West Midlands Group trials

To determine which ameliorant practice is the most effective and economic in remediating subsoil acidity at depth.

To determine which ameliorant practice is the most effective and economic in remediating subsoil acidity at depth.

This was the first year of an intended long term trial investigating the effect of K nutrition on sandplain. Potassium was applied at rates between zero and 100 kg/ha IBS and banded in the forms of MOP and compound NPK product (Vigour).

To measure the impact on crop productivity of combinations of lime and mouldboard ploughing on acidic deep yellow sand.

To answer the quesitons:

• Does in-furrow application of fungicide using liquid banding improve control of Rhizoctonia solani compared to the untreated control or seed treatment?
• Does in-furrow application of fungicide using liquid banding improve control of Rhizoctonia solani compared to coating of granular fertiliser?
• Does an integrated approach incorporating cultivation, seed treatment and in-furrow fungicide application improve control of Rhizoctonia solani compared to the untreated control and all other individual treatments?

To test modified one-way ploughs as a method of lime incorporation.

To look at the interaction of lime rate and cultivation in changing subsoil pH. 

To evaluate banded wetting agent (SACOA ‘Irrigator’) for crop establishment and yield on non-wetting soils in the West Midlands.

This trial aimed to compare the production of different annual legumes in the West Midlands and the associated seed loss to native budworm particularly in regards to serradella.

To demonstrate the crop safety and efficacy of Prosaro 420SC applied by grower machinery for the control of Blackleg in Canola.

• To demonstrate the influence of rainfall on Sakura uptake.
• To highlight the influence of a drying top soil when weeds have already germinated prior to application of Sakura.
• To influence of rainfall to carry herbicide to soil active zone.
• To make a comparison between root (Sakura) and shoot uptake herbicides (trifluralin, Boxer Gold®, Avadex® Xtra) efficacy including residual control over time.

To determine the effectiveness of urease inhibitor products.

Compare varying rates of N on wheat after applying BEST TM21 against a control area of no post nitrogen application.

To compare potassium (K) strategies over 3 years.

To assess amelioration of subsoil acidity using a range of tillage methods for incorporating surface applied lime into acidic subsoils and the impacts of tillage and lime on crop productivity.

To assess amelioration of subsoil acidity using a range of tillage methods for incorporating surface applied lime into acidic subsoils and the impacts of tillage and lime on crop productivity.

To determine whether a profit can be achieved from incorporating lime in the year it is applied.

• To compare EverGol Prime, Vibrance and Tripower to Baytan T for loose smut control.
• To compare EverGol Prime compared to triazole seed treatments for rhizoctonia suppression.

Assess the value of several traits that aim to improve the acid-soil tolerance of wheat under field conditions.

Demonstration to evaluate new forage options against commonly used graze and grain options.

To evaluate the influence of perennial row spacing and grass suppression on the performance of serradella summer sown into subtropical perennial-grass pastures.

To test ‘Lupin Bud’ for improvement in the main stem pod set in lupins.

To assess the impact of region and powdery mildew pathotype on field response of varieties with a range of resistance rankings to powdery mildew within the Western Australian barley producing zones.

To determine the effect of canola plant density on nitrogen (N) response.

• To evaluate the impact of crop seeding rate and perennial row spacing on grain yield of lupin crops.
• To evaluate the feasibility of using tine seeders fitted with precision guidance technology to sow annual crops into subtropical perennial pastures (offset to perennial rows) without damaging the perennial base.

• To identify impact of amelioration on maintaining productivity of adapted varieties in a district.
• To compare effect of amelioration on soil pH.

To determine how serradella performs when introduced to a sub tropical pasture stand.

To assess the use of banded slow release nitrogen in comparison to banded urea and best practice farmer practice.

• To evaluate the performance of annual crop and pasture species sown into subtropical grasses.
• To compare summer and winter sowing options to introduce serradella into subtropical perennial pastures.

To investigate the response of wheat to different rates of applied P and N.

To investigate the response of wheat to polymer-coated urea.

• To compare the efficacy of commercial pre-emergent herbicides and mixtures for ARG control across multiple soil types using grower machinery for seeding and ongoing management consistent with the grower’s practice.
• To determine yield and $ return on investment to the grower from current standard pre-emergent herbicides Sakura, trifluralin, Avadex Xtra and Boxer Gold with new options such as standalone prosulfocarb, the main component of Boxer Gold. Prosulfocarb (e.g. Arcade) must be incorporated within 7 days of application.

To determine the effect grazing barley has on grain yield.

The trial purpose was to compare seed dressing and foliar application of Bioprime using granular and liquid fertilisers. 

To demonstrate how soil inversion using a mouldbaord plough could be used to incorporate lime into acidic subsoil, overcome soil water repellance and control weeds and to measure its in=mpact and growth.

To compare different clay spreading and tillage methods for the amelioration of water repellent gravel soils.

To compare crop emergence between treatments.

To compare programs of seed and foliar fungicides for BL control.

To compare yield and $ROI between Canola disease programs.

To investigate the efficacy of seed dressing and fertiliser applied fungicides on the time of onset, rate of development and yield impact of wheat powdery mildew.

Evaluate Lokomotive as an in season foliar potassium source for correcting potassium deficiency and compare to muriate of potash (MOP).

To evaluate the performance of crops (Lupin in 2012) when pasture cropped over different perennial species established on deep pale sands.

This trial examines potassium (K) rates as muriate of potash (MOP) products applied by a number of methods and the effects on growth and yield of Mace wheat.

To evaluate the performance of perennial grass and crops (Barley in 2013) when pasture cropped over different perennial species established on deep pale sands.

To demonstrate and evaluate nitrogen-rich strips (N Gauges) and Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) measurement as to provide a simple, accurate and easy-to-understand decision support tool to guide economic application of nitrogen during the growing season.

• Serradella is a useful pasture species on the sandy soils of the West Midlands. But it has two major weaknesses: weed control (particularly radish and capeweed) and a lack of early biomass production. By sowing serradella with a Clearfield Barley variety (Scope or Spartacus) and using Clearfield (Imidazolinone) herbicides both of these weaknesses can be overcome.
• The aim of this demonstration was to highlight the pro’s and con’s of using Clearfield Barley as a cover crop when sowing serradella pastures.

To test whether we can increase radiation use efficiency and yield in wheat by changing architecture (floppy vs. erect leaves).

To evaluate the performance of annual crops when pasture cropped over different perennial species.  

This Demonstration forms part of the Grain & Graze II project looking at the relative merits of grazing canola and cereal crops. This demonstration looks to assess whether the effects of grazing wheat with sheep during the growing season. Factors being assessed are Yield & quality, dry matter production and grazing value.

To compare two methods for the establishment of pasture legumes (i) summer sowing where dormant hard-seed is drill sown into the paddock after the crop is harvested; and (ii) traditional sowing where scarified seed is drill sown after the break of the season and knockdown weed control.