• No significant response to crop topping treatments was observed.

• Due to extreme weather events during harvest it is difficult to determine any significant trends from this data. This trial will be repeated in 2011.

• The new blue lines showed yield 30% to 75% higher than Excell, with some lines having better or similar quality characteristics to Excell.

• The new blue line OZB1309 displayed yields equivalent to PBA Pearl, which is generally the highest yielding pea in many NVT and breeding trials in Victoria.

• Crop-topping wheat with glyphosate can result in yield loss and grain size reduction if done too early.
• Later crop-topping timings can produce grain quality and yield similar to untreated grain.

• The dry and hot November in 2009 led to early senescence of pulse varieties and reduced
  grain yields in later maturing varieties. Many responses to the crop-topping treatments may
  have been masked by this rapid senescence eg Almaz and GenesisTM114 chickpeas.
• Some surprising results were observed in 2009, which may be due to either genetic
  responses or responses to rapid finish to the season eg forage pea grain weights.
• Field peas and Faba beans generally showed no yield loss at the recommended timing for
  crop-topping of ryegrass in 2009. Lentils and chickpeas showed significantly higher yield
  losses from crop-topping, averaging 15 and 21% yield losses respectively at this timing.
• The large biomass, mid-late maturing lentil Boomer also showed a yield loss when croptopped later than recommended for ryegrass control. These results indicate poor suitability of some lines to this agronomic practice.
• Early maturing lentil and chickpea lines showed yield losses from this practice at the
  recommended timing. This demonstrates the difficulty in employing this weed control
  technique in these crop types.
• The early crop topping treatment reduced grain yields of most pulse varieties. Field peas
  OZP0602 and Yarrum at Turretfield, and the Faba bean AFO3001 showed no difference in
  grain yield at the early cop-top timing and the nil, indicating good suitability to this practice.

• Dry and hot spring conditions reduced grain yields and led to early senescence of pulse
  varieties in 2008 particularly in late flowering and/or maturing types. Many of the grain
  yield reductions expected at the mid and late crop topping timings were ‘masked’ due to
  premature senescence in many varieties brought on by these dry spring conditions.
• The early crop topping treatment reduced grain yields of field peas, lentils and chickpeas
  compared with the nil treatment, however there were field pea and lentil lines identified
  which did not incur a yield loss at this timing, indicating suitability to this agronomic
  practice.
• Some lines in all crops were found to incur yield loss and grain weight reductions at the
  appropriate timing for crop topping indicating poor suitability to this agronomic practice.
  jb66 Page 75 30/04/2009
• Not all early flowering and maturing lines were able to be safely crop topped in the 2008
  experiments nor did all late lines always incur a yield loss. Further evaluation is required to
  confirm findings in a year where varieties are not prematurely senesced by drought
  conditions.
• Detailed grain quality measurements (seed size distribution, colour, hydration percentage)
  are currently occurring on some treatments and varieties to assess the effects of crop topping and desiccation on seed quality.

• Early maturing desi chickpea varieties incurred the least yield loss at the recommended timing for crop-topping. Later varieties and kabuli types showed significant yield loss at the recommended timing and three later kabuli varieties showed yield loss at the late timing.

• Similarly to previous (2013) trials, there was no interaction between crop-top timing and variety. This means that the varieties evaluated in these trials had the same grain yield response at the different crop-top timings; therefore no variety was better suited to crop-topping than another. This finding has been consistent in faba beans over time but different to all other crops (lentil, field pea, chickpea).

• The wet season end in 2010 meant that all varieties showed reduced yield and grain weight
  from the early crop-top timing, regardless of maturity.
• At the recommended crop-top timing yield of the later maturing lines Parafield, Yarrum and
  Glenroy was significantly affected, while some later maturing lines were not. This may have been a result of a moderate powdery mildew infection at this site, which sped up maturity of
  sensitive lines. Yarrum, which has mid maturity and is powdery mildew resistant, would not
  otherwise have been expected to show this yield penalty at this timing as shown by 2009
  results.
•  Further work is required to validate these results.

• Yield losses from Early crop-topping generally followed cultivar maturity, with latest maturities
  showing highest losses. Parafield and Alma were the only varieties to show yield loss at the
  Recommended timing, supporting previous findings that these later maturing varieties are not as well suited to crop-topping as recent releases PBA Twilight, PBA Gunyah and PBA Oura. Kaspa and Yarrum continue to show a variable result across seasons at this timing.

• The wet season finish in 2010 favoured chickpea production, however this made timely
  weed control through crop-topping very destructive.
• There was little varietal response from crop-topping in 2010.
• All varieties showed reduced yield when crop-topped at or before the recommended timing
  for optimum ryegrass control (milky dough stage).
• Crop-topping 2 weeks after the recommended timing was the only timing considered “safe”
  for chickpeas in 2010, with only one variety showing reduced grain yield and one variety
  having reduced grain weight.
• These results emphasise the difficulty in employing this weed control method in chickpea.

