha) and field peas (0.63 t/ha).
• High value crops such as lentils and vetch were highly profitable due to both excellent prices and reasonable grain yields. (v) Break crop productivity and profitability was very different between common Mallee soil types.

• Break crops faced a range of tough environmental conditions in the Mallee in 2015 including multiple frost and heat shock events.
• Timely rainfall in April and hence early sowing resulted in excellent biomass production with most crop options producing on average more than 2 t DM/ha and several break crop options producing greater than 2.5 t DM/ha.
• The highest grain yields tended to be crops with the quickest maturity such as lentils (0.73 t/ha), vetch (0.64 t/ha) and field peas (0.63 t/ha). 
• High value crops such as lentils and vetch were highly profitable due to both excellent prices and reasonable grain yields.
• Break crop productivity and profitability was very different between common Mallee soil types.