Researcher(s) |
Michael Lamond Kate Witham |
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Year(s) | 2021 - 2022 |
Contributor | SLR Agriculture |
Trial location(s) |
Ballidu, WA
Beacon, WA Bodallin, WA Esperance, WA Hines Hill, WA Holt Rock, WA Latham, WA Meckering, WA Muntadgin, WA Pingaring, WA York, WA Yuna, WA |
This trial was designed as a scoping study to investigate various aspects of long coleoptile wheat relative to WA farming systems for eventual grower integration. However, this report outlines both observations as well as extensive data that was collected and analysed, despite the original aim of the trail to be more investigatory than data-driven in nature.
The main area of research was investigating the novel Rht18 gene in wheat, which allows for an elongated coleoptile: a protective sheath around the emerging shoot from a seed. Mace/Scepter typically have 40-60 mm coleoptiles (depending on environmental factors). New varieties developed by CSIRO with the Rht18 gene can extend to 12-140 mm by comparison.
This 2-year project has assessed long coleoptile wheat applications to farming systems in WA across emergence, establishment, weed competition, rhizoctonia impacts, herbicide interactions and yield. Extension across sites has aided in discussions with growers and areas requiring further study for integration to grower systems. While investigatory in nature, 2022 trials outlined in this report aimed to be more data driven in nature than trials conducted in 2021.
The two-year scoping study aimed to achieve the following objectives for investigate various aspects of long coleoptile wheat relative to WA farming systems for eventual grower integration:
• Extend long coleoptile findings and discussions to growers across agricultural regions of Western Australia
• Quantify differences in emergence from deep and shallow sown varieties with varying coleoptile lengths.
• Investigate emergence through furrow fill from wind and rain events.
• Investigate emergence from uneven soil platforms, such as from deep-ripping
• Investigate emergence through both low and high soil temperatures.
• Explore biomass and vigour differences between varieties with and without the Rht18 gene.
• Quantify differences in annual ryegrass competition and wheat vigour interactions with grass weeds.
• Explore herbicide interactions across depths of sowing to investigate crop safety and ways of adjusting/changing IBS and EPE herbicides.
• Explore rhizoctonia wheat root infection between depths of sowing.
• Analyse grain yield of various varieties and coleoptile lengths, including Rht18 wheat.
Overall, there was a positive relationship with coleoptile length and wheat emergence in both 2021 and 2022 trials, where Halberd, Rht13 variety Magenta-13, and Rht18 varieties Mace-18 and Yitpi-18 consistently had 95-100% emergence when sown at depth. Shorter coleoptile varieties had significantly less plants emerge by comparison, such as Scepter (60-75% emergence from depth), and Mace (50-70% emergence from depth). Emergence was significantly faster for Mace-18 compared to varieties such as Scepter and Calibre when sown at depth (120 mm) into soil temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius. Mace-18’s coleoptile elongated twice as much as Calibre’s at 8 DAS.
The 2022 Muntadgin trial exhibited how longer coleoptile wheat had significantly more plants emerged and emergence at faster rates than shorter coleoptile varieties (100mm+ sowing) across uneven soil platforms following soil amelioration.
Rhizoctonia was prevalent in most shallow-sown plant samples (sown 35 mm dry) compared to deep sown wheat (100 mm into moisture) which exhibited very few spear-tipping symptoms in various 2021 trials, and at Ballidu in 2022.
More vigorous Rht18 varieties such as Mace-18 had significantly less annual ryegrass weeds in deep sown plots compared to Mace sown deep across three assessed locations (2022). Shallow-sown Mace-18 was more vigorous than Mace, also leading to weed out competition in conventional sowing situations. In Ballidu, deep-sown mace had significantly higher weed infestation (nearly three times the weed counts) than Mace-18 sown deep.
Overall, there was the same yield result (100-200 kg/ha difference) between shallow sown Mace and Mace-18 at 5 locations. At three of the five locations, Mace-18 yielded better than Mace when sown deep in 2022.
There were few differences in emergence and yield where various IBS and EPE herbicides were applied to shallow and deep sown wheat. Long coleoptile wheat was shown to improve crop safety where trifluralin was applied IBS, with 90 mm sown wheat, demonstrating reduced coleoptile thickening and greater seedling vigour across multiple treatments compared to 35 mm sown plots. Field walk discussions were made around exploiting the absence of nodal roots with pre-emergent herbicides when sowing deep, as mobile pre-emergent herbicides (Sakura, Luximax and Overwatch) may cause greater crop damage when washed into the root zone of shallow sown crops.
Lead research organisation |
SLR Agriculture |
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Host research organisation | N/A |
Trial funding source | GRDC SLR2103-001RTX |
Related program | N/A |
Acknowledgments | N/A |
Other trial partners | Not specified |
Crop type | Cereal (Grain): Wheat |
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Treatment type(s) |
|
Trial type | Experimental |
Trial design | Randomised,Replicated,Blocked |
Sow rate or Target density | 175 plants/m2 |
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Sow date | Not specified |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | Not specified |
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Sow date | Please see trial report for details |
Harvest date | Unknown |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | Not specified |
---|---|
Sow date | Please see report |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | 175 plants/m2 |
---|---|
Sow date | Not specified |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | Not specified |
---|---|
Sow date | Not specified |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | Not specified |
---|---|
Sow date | Not specified |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | Not specified |
---|---|
Sow date | Please see report |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | 175 plants/m2 |
---|---|
Sow date | Not specified |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | 175 plants/m2 |
---|---|
Sow date | Not specified |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | 175 plants/m2 |
---|---|
Sow date | Not specified |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | Not specified |
---|---|
Sow date | Please see report |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
Sow rate or Target density | 175 plants/m2 |
---|---|
Sow date | Not specified |
Harvest date | Not specified |
Plot size | Not specified |
Plot replication | 4 |
Plot blocking | 4 |
Plot randomisation | yes |
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.