Department of Agriculture and Food WA trials

This trial is the second year of the trial series comparing the performance and response of two breeding lines (03198-18, named Kowari , and 06204-16, named Bilby ) and two benchmark varieties (Carrolup and Williams ) to changes in nitrogen and plant density in medium rainfall environments.

To determine the rates of copper and zinc required for maximum grain yield of wheat grown on  yellow brown and yellow brown gravel soils sands across 2 seasons.

To develop variety specific management packages for ascochyta blight of chickpea.

Barley grass is becoming an increasingly problematic weed in Western Australia. A GRDC funded project sought to increase adoption of integrated weed management tactics for barley grass, by working with grower groups to develop regionally appropriate rotations for optimal control.

A survey indicated that in growers in the northern wheatbelt felt that barley grass was most likely to be a major problem in pasture, and a common response is use of Group A herbicide to remove grass in pasture. However, given how easy it is to develop Group A resistance, the group wanted to investigate other chemical and non-chemical options in pasture, as well as the impact of late seeding and pre-emergent herbicide for barley grass control in crop.

This three year trial aimed to investigate slashing and spray topping in pasture in 2019, and then time of sowing and pre-emergent herbicides in wheat in 2020 and canola in 2021.

• How will the barley and wheat perform side by side after a serradella phase?
• How much N do we need to apply to each crop type after a serradella phase, and which is the most profitable?
• Will there be Imazethapyr residue from April 2017, and will it affect the non-CL® variety?

To determine the rates of copper and zinc required for maximum grain yield of wheat grown on  brown gravelly earths..

Native budworm actively feeding on cereals has not been an issue for growers or industry in the past, and considering the recent detections, growers and western region industry networks have voiced that they would like support on this issue, especially regarding sampling techniques and spray thresholds. To achieve this, we investigated this new behavioural trend and the population numbers required to cause economic yield losses to determine if and when management is required in non-traditional cereal hosts.

Through pheromone-based moth trapping, crop inspections, glasshouse trials and a field cage trial, we investigated the behaviour of H. punctigera moths and larvae on, and potential economic damage to, wheat in the northern grainbelt of Western Australia. 

To determine if spacing lupin (Lupinus angustifolius L) and canola (Brassica napus) plants in more uniform geometric patterns can improve yield of these species in the Northern Agricultural Region of Western Australia.

To investigate yield and phenology of canola varieties when sown in March to provide better advice to agronomists and growers about the best varieties to use and safe sowing and flowering windows.

To identify herbicide sensitivities of new lupin varieties with the view to reduce their yield losses due to herbicide damage. Mandelup was included as a standard variety for comparison in the trial.

Blue lupins are problematic in narrow leave lupin production, especially in the Northern Agriculture Region of WA Wheatbelt and no herbicide is registered for their control in this crop. There were earlier reports that blue lupins could be controlled/suppressed with triclopyr (e.g. Garlon®) safely applied at pod setting on main stem of narrow leave lupins (Quinlan and Fleay, 2016). Two timing of application of Garlon® at 30 mL/ha were included in the trial to determine their safety on new narrow leafed lupin varieties.

To consolidate information and provide guidelines for best bet management of canola sown at or before mid-April.

Copper, Zinc and nitrogen   required for maximum grain yield of wheat following clover ley at Wongan hills  Station.

To compare the plant density response of yield and oil content between hybrid and OP canola in TT and RR herbicide tolerance groups

To determine if spacing canola plants more uniformly within the row can improve yield in the WA Northern Region.

To investigate the response to changing the nitrogen rate and changing the time of application.  Canola yield and oil will be measured and RR hybrids will be compared with open-pollinated TT types (OP TT).

To investigate the response to changing the nitrogen rate and changing the time of application.  Canola yield and oil will be measured and RR hybrids will be compared with open-pollinated TT types (OP TT).

1. To obtain data on late March and early April sowing of canola varieties.
2. To determine if changing variety to better match season length improves yield.

To determine if retaining canola seed leads to reduced yield, oil and financial return.

To investigate the response to changing the nitrogen rate and changing the time of application.  Canola yield and oil will be measured and RR hybrids will be compared with open-pollinated TT types (OP TT).

To determine the rates of boron required for maximum grain yield of canola  grown on  soils of the Wickepin area.

Canola was thought to have a high B requirement so a range of sites were selected to determine any response incanola to B applications.

To determine the rates of boron required for maximum grain yield of canola grown on  sandy soils  across  seasons.

Barley grass is becoming an increasingly problematic weed in Western Australia. A GRDC funded project sought to increase the adoption of integrated weed management tactics for barley grass, by working with grower groups to develop regionally appropriate rotations for optimal control. 

Barley grass at high density reduces crop yield. However, GRDC project UA00156 (Seed bank ecology of emerging weeds) has highlighted that barley grass ecotypes in Western Australia are often short, and are likely to be highly sensitive to crop competition. Initial control with pre-emergent herbicides combined with high seeding rates in cereal crops may be sufficient to control this species.

