Dessication and windrowing accelerated the rate of ripening of a lodged barley crop by 2 weeks, without affecting yield and grain quality.

Trinexapac-ethyl, either one or two applications, and Prosaro resulted in yield increases over the control.

Good performance from Oxford and a few of the newer varities not that commonly grown. Spartacus CL is a definite improvement over Scope CL.

The wet winter and subsequent waterlogged conditions through June and July resulted in reduced tillering, particularly in the earlier maturing varities, and overall yield performance was reduced.

• Applications of gypsum and lime did not increase canola emergence in 2015.
• This result was expected as May rainfall was not sufficient to induce slaking of the soil.

Establishment was highest where stubble was removed, however sufficient plants were established for a commercial crop where stubble remained standing rather than laying on the ground.

Conditions post spreading of the seed were perfect for establishment - seed spread onto moist soil, 30 mm of rain and cool temperates post rainfall - and a similar level of success may not be achievable evry season.

No product or timing had significant effects on crop height.

Conventionals and RRs were the highest yielders.

Conventionals and RRs were the highest yielders.

Crop was sown as part of a rotational trial, examining the effects of Group B residues on the following maize crop.

DBA Vittaroi had higher grain protein than DBA Aurora under similar N management

Both varieties lodged where a PGR was not applied

Sowing rate did not affect yield or grains per head.

Graind per head averaged 2.1g or 2.1 t/ha per 100 heads/m2

High yielding, but failed to make the required protein levels. The PGR was the only treatment to be statistically different due to the lodging in almost all other treatments.

Data was highly variable so results should be viewed with caution.

A combination of fertiliser inputs and irrigation can rapidly breakdownincorporated cereal stubble and allow sowing 4 weeks later. Getting the balance of fertiliser, in particular N rates, to ensure rapid breakdown, but creating neither N deficiency or excessive N remains elusive.

Measuring soil organic carbon following incorporation is giving mixed results as to the ability to increase soil OC via incorporation with fertiliser

Burning the stubble gave greater yield and oil content

Either moly treatments had any increase in yield or nodulation. Tisue tests aso showed increase moly levels but the control was above deficiency threshhold.

No product had significant effects on crop height.

A plant population of 25 plants/m2 yielded higher than 15 plants/m2.

7.5 inch rows yielded higher than 15 inch rows.

Samira continues to be the best released variety.

Samira , although not statistically significant, was the highest yielding released variety.

Despite the wet year, little folir disease was detected in the trial, therefore the foliar fingicides tested had no effect on yield.

No fungicide treatment gave any yield benefit or extension of “green-ness” of the canopy.

The dry early winter and spring resulted in low disease pressure.

Variety response to the fungicides tested differed, with Commander having increased yields, but no yield increase with LaTrobe.

Know the disease rating of the varieties you grow.

Preparing a Nitrogen Budget is essential, but there are two key factors, estimates of yield and mineralisation, that do affect the risk of achieving DR1

Nitrogen management is the key. Understanding the mineralisation contribution to the N budget, N required per tonne of grain and accurate yield estimates has been the key to successfully growing irrigated DR1 durum wheat.

Later sowing did not affect yield and improved grain protein.

The key influences on profitability are commodity prices, cost of water and proximity to market.

DR1 quality can be achieved under irrigated conditions, but N supply must meet crop requirement to do so

Yields were not significantly different between the lines and varieties tested but there was differences in lodging resistance

Response in barley seems to be variety dependent.

Early plant height reduction was noted in all varieties treated with Moddus Evo but had no effect on lodging.

Commander barley saw a yield increase with the use of Moddus Evo, but LatTrobe did not respond.

Off label high rates of triazole fungicides have to produced any PGR effects to date.