• The wet and late finish to the 2010 season meant that early crop-topping was very detrimental to yield of all lentil varieties
• Later maturing lentil varieties also showed a yield penalty from crop-topping at the recommended timing (ryegrass milky dough stage).
• CIPAL0501 was the most sensitive variety to crop-topping, showing a reduction in yield from crop-topping at all three timings. This variety also has the latest maturity in this trial.
• The early crop topping treatment reduced grain yields of most pulse varieties, while the late
  crop-top timing had no effect on grain weight.

• There was limited varietal response from crop-topping in 2011. This may be due to below  average rainfall during late October and early November, the rapid finish on a shallow soil and the relatively late sowing date, suppressing some yield potential of untreated plots.

• Chickpea are generally considered to be unsuited to crop-topping due to their high yield losses, and are the least suited of the four pulse crops commonly grown in South Australia.

• The no-till sowing system had significantly higher grain yields at Hart in 2011.
• Higher fertiliser nutrition significantly increased protein, but not grain yield.
• The strategic treatment produced the most dry matter and shoot nitrogen.
• Mice damage significantly reduced crop emergence in the disc treatment.

• Dry and hot spring conditions led to poor pod set and early senescence of faba bean varieties in 2007. Grain yields of earlier maturing varieties were higher than those of later maturing types.
• There was no significant interaction between crop topping timing treatment and variety
  performance for grain yield as late varieties were lower yielding in all treatments, including
  the nil treatment due to the dry seasonal conditions.
• Generally earlier maturing varieties incurred lower levels of grain yield loss than later
  maturing varieties when crop topped at the appropriate stage for effective ryegrass control.
  However this difference was not significant in the 2007 trial.
• The concept trial methodology for evaluating relative yield loss due to various crop timings
  was found to be sound and will be repeated in 2008, although trial layout changes will be
  made to improve spraying logistics. A very early timing treatment will be added to assess
  the extremes of yield loss potential in all varieties and detailed flowering and maturity
  scores will be taken. Field pea, lentil and chickpea varieties will also be evaluated.

• Growing conditions in 2016 were very wet and mild, with rainfall from May to September one of the wettest on record. Growing season rainfall was well above average with 491mm recorded at the site.
• The conditions in 2016 did not favour the expression of crown rot, with only minimal disease observed. As a result there were no significant interactions between any of the seed treatments in this trial.
• Durum wheat is more susceptible to crown rot than barley. The durum wheat variety Aurora was used in this trial and was out-performed by the barley variety LaTrobe, yielding significantly lower.
• At tillering, the NDVI of treatments not infected by crown rot were significantly higher than those infected by crown rot. At flowering there was no significant difference in NDVI between any treatment

• Yield losses of up to 20% due to crown rot were observed in 2015.
• Losses ranged from 2%–11% in bread wheat and 1.5%–3% for barley.
• Crown rot has a significant effect on gross margins when comparing grain quality and yields between crown rot treated and untreated plots.
• Select the highest yielding varieties rather than those with enhanced crown rot tolerance to minimise losses.
• Reduce the risk of crown rot infection by using crop rotation as well as stubble management.

• Yield loss response curves are an additional tool to help growers in varietal selection decisions to maximise returns where disease is present.
• Variations occurred in the yield response of varieties to crown rot, along with their resistance to this disease.
• The variety Suntop, although displaying crown rot symptoms similar to that of a susceptible variety, demonstrated a greater ability to maintain yield where disease was present than other varieties that are considered tolerant.
• The selection of varieties based purely on current resistance categories may be overlooking genetics with improved tolerance, such as the variety Suntop.
   

Effective control of summer weeds before cropping can increase both grain yield and quality. The key to increased yield potential lies in additional sub-soil moisture available to the crop during the subsequent growing season. Summer weeds also deplete mineralised N reserves. Provided there are no limitations preventing crop roots from accessing the subsoil, the additional soil moisture can be seen in higher grain yields and generally grain protein and test weight.

• Have established at what level the bucket is full
• Have a better understanding of where it becomes empty
• Have increased our confidence in utilising these tools
• In-crop nitrogen sampling has been a vital tool in assessing the effectiveness of the modelling

Key findings:

• Nitrogen (N) decision making requires a good understanding of background soil and plant science, and soil test interpretation.
• Training for new agronomists needs to be a priority issue.
• Senior NSW agronomists identified crop yield expectation as guided by soil moisture at sowing (or at the time of N decision making) as the most important determinant of N fertiliser requirement.
• Further research is needed to increase the understanding of how management practices affect potentially large gaseous N losses. 
• Changing from legume pasture-crop sequences to continuous cropping in many central and southern areas of New South Wales is posing new questions for managing N supply. The absence of N-fixation by pasture legumes is seen as a substantial loss of N-buffering capacity.
• Despite most advisers choosing soil testing as a key approach for determining N fertiliser required, many of their clients had a lower confidence in soil testing, citing ‘high perceived variability in soil nitrate results in the lead up to sowing’.
• Conclusions and Recommendations Senior advisers highlighted the importance of quality training in N decision-making, understanding the background soil and plant science involved, and soil test interpretation for the next generation of agronomists, with training courses including representation from highly experienced local agronomists.
• The understanding of gaseous N losses requires further research, development and extension to the grains industry. Recent field research in the north was limited in scope and produced challenging outcomes that can potentially lead to large practice changes in when and how N fertiliser is applied. Further research and development work is warranted to answer more of the practical questions growers and advisers are asking in regards to losses associated with various alternative practices.

