Assess the impact of time of rolling on pre-em herbicide safety and weed control

To improve lentil establishment, biomass production and yield by soil amelioration and or lime application on Mallee sands

This project aims to establish field sites which demonstrate amelioration techniques that growers can use to address the specific sandy soil constraints for their local landscape type and where in the landscape different tactics are best deployed.  

The objective of the four small plot trials is to provide statistically sound data that will inform farmer and consultant decision making in years of early waterlogging, where they are considering late sown cereals as an option. The trials will be professionally implemented and managed by industry best practice standards to ensure the data is reliable. The implementation of four trial sites also ensures the data generated is locally relevant to farmers right along the South Coast of WA.  

GRDC Project Outcome:

By March 2024, All Western Region growers and advisers will have access to trial information on late winter to early spring sown cereals (wheat and barley) on the south coast of WA to assist in making educated decisions to sow at this time when waterlogging presents and cereal crops cannot be sown at the traditional time or for other reasons that may present for a later sowing opportunity such as weed issues or poor crop establishment.

Assess the impact of time of rolling on pre-em herbicide safety and weed control

To evaluate the impact of inoculum loads on septoria tiritici blotch severity and grian yields in wheat in the medium rainfall zone of southern Australia

To investigate the impact of seed size in faba beans on the growth, grain yield and seed quality.

To investigate the stability of the seed size trait in PBA HallmarkXT across generations.

To evaluate the impact of sorghum row spacing and plant population on fallow efficiency

To evaluate the impact of sorghum row spacing and plant population on fallow efficiency

To investigate the implications of sowing date, genotype and disease interactions of field pea.

To evaluate the impact of spray drift reduction strategies on grass weed efficacy.

Evaluate the potential to manage disease more sustainably in Faba beans through improving management guidelines that dissect the interaction between fungicide application timing and improved genetic resistance

To maximise biomass and plant height in lentil to improve harvestability

To improve lentil establishment, biomass production and yield by soil amelioration on non-wetting Mallee sands

This project aims to establish field sites which demonstrate amelioration techniques that growers can use to address the specific sandy soil constraints for their local landscape type and where in the landscape different tactics are best deployed.  

This one-year investment aimed to provide growers and advisers along the South Coast of WA with greater confidence to make decisions on whether to sow a cereal crop later in the growing season (late winter, early spring) after crop failure, or inability to seed, due to early season waterlogging. It also aimed to provide some data on what varieties and nitrogen fertiliser strategies might be required for later sown crops.

To assist farmers with their decision making by showcasing successful irrigation farm systems in local case studies.

To enable farmers to learn from others by understanding their background story, current practices and short / medium / long-term decision-making processes that assist with businesses adapting to an everchanging operating environment.

To gain the maximum value for our farm businesses in the irrigation discussion group they were actively involved in the process of collecting the case study information in farm walks.

The aim of the focus paddock was to see if deep ripping could increase plant avaliable water by removing any compaction and allowing roots to access stored moisture deeper into the soil profile.

To demonstrate that higher seeding rates in irrigated beans provides higher yields and compares the economics of irrigated beans to irrigated canola and wheat.

To increase irrigated wheat yields with well-timed applications of foliar sprays as well as pre seeding applications of micronutrients.

To investigate the extent that nitrogen rates impact canola yield and how this interacts with water use

The aim of the trial was to assess the influence of PGR and nitrogen rates on the standability, head loss and yield of
an irrigated barley crop. We also wanted to observe the fit for PGR’s in a later planted crop with perceived yield
limitations due to season length.

The purpose of this experiment was to apply Plant Growth Regulators (PGRs) to a high input durum wheat crop to
understand the impact of PGRs on standability and grain protein. The trial also included a variety split within a field
to understand the interaction between durum wheat varieties.

To monitor for 3 key pests in maize crops - Heliothis, Fall Armyworm & Two Spotted Mites, then apply treatments that are IPM friendly if needed (Bugs for Bugs and IPM friendly insecticides).  The demonstration block will be compared to the farmers conventional treatments on the crop.

