| Researcher(s) |
Bill Davoren (CSIRO) Gurjeet Gill (CSIRO) Sam Kleemann (UoA) Rick Llewellyn (UoA) Therese McBeath (CSIRO) Christopher Preston (UoA) |
|---|---|
| Year(s) | 2015 |
| Contributor | Mallee Sustainable Farming Inc. |
| Trial location(s) |
Karoonda, SA
|
To test pre-emergence herbicide options for brome grass on Mallee sand.
| Lead research organisation | N/A |
|---|---|
| Host research organisation | N/A |
| Trial funding source | GRDC MSF00003 |
| Related program |
Maintaining profitable farming systems with retained stubble |
| Acknowledgments |
This work was funded under the GRDC Stubble Initiative in partnership with MSF. Thanks to site hosts Peter and Hannah Loller, and Willie Shoobridge and Damian Mowat for additional technical support |
| Other trial partners | Not specified |
| Crop type | Cereal (Grain): Wheat |
|---|---|
| Treatment type(s) |
|
| Trial type | Experimental |
| Trial design | Replicated |
| Sow rate or Target density | April: 49 crop plants/m2 May: 21 crop plants/m2 |
|---|---|
| Sow date | Not specified |
| Harvest date | Not specified |
| Plot size | Not specified |
| Plot replication | Not specified |
| Herbicide |
The trial used Kord wheat and compared: 1. Trifluralin (control) at standard local rate (1.5 L/ha); 2. Trifluralin + Metribuzin (1.5 L/ha + 150 g/ha); 3. Trifluralin + Metribuzin + post emergence Avadex Xtra (1.5 L/ha + 150 g/ha + 2.0 L/ha); 4. Trifluralin + Avadex Xtra (1.5 L/ha + 2.0 L/ha); 5. Sakura (118 g/ha); 6. Sakura + Avadex Xtra (118 g/ha + 3.2 L/ha); 7. Sakura + Metribuzin (118 g/ha + 150 g/ha). The herbicides were tested under marginal soil moisture conditions at seeding that resulted in poor crop emergence (30 April seeding: 49 crop plants/m2; 20 May seeding: 21 crop plants/m2) that led to patchy competition from the crop. |
| Other trial notes |
Brome grass is the most costly weed to grain production in the Mallee region despite herbicide resistance being relatively low. For growers looking to reduce reliance on Group B herbicides, pre-emergence herbicides can be an important part of brome management strategies but trifluralin has limited efficacy. Previous pre-emergence herbicide trials at the MSF Karoonda site have shown the potential for greater than 75% brome control, but also the potential for variability under different early-season conditions. |
SILO weather estimates sourced from https://www.longpaddock.qld.gov.au/silo/
Jeffrey, S.J., Carter, J.O., Moodie, K.B. and Beswick, A.R. (2001). Using spatial interpolation to
construct a comprehensive archive of Australian climate data , Environmental Modelling and Software, Vol
16/4, pp 309-330. DOI: 10.1016/S1364-8152(01)00008-1.