Trial average was 6.3 t/ha

The trial ws affected by lodging as a result of 50 mm of rain and high winds in mid September

Spartacus CL was the highest yielding variety at 7.65 t/ha

The trial did not receive a fungicide application, and did have high levels of leaf disease (SFNB and to a lesser degree scald). However higher levels of leaf disease  and loss of green leaf did not necessarily result in yield loss.

• An unregistered product was found that reduced plant height and lodging but did so at the cost of yield.
• Rates of the PGR need to be tested to determine if lower rates can achieve a crop height reduction with no impact on yield.
• Timing of a PGR application appears to be at green bud stage for the effective reduction in plant height.

• Wider row spacing will decrease yield but the decrease was not significant until large changes were made.
• Canola yields prove to be stable despite different plant populations but seasonal differences could change the outcome.

• Trial yields averaged 4.03 t/ha
• The performance of the various herbicide groups ranged from 3.2 t/ha  for the triazine tolerant varieties, 4.5 t/ha for the Clearfields, 4.6 t/ha for the conventionals and 4.8 t/ha for the Roundup Ready varieties.
• The early-mid to mid maturity varieties tended to be the highest yielding from an April 18th sowing.

Irrigated durum wheat can meet DR1 specification

The nitrogen requirement is approximately 50 kg N/t 

Growing durum wheat on a pulse stubble has both disease and nitrogen management benefits

No PGR tested had any effect at reducing lodging

Excessive vegetative growth and rainfall resulted in all plots lodging, making measurement of plant height impossible without causing damage to the plants.

 

Bannister had the highest grain yields with 9.00 t/ha.

Grazing did impact on yield in Bannister, but not Durack or Yallara.

Additional N above the control did not increase grain yields. Based on the trial results, Bannister nitrogen requirement was 25 kg N/t, whereas Yallara and Durack required 35 kg N/t.

Dry matter harvested (simulated grazing) at around GS31 ranged between 0.81 and 0.99 t/ha (NS)

Population had no effect on yield. Populations as low as 130 plants/m2 had similar yields to that of 180 plants/m2.

Plant establishment varies greatly with conditions post sowing. The long term average for cereals at the ICC Trial Block is 70%, but colder soil temperatures and soil moisture can see establishment fall to 50%.

Irrigation in spring did not improve yield or grain quality of the chickpea and lentil varieties tested

Drainage was the key to preventing crop damage rather than irrigation timing

 

Drainage rather and irrigation technology was the key to maximising yields

Drainage is the key to successful irrigated pulses. The subsurface drip irrigation without beds resulted in prolonged soil waterlogging which impacted establishment and plant survival in spring.

Fertiliser treatments aimed at increasing phosphorus efficiency did not improve yield but the trial site is not responsive to P.

Added potassium did not see any increase in yield, once again the site has adequate K supply (> 600 ppm Kcolwell).

Copper applied as a foliar spray at booting resulted in decreased yields demonstrating the potential toxic effects an excessive supply of a particular trace element can create.

Trial yields averaged 8.5 t/ha

LPB Trojan was the highest yielding variety at 10.25 t/ha.

Mid-late maturity was the predominant maturity in the top 20 highest yielding varieties.

Farmers learn from other farmers.  They like to see how technologies, innovation and systems changes are implemented on farm and hear from the farmers about the challenges and successes in order to help them see how they can implement the changes in their own system.

Case studies are an ideal way to showcase successful farm systems and changes to systems.

The Kerang discussion group said “There is a huge amount of knowledge in this room how do we capture it?” Members were keen to learn from other irrigators, especially those successfully managing the volatility within the industry.

Regardless of the changes being made on farm, the benefits people were seeking were common: better use of water, flexibility in the farming system and people able to work smarter, not harder. 

Change on farm is constant, all farmers we spoke to were continuously adapting to the short and long term changes in their operating environment.

All farmers were considering a combination of on-farm and off farm data when making decisions on investment or changes on farm. All stressed the importance of researching to ensure that you get the right irrigation system for your farm.