• The northern results on N loss pathways are less relevant to advisers in the central and southern regions where N application timing, soil type and climatic differences are generally quite different from the dominant medium-heavy clays of the north. New N loss research is recommended for the lighter textured soils in regards to the potential for N volatilization losses from surface N application of various products. Economic outcomes from the various strategies being practiced are also needed. Nitrogen loss research should focus less on expensive slow-release products and more on optimising results from urea, the cheapest N source.

• Research into better soil water measurement was seen as a priority area, especially given the importance all advisers place on knowing this when making expensive N-fertiliser decisions for a coming cropping season. Zonal management within paddocks is not possible with single site characterisations, so atypical areas of paddocks are over or under-fertilised.

• The very early application of N fertiliser ahead of a winter cropping season is well established, but what is not known is how well the subsoil N may be protected or at risk from denitrification in flooding events. Also, better knowledge on specific N use within the profile during the cropping season will help growers to know when late-applied N is likely to be inaccessible to crop use.

• Nitrogen mineralisation was highlighted by agronomists from all three regions as an area for greater understanding with regards to the differences caused by climatic conditions, especially rainfall. They also require better understanding of the N produced from both native organic matter and recent legume pasture residues.

• There are a number of good decision support tools available currently, with several advisers suggesting that combining the best points of each into one package, even one available as an app, would be highly useful, particularly one with good grower-friendly reports.

• Many farmers have low confidence in soil testing.  This may be related to a range of factors from poor sampling strategies, to poor sample handling, to poor service from laboratory analysts, to insufficient sample numbers or poor interpretation of the results. It is seen as an expensive option for many, with some advisers looking for quicker and cheaper means of estimating soil mineral N.

• Variety-specific N management packages were seen by some senior advisers as key areas for continued research funding, as results from some new varieties have been quite different in terms of N uptake and protein outcomes.

• Making nitrogen (N) management decisions requires an understanding of soil and plant science, and soil test interpretation.
• Training new agronomists is a priority.
• Senior NSW agronomists identified crop yield expectation as guided by soil moisture at sowing (or at the time of N decision making) as the most important determinant of N fertiliser requirement.
• Further research will increase the understanding of how management practices affect potentially large gaseous N losses.
• Changing from legume pasture-crop sequences to continuous cropping in many central and southern areas of New South Wales is posing new questions for managing N supply. Less frequent pasture legume phases with their N-fixation benefits to the soil is seen as a substantial loss of N-buffering capacity.
• Despite most advisers choosing soil testing as a key approach for determining N fertiliser required, many of their clients had a lower confidence in soil testing, citing ‘high perceived variability in soil nitrate results in the lead up to sowing’.

• Deep phosphorus (P) placement at a depth of 20 cm resulted in root proliferation in desi chickpeas at Terry Hie Hie.
• Deep P applied in the plant line produced more vegetative biomass compared with deep P placed between alternate plant lines (66 cm spacing) four weeks after sowing.

 

• Soil pH results after liming and tillage treatments were applied was found to be quite variable and more sampling needs to be done before pH results can be quoted. Soil loosening indicates that only the deep tillage techniques were likely to incorporate lime into the deeper 20-30 cm acidic layer.
• This trial highlights the importance of measuring subsoil pH levels and applying sufficient rates of lime to prevent and correct subsoil acidification. Where tillage treatments are used to incorporate lime it is important to understand to what depth lime will be incorporated and which subsoil layers need correction. It is intended to monitor this trial for the next few years to further assess the benefits of correcting subsoil acidification. Yield response to lime incorporation can increase over time as the untreated soil continues to acidify further and as lime has more opportunity to react and neutralize the acidity that is present.

• The trial area was seeded in June 2015 to wheat by Peter Negus, while he was seeding the surrounding paddock.  Unfortunately, the seeder ran out of seed as the trial was being sown.  The result was that there were large unseeded strips running through the trial. 
• Rainfall at the site was very poor in September and October 2015; approximately 70% below average for that period.  As a result, cereal crops on soils with low water holding capacity were badly affected, with yields well below average.
• Analysis of the harvest results (excluding plots affected at seeding) showed no significant differences, leading us to conclude that either (a) the tillage and lime treatment effects have ‘worn out’ at the site, or that (b) poor rainfall in September and October severely reduced yields, obscuring any other effects.  We believe that (b) is more likely.
• This trial will be sown to lupins in 2016.

The pH results from this trial show some interesting trends. 

The treatments with greater disturbance at depth (spade, deep rip + spade, mouldboard) tend to decrease surface pH.  This is of concern if the ‘new’ topsoil pH is acidic enough to inhibit root development. 

