• Authors:
    • Chan, K. Y.
    • Heenan, D. P.
    • So, H. B.
  • Source: Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture
  • Volume: 43
  • Issue: 4
  • Year: 2003
  • Authors:
    • Portelli, M.
    • Rab, A.
    • Mock ,I.
    • Knight, A.
    • Blott, K.
    • Unkovich, M.
  • Source: Australian Journal of Agricultural Research
  • Volume: 54
  • Issue: 8
  • Year: 2003
  • Summary: Annual crops were grown in alleys between belts of perennial shrubs or trees over 3-4 years at 3 sites across low rainfall (<450 mm) south-eastern Australia. At the two lower rainfall sites (Pallamana and Walpeup), crop grain yields within 2-5 m of shrub belts declined significantly with time, with a reduction equivalent to 45% over 9 m in the final year of cropping. At the third, wetter site (Bridgewater), the reduction in crop grain yields adjacent to tree belts was not significant until the final year of the study (12% over 11 m) when the tree growth rates had increased. The reductions in crop yield were associated with increased competition for water between the shrub or tree belts and the crops once the soil profile immediately below the perennials had dried. At all 3 sites during the establishment year, estimates of water use under the woody perennials were less than under annual crops, but after this, trends in estimates of water use of alley farming systems varied between sites. At Pallamana the perennial shrubs used a large amount of stored soil water in the second summer after establishment, and subsequently were predominantly dependent on rainfall plus what they could scavenge from beneath the adjacent crop. After the establishment year at the Walpeup site, water use under the perennial shrubs was initially 67 mm greater than under the annual crop, declining to be only 24 mm greater in the final year. Under the trees at Bridgewater, water use consistently increased to be 243 mm greater than under the adjacent annual crop by the final year. Although the shrub belts used more water than adjacent crop systems at Walpeup and Pallamana, this was mostly due to the use of stored soil water, and since the belts occupied only 7-18% of the land area, increases in total water use of these alley farming systems compared with conventional crop monocultures were quite small, and in terms of the extent of recharge control this was less than the area of crop yield loss. At the wetter, Bridgewater site, alley farming appeared to be using an increasing amount of water compared with conventional annual cropping systems. Overall, the data support previous work that indicates that in lower rainfall environments (<350 mm), alley farming is likely to be dogged by competition for water between crops and perennials.
  • Authors:
    • Diffey, S.
    • Good, A.
    • Mead, J.
    • Hocking, P.
  • Source: Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture
  • Volume: 43
  • Issue: 11
  • Year: 2003
  • Summary: Land preparation for canola (oilseed rape; Brassica napus L.) by conventional cultivation can involve a number of workings, resulting in soil degradation and reduced crop growth. Minimum-tillage systems may help overcome these problems, but the placement of fertiliser at sowing must avoid chemical injury to germinating seed. The responses of canola cultivars to tillage and fertiliser placement were studied for 2 seasons at high (Breakfast Creek, 1997; Harden, 1998) and low (Ardlethan, 1997-98) rainfall sites. The tillage treatments were conventional cultivation, one-pass, and no-till (direct drill). The fertiliser treatments were 200 kg/ha 'starter' fertiliser (a compound fertiliser supplying 30 kg N, 26 kg P and 22 kg S/ha) either placed with the seed, or broadcast, or banded to the side and 3 cm below the seed. In 1997 the canola was sown after wheat, and in 1998 after pasture. Plant establishment of all cultivars was reduced by 40-65% when fertiliser was placed with the seed; tillage treatment did not alter this response. Placing fertiliser with the seed reduced dry matter/m 2 by up to 40% in plants at flowering, but by physiological maturity, there were no differences in dry matter/m 2 due to fertiliser placement. Analysis of the combined seed yields for both years showed that although plants in the with-seed placement compensated by producing more seed/plant, this compensation was sufficient only at Breakfast Creek for yields to be comparable to those of the other fertiliser placements. Tillage had little effect on seed yields. In 1997, no-till yielded more than one-pass at Ardlethan, but in 1998 at Ardlethan no-till yielded less than the other tillage systems. Fertiliser placement and tillage had no effect on seed oil concentration and meal protein content. Cone penetrometer measurements (1998) showed no differences in soil strength between tillage treatments at Ardlethan; while at Harden, one-pass had less soil strength than the other tillage treatments. Crop water extraction was not affected by tillage at any site. It is concluded that a conservation-farming system involving no-till or one-pass tillage, and separation of seed and fertiliser has the potential for producing high yielding canola crops, reducing the risk of soil degradation, as well as saving time and land-preparation costs.
  • Authors:
    • Simpfendorfer, S.
    • Backhouse, D.
    • Moore, K.
    • Verrell, A.
  • Source: Update of research in progress at the Tamworth Agricultural Institute 2002
  • Year: 2003
  • Summary: A replicated, fully phased, field trial was conducted in Tamworth, New South Wales, Australia, to determine the effects of the most common winter and summer break crops on crown rot (caused by Fusarium pseudograminearum) in wheat. The experiment was established in 2000 by sowing F. pseudograminearum-colonized ryegrass seed with wheat cv. Janz into plots. In 2001, rape, chickpea, faba bean, sorghum or wheat cv. Janz were grown under a no-till system. In 2002, wheat cv. Sunstate was planted across the winter break crop plots. All four rotation crops proved effective breaks for crown rot. They encouraged breakdown of the 2000 Janz residue. Stubble ground cover in May 2002 was 15% for sorghum, 28% for faba beans, 30% for rape, and 41% for chickpea compared with 88% for continuous no-till wheat (and 60% long fallow). The rotation crops also reduced survival of the pathogen with recovery of F. pseudograminearum ranging from 7-13% in crowns to 10-15% in stubble following break crops compared with 33% in crowns and 49% in stubble for continuous no-till wheat. These effects carried through to the 2002 wheat crop where infection of Sunstate plants at tillering ranged from 25% for wheat after rape to 39% for continuous wheat.