Key learning from this focus paddock was you can’t fix a chemical problem with a physical solution. We need to invest the time and money in investigating the problem and understanding the soil constraints present in the paddock before investing in solutions. Sodicity was an issue and should be the first problem addressed when trying to improve the performance of soils within the paddock.

• A local Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) and Field Applied Research (FAR) Australia research trial has shown that higher planting densities in irrigated faba beans are correlated to higher yields. Faba beans are not regularly grown in local irrigation systems, so in 2022, a demonstration was sown to test and discuss the results with the Riverine Plains Irrigation Discussion Group.

• The site received very high levels of rainfall (decile 10) and did not require irrigation.  The high rainfall caused severe disease and waterlogging, which dramatically reduced podding and yield potential. The highest yield of 0.98t/ha was the paddock treatment, Amberley sown at 26 plants/m2.

• Farmers were interested in the gross margin performance of beans compared to other irrigated crops.  Economic analysis of the 2022 season showed that faba beans in the region were less profitable and in some cases unprofitable compared to canola and wheat. This was mainly due to disease impacting faba bean yields. Even though faba beans can have good returns, there is a risk of low or negative returns in high rainfall years.

• Dry matter measurements indicate that between 134kg N/ha and 190kg N/ha was fixed by the faba bean crop, which will benefit the next two to three years’ crop production. The value of 190kgN/ha at current urea prices is $413/ha.

The growers were very impressed with the 30% increase in yield over the traditional winter variety.

Additional resources captured for this growers - https://grdc.com.au/news-and-media/audio/podcast/grower-insights-on-grazing-crops-under-irrigation

• In wet and cold conditions, grazing irrigated wheat and canola will require more intensive management, and a stock containment area would be helpful remove stock from paddock if water logging conditions are predicted. Monitor livestock growth rates and feed test grazing crops
• A more even grazing was obtained by crash grazing a large mob of sheep on a small area compared to a small mob of sheep on a large area.
• Sow the crop early with sufficient seeding rates to establish desired plant density in the vicinity of 150plants/m2 wheat and 30 plants/m2 canola and sow a variety suited to your environment.
• Remove stock prior to wheat growth stage 31 and canola two weeks prior to stem elongation.
• Feed test grazing crops to identify any deficiencies or toxicities and provide additional roughage to compliment the grazing crop.

In the coming season growers are again planning to plant maize and will aim to sow earlier and include shorter season varieties in the plantings where possible.

- Although this trial wasn’t executed exactly as planned due to weather there were still some good to be drawn out of it.
- Soil testing is critical prior to planting a durum crop to avoid under or over application of fertilisers.
- When applying fertiliser to target 7+ tonne crop, it is important you have the water required to meet this yield commitment. As seen in this project, when top dressing with these larger amounts of nitrogen, the water use of these crops increases dramatically with the crop drawing from deeper and harder over the same period of time as crop with less N applied. 

The 2021 season was a wet winter which allowed for optimal growing conditions and did not allow for the “winter drought” environment to exist.

We noted that there was no difference between the Autumn waterings on the overhead system.

There was a yield decrease in the area that had water applied in the surface system. The area that was watered had a yield impact due to the water logging of the soil.

The ability to apply a smaller amount of water with the overhead allowed the crop to not be negatively affected compared to the surface which logged the soil and impacted yield potential.

Growers look at the long-range forecast to decide if they should apply water in their surface system, growers utilise the control of their overheads and water up canola to ensure sufficient establishment of canola.

The 2021 season was a wet winter which allowed for optimal growing conditions and did not allow for the “winter drought” environment to exist.

We noted that there was no difference between the Autumn waterings on the overhead system.

There was a yield decrease in the area that had water applied in the surface system. The area that was watered had a yield impact due to the water logging of the soil.

The ability to apply a smaller amount of water with the overhead allowed the crop to not be negatively affected compared to the surface which logged the soil and impacted yield potential.