The treatments with greater disturbance at depth (spade, deep rip + spade, mouldboard) tend to increase midsoil pH most rapidly.  This is the effect hoped for.  The differences between treatments are generally not significant, but more intensive sampling may tease out differences.

The treatments with greater disturbance at depth (spade, deep rip + spade, mouldboard) tend to increase subsoil pH most rapidly.  This is the effect hoped for.  The differences between treatments are generally not significant, but more intensive sampling may tease out differences.

• In year one of this trial, there was no yield differences observed with the application of chicken manure, artificial nutrients or no nutrients
• Cultivation with the mouldboard plough resulted in better yields compared to no cultivation or deep ripping in the first year regardless of nutrients
• Grain protein was significantly higher in the chicken manure treatments
• Large amounts of dry matter was produced under the manured treatments however it didn’t make any difference to yield

• Deep placed lime can improve yields on acidic soils in a very dry season but significatn yield increases were only achieved when lime was place directly into the subsoil to depths of 31 or 51cm.
• Generally, responses from deep placed lime have been recorded in either the year of application or 1-2 years after application.

• Investigated infertile soils over clay in SA and Victoria.
• Earlier work showed that a "shotgun" mix of N, P, zinc, copper and manganese placed at 40cm regularly doubled cereal yields.
• Have shown that such applications have onging residual benefits.
• Need at least 25cm of sand or haying off can occur in dry years.
• Deep ripping tyne type and spacing appear to be less important than depth of application at 40cm.
• Apply nutrients at a rate which would double current yields.
• Management of erosion after ripping is the primary challenge.
• Addition of deep nutrient during ripping would appear to be a good option with reliable benefits.

Deep cultivation strips on growers’ properties did not show much in the way of early responses and so did not excite much grower interest as a direct diagnostic of the hardpan conditions in their paddocks. However, at responsive sites, there was a lot of grower interest to the level where it might be worth funding another year of this direct diagnostic approach in the hope that early season conditions are conducive to major nitrogen growth responses.

• Deep ripping dry sand was more effective with two passes (or shallow leading tines); less cloddy.
• Yield benefits of 410 kg/ha (18%) from deep ripping were mainly due to better head fill. Better head fill was probably due to better cooling of the crop in hot weather due to better supply of moisture.
• Extra moisture seemed to be from rain which infiltrated deeper in the ripped soil to avoid more evaporative loss than the unripped soil.
• A controlled traffic system will better protect the investment in deep ripping and extend the benefits. Deep ripping costs will also be reduced when the permanent tramlines are left unripped; seeding can also be easier with better flotation on permanent tramlines.

 

• Deep ripping enabled the crop to access about an extra 40kg of soil N/ha.
• The crop was as responsive to Flexi-N after deep ripping.
• There was no yield penalty from delaying Flexi-N application until the end of tillering. Deep ripping and Flexi-N were very profitable at this site.  

Sub-soil compaction, caused primarily by the unmanaged movement of heavy machinery, is having a negative effect on grain yield and quality across the Geraldton Port Zone (as well other port zones in WA).  Compaction limits plant root growth, reduces plant available water capacity (PAWC) and in turn limits yield potential.

The profitability of a crop is dependent on the crop maximising the use of rainfall received and the PAWC of the soil is critical to this. This applies to all rainfall zones. Climate change however, has influenced the number of dry periods occurring during the growing season, so it’s more important than ever for crop roots to be able to explore the soil profile to the fullest possible extent.

Growers report that some soils on their property continue to underperform despite their fertiliser and system management strategy matching their soil type. The introduction of deeper deep-rippers to the region (550 – 700mm) has shown encouraging results, prompting growers to question current strategies and investigate the rippers as options for soil improvement.

In 2016 four growers within a 100km of each other currently employing deeper ripping strategies were asked to compare the performance of ‘deeper’ deep ripping (550-700mm) to standard deep ripping (250 – 350mm) and no ripping.  A full soil, plant tissue and grain yield analysis was performed at each site to gather information on the base site parameters and breakdown of how each soil responded to the treatments.

There was an increasing response to deeper ripping associated with a decline in rainfall at the sites (about 100mm variance across sites). To achieve the best return on investment growers are recommended to identify the sub soil constraints in their paddock before choosing the right tillage machine to alleviate them.

• Ripping below the hard pan (greater than 500mm) in pale sands, yellow sands and yellow loams in wheat or canola increases yield.
• Soil moisture probes show ripping deeper (below 500mm) allows more plant roots to access moisture deeper in the profile for longer in the season. Water infiltration also increase with depth of ripping.
• Leaving a firm even seed bed after deeper ripping is important to reduce seeding establishment issues.
• A negative yield response to deeper ripping in lupins on yellow sand was measured at Binnu in 2016.
• Crop yield response to ripping does vary depending on seasonal conditions and crop type therefore the economics of ripping must be considered over multiple seasons and timing of ripping in the rotation.

