To evaluate the impact of desiccant application timing on yield, grain quality and economics.

There was no significant difference in discolouration, leaf drop or stem snapping between any treatment and the Untreated. 

Chickpea grain yield was very low at this site. There was no significant impact from any treatment on yield. There was a small but significant impact on yield between the two harvest timings but this may simply be due to harvest conditions or header setup. 

There were no significant differences in protein or grain moisture between the Untreated and any treatment applied at Timing 1. There were small but significant differences in protein and moisture from application at Timing 2. Both Crucial and Gramoxone alone recorded significantly increased grain protein compared to the Untreated (increased by 0.9-1%). Crucial + Ally recorded significantly higher grain moisture than the Untreated with Gramoxone recording significantly lower, both by ~1%. Grain moisture at the second harvest as expected was significantly lower than at the first harvest (6 v 8%). 

Visual grading of the grain showed little impact from treatments or timing. Crucial alone at Timing 1 had significantly reduced mature grain and increased damaged grain compared to the Untreated. There were no differences in shrivelled grain between treatments at Timing 1 and no difference in any visual grading category at Timing 2. Shrivelled grain levels were significantly higher from Timing 1 application but at levels less than 1%. 

Seed germination was extremely low with no sample reaching 50% germination. There was no indication of any treatment reducing germination compared to the Untreated. 

Because of the extended dry conditions and very rapid plant maturation, the data from this trial is considered to be of marginal reliability. In this situation, application of desiccant treatments at ~70% grain maturity had little or no impact on yield, grain quality or visual grain assessment. Although this was an encouraging result, the rapid maturing of the crop meant timing 1 was only ~8 days earlier than currently recommended.