Growers look at the long-range forecast to decide if they should apply water in their surface system, growers utilise the control of their overheads and water up canola to ensure sufficient establishment of canola.

• No significant differences were recorded from the addition of zinc, copper, and manganese. However, when removing large grain yields there will be large levels of removal from the soil. This needs to be replaced to avoid over mining the soils.
• Nitrogen is still he major element which controls yield and grain protein. Need to ensure that the crop is fed to the yield potential to maximise both.
• Know your starting base of nitrogen within the soil is important to determine nitrogen fertiliser rates. When we have Urea at over $1500/t you want to be using it strategically.

From the addition of nitrogen at high rates, we have found that yield and grain quality can be influenced. There is also a threshold where nitrogen can be overdone. Based on the results from this demonstration, it appeared that all treatments with a GS37 application of N had a lower test weight as well as higher level of screenings and protein. In most instances this was a significant difference.

The best overall economic return form the use of nitrogen was 200kg/ha applied following seeding, then a top-up 100kg/ha at GS30. Giving a total application of 300kg urea. 

There is much to be learned and optimised in canola agronomy in Tasmania. With good infrastructure in place for irrigated cropping, the Tasmanian midlands hold great capacity for improved canola yields.

Key takeaways from this season and this study are muted yet we can still ascertain a few key learnings.

Long periods of waterlogging impact plants capacity to uptake nitrogen, inability to get on to the crop and deliver nitrogen early enough may have impacted overall yield despite the arial applications.

Management decisions are limited in these conditions, the use of aerial spreading is particularly useful in delicate soils that won’t recover from machinery damage.

Compounding factors in Severely wet years with high rainfall in critical growth times and chemical input windows all impact crop health and weed management, as well as nitrogen.

Following a lucerne crop, the crop was responsive to additional nitrogen inputs. With a background soil nitrogen level of 66kg N/ha, we were able to maximise yield with only the addition N. We saw a significant improvement in yield with the application of 46kg N/ha, however, applications above this were insignificant.

The addition of nitrogen also influenced grain quality. The most dramatic response was the increase in grain screenings with the increasing rates as well as the increasing grain protein with the increased rates of nitrogen.

We struggled to find any standout significant differences with the application timings. Whilst not significant, the plots that received nitrogen at GS00 and GS31 did appear to perform better and showed greater levels of vigour.

GPR are a tool that can be used to manipulate the canopy of a cereal crop to reduce the risk of lodging and head
loss. There was no benefit from applying PGR’s in this circumstance but given more favourable seasonal conditions
and a higher yielding crop benefits in harvestability and yield may have been observed.

Overall the durum trial showed no significant yield or protein changes from the application of PGRs at Z31. It showed
the difference in variety height suggesting that Mataroi is a good candidate for PGR application to reduce lodging in
a situation where soil constraints are not limiting. PGR applied to Vittaroi showed a ‘slight’ increase in protein and
test weight almost pushing it into DR2 grade.

• Drone application of beneficial insects and ViVUS® Max was demonstrated as an alternative to using a plane or helicopter.
• ViVUS® Max could be considered to be a viable option for the control of heliothis.  If it was also applied via overhead irrigation 2-3 applications of ViVUS® Max could be done for the same cost as a single application of Zeal. 
• At sites with a low Two Spotted Mite pressure (Coleambally and Tocumwal) the beneficial insects did control the mites at an equivalent level to Zeal or Abamectin.
• At the high Two Spotted Mite pressure site (Cooma), the trial had to be terminated as the beneficial insects were not able to adequately control the mites.
• No difference in yield was found between the conventional and IPM blocks at Tocumwal and Coleambally.