• Deep ripping to 500-600mm in coarse textured sandy soils increased yield by 21-66% compared to 6-24% with ripping to 300mm in wheat and canola in 2016 and 2017 in the Geraldton port zone.
• There was only a small yield response to ripping the red loam in 2016 and no difference in 2017.
• Soil moisture measurements and visual observations of plant root growth indicated deeper ripping allowed the plant roots to access more water from deeper down the soil profile. This is particularly beneficial in sandy soils that have a low plant available water capacity(PAWC) per 10cm down the profile therefore roots need access deeper into the soil profile to gain the same amount of water as heavier textured soils that have a higher PAWC per 10cm.
• Economic analysis found the higher cost of deeper ripping gave a positive return on investment up to $5/ha for every dollar invested at 3 sandy sites but not on the red loam where the return on investment was negative with a return of $0.63/Ha for every dollar invested. On the sand at Ogilvie there was a yield penalty in lupins in 2016, resulting in a negative return on investment which could not be recouped in the following dry season of 2017.
• If ripping below 400mm, consideration must be given to crop selection in year one (lupins are higher risk); leaving an even seed bed post ripping to reduce bogging and plant establishment issues; and managing weeds as due to poor competition and better access to water and nutrients can increase the weed burden as these factors can have a negative impact on yield reducing the return on investment.

June 13th sown Gairdner produced yields in the range of 4.86 – 5.69 t/ha following canola stubble. With high soil nitrogen reserves (203 kg/ha N, 0‐90cm) recorded at sowing, there was a small but significant response to applied nitrogen (0.21 t/ha at 50 kg/ha N & 0.23 t/ha at 100 kg/ha N). There was a significant advantage to nitrogen timed during stem elongation (GS31‐33) over nitrogen applied in the seedbed.

Late sown Mitre (July 4) produced yields in the range of 0.6 – 2.16 t/ha following Canola stubble. With soil nitrogen reserves of approximately 30kg/ha N (0-10cm) recorded pre sowing, applied nitrogen was detrimental in this trial, with 50 kg/ha N reducing yield by 0.09t/ha and 100kg/ha N reducing yield by 0.23 t/ha. These figures disguise more detrimental yield reductions with seedbed nitrogen applications and no effect from stem elongation timings applied at GS31-39.

Late sown Mitre (July 4) produced yields in the range of 0.6 – 2.16 t/ha following Canola stubble. With soil nitrogen reserves of approximately 30kg/ha N (0-10cm) recorded pre sowing, applied nitrogen was detrimental in this trial, with 50 kg/ha N reducing yield by 0.09t/ha and 100kg/ha N reducing yield by 0.23 t/ha. These figures disguise more detrimental yield reductions with seedbed nitrogen applications and no effect from stem elongation timings applied at GS31-39.

• Compass and La Trobe have the greatest likelihood of severe lodging as yield environment increases; Fathom, GrangeR and Commander are least likely.
• The taller the crop, the more likely yield loss will occur with increasing rainfall; taller varieties (Schooner, Compass, Flagship and Scope CL) are the most susceptible to head loss.
• Grain quality and the viability of the seed (low falling numbers) is severely reduced in barley with greater exposure to wet weather.
• In lower yielding environments, choose a variety based on its yield performance, rather than its resistance to the effects of delayed harvest.

• Compass, Commander, Scope CL and Fathom were the varieties most affected by lodging when harvest was delayed in a very high yielding environment.
• Spartacus CL and Oxford had better head retention than Fathom and Westminster which were the poorest.
• Delaying harvest by three and a half weeks incurred a 2t/ha yield loss. In an 8t/ha crop this equates to one per cent of yield per day lost on average (based on 2016 data).

At Minnipa in 2013 there were cereal yield responses to fungicide treatments in both wheat (up to 14% better than no fungicide) and barley (up to 12 % better than no fungicide but not all strategies were effective). However there were still visual Rhizoctonia patches present. In-furrow fungicide applications were more effective than seed treatments. Tillage, starter nitrogen and zinc produced similar yields to many of the fungicide treatments. A three week delay in seeding reduced yield by nearly one third. Fungicide treatments did not prevent an increase in Rhizoctonia inoculum levels during a cereal phase.

A demonstration to showcase options for managing water repellent soils was established in 2017. Mace wheat was sown into sand over gravel (below 20cm) on 24 May following 209mm summer rain, with no rain in April and 14mm in May.

• One-way plough reduced subsoil compaction to 30cm depth and improved soil wettability, crop establishment and yield.
• Deep ripping reduced compaction to 30 cm depth, improved crop establishment and yield, but not soil wettability.
• Knife point sowing established and yielded better than the splitter boot when sowing on deep ripped and one-way ploughed plots.

• Broadleaved break crops increased pre sowing soil nitrogen by up to 40 kg/ha in 2014 while Rhizoctonia inoculum was also significantly reduced following these crops.
• Growing a legume break crop in 2014 increased the grain yield of the subsequent wheat crop by 0.6–0.7 t/ha.
• Wheat crops following legumes were twice as profitable than following another cereal crop in 2015.
• The profitability of paddock rotations that included legume break crops in 2014 were similar to or exceeded the profitability of the cereal intensive rotation in the same paddock.