To monitor for 3 key pests in maize crops - Heliothis, Fall Armyworm & Two Spotted Mites, then apply treatments that are IPM friendly if needed (Bugs for Bugs and IPM friendly insecticides).  The demonstration block will be compared to the farmers conventional treatments on the crop.

The aim of the focus paddock was to look at growing the higher yields and understand the impact of this on residual Nitrogen left behind in the soil. Many growers use Faba Beans in their rotation to try and fix non bagged N

1) Improve herbicide rotation strategies with the focus on reducing selection pressure and dependence on IMI herbicides
2) Compare the level of weed control achieved with low and high inputs of non-IMI herbicides when used at their own or in combination with IMI herbicides, and cost analysis of these practices

To demostrate the the imidazolinone and residual sulfonyl urea tolerance of 2 new breedling lines. 

To investigate the impact of seed size in faba beans on the growth, grain yield and seed quality.

To investigate the stability of the seed size trait in PBA HallmarkXT across generations.

To evaluate the impact of harvest stubble height on fallow efficiency.

To evaluate the impact of harvest stubble height on fallow efficiency.

To evaluate the impact of harvest stubble height on fallow efficiency.

To evaluate the impact of variety and harvest delay on pod loss in chickpeas

To evaluate the impact of variety and harvest delay on pod loss in chickpeas

To assess the impact of waterlogging damage on faba bean growth and grain yield.

Improving canola harvest management decisions with remote sensing

To improve the plant height and harvestability of chickpea

To determine the effectiveness of fungicide strategies for a susceptible canola cultivar grown under overhead irrigation

To examine whether experimental PGR (not commercially approved) application has any yield benefit in irrigated canola at different plant populations

Influence of Soil Amelioration and Soil Amendments on Canola Yield and Profitability

To demonstrate and quantify the benefits of differing inoculants in both dry and wet sown faba beans and lentil

The project established, assessed and demonstrated a research programme that has resulted in the demonstration of best management IDM practices for the control of Septoria tritici blotch (STB) in the southern region HRZ.

To identify effective management options for annual ryegrass resistant to Group A, J and K herbicides in lentil

To study the effect of weed wiping, clipping and new herbicides for management of wild radish in lentil

Everyone knows that Queensland grows the best chickpeas, but chickpeas leave the soil quite bare. This bare soil then reduces our fallow efficiency (amount of fallow rainfall captured for use by the next crop), which is a big problem in an area that relies on stored soilwater for yield.

Our team recently completed a study growing cover crops in the fallow to improve ground cover and soilwater available to the next crop, so we understand the value of ground cover and when we saw the opportunity to try growing the cover crop with our chickpeas we were keen to give it a go.

Companion crops are not new or novel, they are in every home vege garden; from marigolds to keep the pests out of tomatoes, or flowers to attract pollinators into the pumpkin patch. What is novel is doing this on a broadacre scale and with mechanically harvested crops.

A review by CSIRO (Fletcher et al 2016) showed potential to increase crop productivity with intercrops; particularly with ‘peaola’ (canola and fieldpea), which increase productivity by 50% in 24 of 34 studies reviewed. They also found cereal-legume intercrops to increase productivity in 64% of studies.

That review focused on temperate cropping areas of southern Australian and internationally, so the question remains whether these systems will perform in a sub-tropical environment and a farming system reliant on stored soilwater for yield stability.

Given our reliance on stored soilwater for maintaining grain yield and the fallow efficiency cost of low stubble cover following chickpea; we focused our efforts on wheat and chickpea, with the research questions of: Can we increase stubble cover after chickpea? and What is the yield impact of growing wheat and chickpea together as companion crops?

Growers in this environment have been hesitant to graze canola due to the long season traditional grazing varieties and the risk of heat stress in late spring/ early summer. The hope was that a series 5 spring variety would mature earlier and require one less irrigation in spring. The growers were accepting that a yield decrease would occur however it would save them an irrigation.

In 2021, members of the GRDC Riverine Plains Irrigation Discussion Group tested the practical and financial implications of grazing irrigated wheat and canola. 

The project aimed to look at the impact of autumn irrigation in establishing canola plant population and increasing biomass.