• Drone application of beneficial insects and ViVUS® Max was demonstrated as an alternative to using a plane or helicopter.
• ViVUS® Max could be considered to be a viable option for the control of heliothis.  If it was also applied via overhead irrigation 2-3 applications of ViVUS® Max could be done for the same cost as a single application of Zeal. 
• At sites with a low Two Spotted Mite pressure (Coleambally and Tocumwal) the beneficial insects did control the mites at an equivalent level to Zeal or Abamectin.
• At the high Two Spotted Mite pressure site (Cooma), the trial had to be terminated as the beneficial insects were not able to adequately control the mites.
• No difference in yield was found between the conventional and IPM blocks at Tocumwal and Coleambally.

Additional N was applied to the entire area during the season, until the 3rd week of January.  The nitrogen level still continued to fall below the desirable range from Reuter & Robinson (1997) even with these applications, with a further decrease observed past the end of January.  This indicates that additional applications of late season N may have been required.

Additional P and Zn was applied to the unlimited strip in both late November and December.  Given this the P level still continued to appear marginal into January.

As the K levels in the plant appeared to be dropping in mid January additional K was applied to the crop.  Following this application the drop in K continued in the plant tissue, although it could be assumed that without this late K application the drop in K may have been to a greater extent.

Despite the tissue tests indicating nutrient requirements, no increase in yield was obtained bny applying additional applied nutrients

- Soil test, potential large savings in inputs costs against the small cost of deep N testing

- The results from the focus paddock aligned with the results of the Optimising Irrigated Grains research

 

 

• Short season crops like mungbeans (90days) cannot suffer any setbacks, such as poor drainage.
• One metre spacing was too wide formungbeans. The plant population was too low for a plant with poor stem strength. The crop fell into the furrows and late summer rains reduced grain quality.
• Strong, standing stubble is essential for mungbeans. The volume of lodged barley stubble in furrows restricted drainage to the detriment of mungbean crop, and barley grain on the ground contaminated the mungbean sample.
• Drainage is king. Clean paddocks and furrows are critical in surface irrigated systems.
• Maintaining winter crop stubble provided a good mouse breeding environment.
• Yields of 3 t/ha are possible for mungbeans in a favourable year and 2 t/ha crops were achieved in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation district.

At this stage, the risk of poor establishment in the crop, in this case maize, after the sub-soil manuring is a major barrier to farmers adopting this practice.  Farmers require more certainty on how to implement the practice change to ensure no negative impact on the first crop following the amelioration.  More information is required about the benefits in subsequent years.

It would be beneficial to have a soil specialist advising on the soils that would benefit from amelioration, as well as the timing and implementation of the practice.  In this focus paddock, the low lying nature of the site has made it prone to waterlogging, so drainage may need to be addressed as well.

The paddock has various amendments applied at depth, surface and incorporated, after visually not noticing any differences throughout the growing season in any year, soil tests were conducted to understand what was going on in the paddock. While the yield did not vary, the area that had Chicken Litter strip tilled was able to maintain a higher level of Nitrogen in the soil, this did not alter yield response though.

When choosing an area to ameliorate you need to be sure you are targeting low performing areas to see any financial return on the time and amendment costs. Some soils are achieving capacity through crop type, therefore focus on the areas within your farm that are under performing.

While there was no significant results within the 3 years of this project it remains an area of interest for our growers and we would like to understand the impact of irrigation on the Nitrogen Banking in cropping season.

The grower practice of applying Nitrogen topdressing is a risky option in wet years. Higher densities mixed with high N rates both contribute to a higher risk of disease. Added to good fertility already residing in this soil, such practice should be used with caution.
The trial should be conducted over a few years and different soil types to gain an understanding of Best Practice Management guidelines. Additional data will give growers a comfort factor to adopt such practices in the future.

The 2019/20 season was regarded as one of only moderate mite pressure, Two Spotted Mite control of some form was required at Byrneside in Northern Victoria. 

The commercial release of Persimilis could be considered as a viable alternative to the application of a foliar miticide, although timing, and crop monitoring is essential. The effectiveness of Califonicus needs further investigation. It is typically released earlier in the season, almost as a prophylactic treatment in that it can survive on pollen & stops mite numbers from building up.