• Broadleaved break crops increased pre sowing soil nitrogen by up to 40 kg/ha in 2014 while Rhizoctonia inoculum was also significantly reduced following these crops.
• Growing a legume break crop in 2014 increased the grain yield of the subsequent wheat crop by 0.6 – 0.7 t/ha.
• Wheat crops following legumes were twice as profitable than following another cereal crop in 2015.
• The profitability of paddock rotations that included legume break crops in 2014 were similar to or exceeded the profitability of the cereal intensive rotation in the same paddock.

• Broadleaved break crops increased pre sowing soil nitrogen by up to 40 kg/ha in 2014 while Rhizoctonia inoculum was also significantly reduced following these crops.
• Growing a legume break crop in 2014 increased the grain yield of the subsequent wheat crop by 0.6–0.7 t/ha.
• Wheat crops following legumes were twice as profitable than following another cereal crop in 2015.
• The profitability of paddock rotations that included legume break crops in 2014 were similar to or exceeded the profitability of the cereal intensive rotation in the same paddock.

• Broadleaved break crops increased pre sowing soil nitrogen by up to 40 kg/ha in 2014 while Rhizoctonia inoculum was also significantly reduced following these crops.
• Growing a legume break crop in 2014 increased the grain yield of the subsequent wheat crop by 0.6–0.7 t/ha.
• Wheat crops following legumes were twice as profitable than following another cereal crop in 2015.
• The profitability of paddock rotations that included legume break crops in 2014 were similar to or exceeded the profitability of the cereal intensive rotation in the same paddock.

• Broadleaved break crops increased pre sowing soil nitrogen by up to 40 kg/ha in 2014 while Rhizoctonia inoculum was also significantly reduced following these crops.
• Growing a legume break crop in 2014 increased the grain yield of the subsequent wheat crop by 0.6–0.7 t/ha.
• Wheat crops following legumes were twice as profitable than following another cereal crop in 2015.
• The profitability of paddock rotations that included legume break crops in 2014 were similar to or exceeded the profitability of the cereal intensive rotation in the same paddock.

• With a disease like rhizoctonia crop rotation away from cereals is important to reduce inoculum levels. In high risk rotations or in paddocks known to have high disease levels EverGol Prime will be a useful new option for growers based on Australia wide trial experience.
• EverGol Prime has demonstrated excellent control of smut diseases (including bunt) with work conducted in Western Australia on loose smut this year confirming it as an excellent new tool for grower’s to target this hard- to- control disease.

• Adequate control of weeds and sufficient plant densities resulted in a clean, competitive crop at the Carnamah site. Canola remains a high earning crop that commonly forms part of a crop rotation in many farming enterprises. Robust agronomy packages and prices of the legume types demonstrated by this project, means crops such as field peas and lentils have potential suitability in the Carnamah region.
• The need to harvest chickpeas early to match the logistics of harvest of the trial compromised the results for the chickpea treatments. Use of established management practices for the harvesting of chickpeas is required to reduce the incidence of yield loss at harvest time.
• The ranking of each species on profitability should be viewed in light of the highly variable price of pulses from year to year.
   

• Adequate pre and post emergent weed control is critical for maintaining yield potential and quality of grain legume crops.
• Canola remains the most profitable non-cereal crop type demonstrated at this site in 2018.
• Where vetch grain is not harvested and sold as feed, consideration of this legume crop type for its grazing value may be advantageous for a mixed farming system.
   

• Preparation of paddocks is key to the success of legume crops such as chickpeas and field peas. Control of weeds prior to sowing is crucial and, rolling to level the seed bed post seeding improves the ability to harvest such crop types.
• Field peas and chickpeas are more susceptible to frost damage compared to canola or lupins.
• Canola remains a highly profitable non-cereal crop in Kalannie in 2018.
   

• Three direct drill seeders were compared (Gason, Jenke, Daybreak) to sow wheat into a canola stubble.
• The season was very dry (decile 2) with an average wheat yield of 1.4t/ha in the demonstration.
• There were no differences in crop yield between the three seeders.

• The early maturity of Quilinock and Belara allowed these avrieties to avoid significant crop loss from the first gramozone croptopping treatment.
• Mandelup was affected by the first gramozone treatment but not as much as Tanul and Kalya.
• The competitive yield preformance of Mandelup was also determined.

While incidence of root rot was high (83-95%), the disease severity was low on the trial site ranging from 14.3 to 19.5% for treatment averages; many plants had a low level of root disease. Distinct patches were not evident in the trial.

Despite low levels of disease severity observed in the trial and only minor treatment effects on root rot, two in-furrow treatments were found to significantly improve the yield by more than 0.24 t/ha compared to the Untreated control. These were the granular fertiliser treated with Uniform® and the split application of Uniform® above and below the furrow.

In a site with a moderate rhizoctonia disease risk, as indicated by PreDicta B, the majority of plants had root rot however severity was low and patch development did not occur. Under low disease pressure, the Uniform treatments as a whole were able to provide a small reduction in disease incidence which subsequently resulted in yield increase from two treatments. Under higher disease pressure these products can be included as part of an integrated management approach for rhizoctonia.