This trial aimed to investigate pre-emergent herbicides and high-density crop seeding in barley crops. The trial was run in two separate fields in 2020 and 2021, on a single farm.

Compare the yield responses of wheat varieties sown at three sowing dates (9 April, 23 April and 12 May) and two plant densities.

To determine the rates and form of boron required for maximum grain yield of canola and lupin grown on acidic low organic matter and low clay soils sands across three seasons.

To investigate yield and phenology of canola varieties when sown in March to provide better advice to agronomists and growers about the best varieties to use and safe sowing and flowering windows.

Claying has been undertaken in many areas throughout the zone, and there is quite a bit of expertise on the risks and benefits associated with it within the zone. Cash flow of most farmers in general doesn’t allow the expense of the high rates of clay to occur. However, there is anecdotal evidence to suggest that low rates of clay (lower than rates used currently to improve soil structure) will improve the wettability of the soil. By including clay in the trial it is anticipated that the benefits of low rates of clay will show improved wettability. Other opportunities for the zone appear to be mitigation of non-wetting – including on-row seeding. This would include associated practical risks around seeding such as stubble handling issues and accurate seeding systems.

To determine the rates of boron required for maximum grain yield of canola grown on  yellow sandy soils  across  seasons.

Calibration of plant test for diagnosing zinc deficiency in wheat grown on responsive soils under field condition 

To determine the rates of copper and zinc required for maximum grain yield of wheat grown on yellow sands.

To determine the rates of copper and zinc required for maximum grain yield of wheat.

To measure the effect of deep ripping on depth to free water (waterlogging) and the associated yield response of canola (2018) and wheat (2019) after deep ripping on this soil type.

To determine the methods and rates of Mn placement  required for maximum dry matter production of sub clover  grown on very gravelly soils in West Dale district.

To determine the impact of stubble burning on snail populations in a canola paddock

To determine the impact of stubble burning on snail populations in a canola paddock

To determine the residual effectiveness of Mo fertiliser  for maximum medic grown on  York Gum country.

To determine the residual effectiveness of Mo fertiliser  for maximum clover ley grown on  orange brown gravelly sand countryl

To determine the rates of copper and zinc required for maximum grain yield of wheat grown on yellow sands of the western zone.

A demonstration site to compare different seeding machinery in tough conditions and through a range of soil types.

Investigate the effect of row spacing up to 66cm in two hybrid varieties at two different seeding rates to determine if row spacing or plant density can ameliorate the effect of sclerotinia stem rot, with or without fungicide application.

To determine the rates of boron required for maximum grain yield of canola  grown on  soils of the north east wheat belt area.

Canola was thought to have a high B requirement so a range of sites were selected to determine any response incanola to B applications.

To determine the rates of boron required for maximum grain yield of canola grown on  sandy soils  across  seasons.

To investigate yield and phenology of canola varieties when sown in March to provide better advice to agronomists and growers about the best varieties to use and safe sowing and flowering windows.

• To determine if a profitable canola crop can be grown from a March seeding.
• To compare the relative yield and profitability of different seeding times.
• To determine if it is best to use a long season variety for very early seeding opportunities.

Barley grass is becoming an increasingly problematic weed in Western Australia. A GRDC funded project sought to increase the adoption of integrated weed management tactics for barley grass, by working with grower groups to develop regionally appropriate rotations for optimal control.

A survey indicated that growers in the southern lakes region of Western Australia often had pasture as the main rotation choice after cereal. In contrast to other areas of the wheat belt, some growers in this region considered barley grass a valuable (early) feed in pasture as well as a weed in crops. However, growers found that barley grass could have a large impact on crop yield. Growers were interested in either controlling barley grass or suppressing barley grass in crops while allowing it to survive in pasture.

Most group members felt their barley grass was resistant to herbicides (especially low-level resistance to Group A, Targa^®). However, growers were unwilling to stop using Targa^®, even if efficiency was reduced against barley grass, as it effectively controlled other grass weeds. Growers wanted to pair Targa^® with other products in the pasture to kill barley grass, and then control surviving barley grass in crop with best practice pre-seeding herbicides.

The trial aimed to investigate pasture barley grass control in 2019, pre-emergent herbicides in barley in 2020 and oats in 2021.

1. To refine canola establishment methods for early sowing.
2. To see if it is possible to chase moisture at depth with canola.

To determine the rates of copper and zinc required for maximum grain yield of wheat grown on  grey sandy surface over red brown mottled clay .

• To maximise canola yields in the high rainfall zone, with a combination of high nitrogen rates and full fungicide protection.
• Determine nitrogen distribution at crop maturity between the different mature plant material fractions; coarse material, fine and pod material and seed.
• Determine the mineral N levels in summer-autumn following the canola crop

Copper, Zinc and nitrogen   required for maximum grain yield of wheat following clover ley at Dandaragan.

To determine the rates of boron required for maximum grain yield of canola  grown on  soils of the south coast area.

Canola was thought to have a high B requirement so a range of sites were selected to determine any response incanola to B applications.

To determine the rates of copper and zinc required for maximum grain yield of wheat grown on  yellow gravelly sand.