Economics: 

Cost of one application of Zeal® (product and application/ha) = applied 350 ml/ha via helicopter = $56.61+$42= $98.61 (plus GST)

Cost of Persimilis (insects and drone application/ha) = $210 (plus GST)

Cost of Califonicus (insects and drone application/ha) = $150 (plus GST)

In a typical pest pressure year more than one application of Zeal® would be expected, whereas only one application of Persimilis may be required as once established they would keep building up within the field over the season.  This would need to be evaluated in a high pest pressure year though prior to growers considering commercial adoption.

Late (Z39+) application of N resulted in yield and protein increase over the control.

There is a difference between maximising biomass and the optimal biomass for maximum yield in a particular environment.

Maximising biomass creates agronomic problems such as increased foliar disease and early weed competition.

Irrigation can supply moisture during grain fill but cannot control the temperature - many of the winter wheats mature too late to avoid heat stress during grain fill. 

There is a difference between maximising biomass and the optimal biomass for maximum yield in a particular environment.

Maximising biomass creates agronomic problems such as increased foliar disease and early weed competition.

Irrigation can supply moisture during grain fill but cannot control the temperature - many of the winter wheats mature too late to avoid heat stress during grain fill. 

Bannister was the highest yileding variety from either sowing date.

The theoretical N contribution from faba stubbles is 20 kg N/tonne of stubble. However this assumes all residue is mineralised. 

Stubble retained on the soil surface is broken down more slowly than residues present in the soil.

A 6 t/ha bean crop resulted in approximately 140 kg N/ha being released for the following season. 

The faba crop contributed a significant amount of N, resulting in less symptoms of waterlogging during winter, reduced N applied through the season but insignificant yield effects and changes to barley grain quality.

Increased rates of N resulted in increased biomass, but the relationship between stubble N content and applied N was poor.

Higher applied  N resulted in higher Harvest Index

Harvest Index ranged from 0.45 to 0.47. 

Adding 70 kgN/ha prior to stubble incorporation addressed in crop N tie-up.

No fertiliser had any effect at any rate on the establishment of canola when watered up.

Lodging was reduced in scout wheat with the application of Moddus Evo at GS31, but yield was not affected.

 

The PGR trinexapac ethyl reduced plant height and improved lodging resistance but no PGR influenced yield.

Only the Chlormequat + Tebuconazole treatment reduced crop height (100 mm). No lodging, yield or grain quality differences where significant.

No PGR had any effect on plant hieght, lodging or yield.

Trinexapac-ethyl resulted in shorter crop height and higher screenings from th late application. There were no effects on yield or crop lodging.

The high rate of gypsum (3.0 t/ha) was the best ameliorant, with all other ameliorants and rates performing better than the control (no ameliorant).

• The ameliorants were applied in 2014, where 3.0 t/ha of gypsum proved to be the most effective in increasing establishment.
• However all treatments have had no effect in subsequent seasons.

Fungicides had no effect on grain yield.

No treatment resulted in any yield effects. No disease was detected on the controls throughout the season.

Consistent performance from Cobra, Beaufort and Scout.

The wet winter and subsequent waterlogged conditions through June and July resulted in reduced tillering, particularly in the earlier maturing varities, and overall yield performance was reduced.

Early sowing resulted in excessive vegetattive growth and also provided excelelnt conditions for ryegrass that proved difficult to control.

No treatment resulted in any yield effects. No disease was detected on the controls throughout the season.

The Plant Growth Regulator trinexapac-ethyl (Moddus Evo) has been shown in previous trials to increase yield in irrigated barley, but not necessarliy due to reduced lodging. This trial appears to indicate that the PGR resulted  increased tiller survival in lower plant populations of certain varieties. 

Some varities have shown no yield response to PGR application.

Selection of a variety that is not prone to lodging may be a better choice than applying a PGR.