There was no visual response to applying N or yield. The N rich strips were also not obvious at the time of applying the N to the plots. This may have been a result of the moderate level of N in all zones, the dry spring and the time of application. From the DSN results, 20-60 kg/ha of N would have commended in August in the various zones to achieve the yield targets that were considered achievable at that time. The quality of the wheat produced was low (ASW due to low protein) indicating that insufficient N was applied. The economic analysis showed that the addition of N, lost money. The N rich strips were a useful guide to assessing that there would be no response to applying additional of N but not for assessing differing responses in different zones. It has not been possible to assess if satellite map were a useful guide to possible N response.

• For the growers surveyed, the main reasons for cross ripping were to mitigate uneven plant establishment from wheel track sinkage lines and to break up the tramlines to increase crop area
• Other reasons for cross seeding included; for more uniform seed placement, trash flow management, to stop the bar sinking, stop bogging and to get soil throw to cover spray tracks.
• There was less wheel sinkage with cross ripping than ripping in the same direction as the main traffic.

• Trial showed legumes to be more susceptible to frosts and high temperatures during flowering than cereals and canola.
• When legumes grain prices are high, the revenues derived are competitive with conventional crops such as wheat, barley and canola.
• Growers can improve the agronomic skills required to successfully grow legume crops on their farms very quickly.
• Ongoing research and demonstration work are required to continue driving grower adoption of legume crops in Western Australia. Increased cropping diversity is an ongoing ambition for the entire grains industry.

Yield differences of 2*st. dev. are significant. Within plot variability was large (st. dev. about 0.3 to 0.4 t/ha) but there is an apparent response to ripping, but not to depth of ripping.  More information is needed to interpret these results. 

• Early and on time desiccation resulted in large yield losses.
• Early and on time desiccation resulted in large reductions in seed size, but not to the same
  degree as yield.
• What were the reasons (other than reduced seed size) that contributed to these yield
  losses? Was ‘pinched’ seed lost through the header at harvest?
• Yield losses were bigger in the later flowering variety Kaspa.
• Need to more closely fine-tune growth stages with physiological maturity to pick the “on
  time” desiccation spray.
• Oura and Pearl were early and the pick of varieties suited to crop-topping & desiccation.

• All crops go through stages of development known as critical growth periods (CGP) where stress can reduce yield potential more than at any other time.

• Shading can be used to induce defined periods of stress on a crop to identify CGP.

• The critical growth period for canola was identified as approximately 100–400 degree days (°C.days) after the start of flowering (defined as 50% plants with one open flower).

• There was minimal effect of pre- and post-flowering stress on grain yield.

• Spot form of net blotch (SFNB) is a foliar disease of barley threatening production of the susceptible variety Gairdner.
• Fungicides may play an important role in achieving control over this disease

All cultivation treatments reduced crop establishment significantly below “Nil” cultivation. 

Poor rainfall in September and October 2015 meant that the trial yielded very poorly (~0.5 T/ha), with no significant differences between treatments.

Soil test results are not yet available.

The trial reported here is the same as those conducted at 13 sites around Australia.

• Results of preliminary tests show the fungicide has excellent activity against this fungal disease.
• The potential use of the new AgrEvo fungicide in Australia will be as a single spray, six weeks after emergence, when seed treatment activity ceases.

The 2017 season was significantly colder than average with about 500 hours below zero.

While stubble management may influence in-canopy temperatures, the differences between management practices were minimal during 2017.

Differences in frost damage of grains were significant between treatments at both the Coreen and Yarrawonga sites, with the burnt treatment showing the greatest frost damage at Coreen, while the no-till stubble retained (NTSR) treatments showed the greatest damage at Yarrawonga.

Stubble management per se did not influence frost damage in wheat during 2017, with frost damage not necessarily related to in-canopy temperatures.

Stubble management practices can influence the rate of crop development and may lead to changes in flowering time. This change in rate of development can influence crop susceptibility to frost at different times throughout the growing season.

 

• Digital photos collected up to GS31 and processed for green ground cover provided a good measure of crop biomass and N uptake.
• Images collected after GS31 had poorer relationships with crop growth.

• Canola and juncea can successfully be direct-harvested without windrowing or using pre-harvest chemicals.
• Windrowing can help the crop ripen more evenly, allowing better management of the harvest windrow, especially if damaging weather is forcast.
• Although expensive, Reglone and Desikote Max may help to offset yield losses experienced with crop variability.

• Time of sowing is more important than seeding system.
• Depth control on disc seeding systems can affect crop establishment.
• In this trial the knife-point press wheel seeding system out yielded the single disc seeding system.

• The trial at Dalwallinu suffered from low soil temperature after sowing.
• Disease was not a larege problem at this trial as the level of inoculum would have been very low.
• Bird damage accounts for some of the large standard deviaitons in the Genesis 90.

• Baudin produced a statistically higher yield than Gairdner under all treatment regimes.
• The dry growing season lead to a very low disease presence in the plots.
• Under non-experimental cropping situations, foliar fungicide sprays would not have been applied in the absence of disease; however, in this trial the cost of foliar applications were not returned through improved yield.

The new Dun type field varieties Parafield and Kaspa (PSL4) had a significantly higher yield compared to Dundale at the Woomelang trial site (Dundale 1.3t/ha, Parafield 1.9t/ha, Kaspa 2.1 t/ha). The increased standability of Kaspa also makes harvesting much easier. In the 2001 season there were no benefits from a fungicide spray program on yield.

• A combination of old and new technology is being used to detect and analyse airborne fungal spore patterns affecting cereal and pulse grain crops.
• Intense spore showers were detected for blackspot of field pea and NFNB of barley, but negligible for YLS of wheat, at the experimental site at Hart during the 2013 season.
• Spore dispersal patterns of blackspot of field pea fitted with Blackspot Manager predictions.

Drought conditions throughout the Mallee and Wimmera last year (2002) resulted in poor growth in most pulse crops, with many crops failing. It is very tempting to re-sow paddocks to the same crop or another pulse in 2003. However, there are several disease management issues growers should be aware of before deciding to replant on pulses.

• Combined results from the sowing date and disease management trials indicated PBA Blitz and PBA Greenfield were more severely affected by ascochyta blight than previously observed relative to other varieties. This has resulted in a drop in their disease ratings relative to other varieties.

The main messages from the trial work undertaken in 2005 for disease management in 2006 are discussed.

• The 'Full' treatment was significantly better yielding than the other treatments.
• The 'Full' treatment was more profitable than other treatments for wheat.

Taking account of fungicide costs (both application and product) revealed that untreated Teesdale generated the equal highest margins (Table 6-16). With both Mitre and Kellalac the most cost effective treatments were two applications of fungicide based on a GS32 Bayleton followed by Opus, however as stand alone treatments the flag leaf spray of Opus was substantially more cost effective than either Jockey or Impact. The application of Bayleton at GS32 followed by GS39 Opus was slightly more cost effective than the Impact followed by Opus. Impact had an edge over Jockey in this trial in terms of green leaf retention, yield and margin.

• Wider row spacings resulted in less visual symptoms of ascochyta blight and higher grain yields.
• This was particularly notable in the susceptible genoptype, Howzat.

• Disease pressure was low in the trials and no major effects of agronomic treatment were noted.

• New varieties are likely to offer significant yield improvement in southern Victoria, along with improvements in disease resistance.

• No significant disease was noted in trials this year so grain yields were unaffected by disease management treatments.
• However the trials did clearly highlight the yield advantage of AF05069, AF05073 and AF05095 compared with Farah.

• New varieties are available for southern Victoria, offering a range of grain types and forage options, associated with excellent yield potential. Disease had little impact on yields in 2014. PBA Pearl was the highest yielding variety producing, 2.3t/ha and estimated profit of $500/ha.

• Chlorothalonil (Bravo), pyraclostrobin (Cabrio) and azoxystrobin plus chlorothalonil (Amistar
  Opti) showed increased yield compared to the nil treatment, however further improvement is
  possible as the response from fortnightly chlorothalonil sprays was even greater.

• Disease was not significant in 2014. AF05095-1 continued to show increased susceptibility to brackling compared other varieties.

• Due to extreme weather events there was no major effect of disease management in 2014.

• The kabuli chickpeas, both smaller and larger seed types were much more profitable than desi’s at Rupanyup in 2012. Disease had no significant effect on yield, although symptom scores highlighted potential risks with a new line CIC0717.

• Phytophthora medicaginis (Pm) inoculum concentrations decline to low levels (within 6−12 months) of a diseased crop and the distribution becomes more uneven.
• Within 6−12 months, survival populations of Pm (oospores) can be below detectable levels based on both soil DNA and isolate baiting methods.
• These inoculum decline factors limit the ability of PreDicta B to identify paddocks that have a significant disease risk.
• The Pm test is useful for in-crop disease diagnosis when the pathogen is active and inoculum decline has not taken place.
   

Gairdner is still a very difficult variety to beat in terms of yield and quality. Waite Institute line W13586 yielded significantly higher than Gairdner at Gnarwarre and Streatham. Malting quality testing will continue in 2003 for VB0021, VB9926, WB236 and WB238. Baudin, the newly released variety from Department of Agriculture in WA, will not be available in the eastern States until 2004. Baudin  is more suseptible to disease than Gairdner and did not yield any higher than Gairdner in the 2002 season. It's application in Victoria appears to be limited. 

• All released varieties except Mortlock gave similar grain yields. Similarity between varieties could be attributed to the lack of disease pressure. Mortlock yielded significantly lower at both sites as was expected given the variety's long term yield average. 
• For further findings please see the attached trial report.

• The highest yielding plots were the ‘Medium’ input which was 150kg urea at tillering and 100kg/ha urea at stem elongation.
• The High input plots were the lowest yielding.
• Protein levels were directly related to nitrogen at stem elongation.
• Nitrogen response is varied depending on timing of application so make decisions wisely!