  • Authors:
    • Littlewood, B.
    • Lemerle, D.
    • Lockley, P.
  • Source: Cultivar * herbicide screening: 2002 results
  • Year: 2003
  • Summary: Results are presented of the evaluation of herbicide tolerance (based on yield performance) in wheat, barley, oat, triticale, rape, lupin, field pea, lentil, chickpea and faba bean cultivars and advanced lines grown in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia, during 2002. Compatibility charts of herbicide * cultivar combinations are included to provide guidelines to farmers on the relative risk of crop damage for various herbicide * cultivar combinations.
  • Authors:
    • McCaffery, D. W.
    • McRae, F. J.
    • Carpenter, D. J.
  • Year: 2003
  • Summary: This guide should assist in the selection of the most suitable variety for cultivation and aims to assist growers to make better cropping decisions. Information on variety selection, varietal characteristics and reaction to disease, crop injury guide and marketing are supplied for wheat, durum wheat, barley, oats, triticale, cereal rye, rape, chickpeas, faba beans, field pea ( Pisum sativum) and lupins. Additional material includes information on options for control of stored products pests, cereal seed dressings, industry information, and locations of district agronomists.
  • Authors:
    • Dellow, J. J.
    • Francis, R. J.
    • Mullen, C. L.
    • McRae, F. J.
  • Source: Weed control in winter crops 2003
  • Year: 2003
  • Summary: This publication, intended for use by New South Wales Agriculture (New South Wales, Australia), presents some guidelines on chemical weed control in fallows, wheat, barley, oats, rye, triticale, rape, safflower, lentil, linseed, lupin, chickpea, faba bean and field pea. Tabulated data on herbicides, along with application rates suggested for particular weed species, are included.
  • Authors:
    • Allen, S. E.
    • Desmarchelier, J. M.
    • Ren, Y. L.
    • Weller, G. L.
  • Source: Technical report (CSIRO (Australia). Division of Entomology), no. 93.
  • Issue: 93
  • Year: 2003
  • Summary: The efficacy of ethyl formate (EF) against insect pests on barley, oat and rape grains was evaluated. EF at 90 g/t was applied as a solution of ethyl formate in water (4%, w/w) and sprayed onto rape and oat grains during inloading. For barley, EF solution was sprayed into the inloading chute. Intergranular concentrations of EF declined rapidly after fumigation. Residue levels in commodities declined to the control (untreated) level within 4 weeks at grain temperatures of approximately 20C without forced aeration. Air samples were taken at head height at various distances downwind from the base of the silos during fumigation and outloading. The levels of EF measured were
  • Authors:
    • Felton, W.
    • Haigh, B.
  • Source: Update of research in progress at the Tamworth Agricultural Institute 2002
  • Year: 2003
  • Summary: Crop growth rate and weed competition were studied in New South Wales, Australia during 2002 using reflectance sensors. Seeds of wheat cv. Sunstate, chickpea cv. Howzat, faba bean cv. Fiord and rape cv. Oscar were sown at 40, 70, 100 and 3 kg/ha, respectively. Two reflectance sensors mounted on a small tractor were used to collect data across each plot every two weeks (45-129 days after sowing). Wheat recorded the greatest biomass, yield and water consumption, whereas chickpea recorded the highest harvest index and lowest water consumption. The rate of crop development was greatest in wheat and lowest in chickpea. The number of days required to produce 1000 kg/ha of shoot dry matter was 92, 100, 102 and 11 days after sowing for wheat, faba bean, rape and chickpea, respectively. Reflectance measurements were also used to evaluate the potential of wheat, triticale and barley as 'mimic weeds' against wild oat [ Avena fatua] in chickpea. Reflectance estimates were made at 51, 62, 84, 100 and 120 days after sowing. The 'mimic weeds' established faster than wild oat. The density of wild oat was lower than that of the mimic weeds, although none of the weeds achieved the target density of 81 weeds/m 2. The similar linear relationships with regard to the effects of weed biomass on crop yield for wild oat and 'mimic weeds' indicated that the latter can be used in weed studies instead of the actual weed. At low densities, wheat and barley were the most competitive. Triticale and wild oat exhibited similar competitive ability.
  • Authors:
    • Crawford, M.
    • Ransom, K.
    • Hirth, J.
    • Harris, R.
    • Naji, R.
  • Source: Solutions for a better environment: Proceedings of the 11th Australian Agronomy Conference, Geelong, Victoria, Australia, 2-6 February 2003
  • Year: 2003
  • Summary: Companion cropping (also known as intercropping) of lucerne involves sowing an annual crop into an existing lucerne stand. A sample of eight farmers from north central Victoria, Australia, who currently companion crop, were interviewed to document the impact of this practice on grain production, and to determine why and how they used this approach in their farming system. All eight farmers companion cropped lucerne to produce grain for either human or livestock consumption. Wheat, barley, oat and triticale were most commonly sown into lucerne stands, with rape less frequently companion cropped. Most companion-cropped stands of lucerne were either winter-active or highly winter-active cultivars and most had densities of 10-30 plants/m 2. They were commonly 9-12 months old, although some stands up to 10 years old were successfully companion cropped. Sowing rates of the annual crop were generally greater than those used in conventional monoculture cropping, and most farmers sowed diagonally across existing lucerne rows. Most interviewed farmers adopted companion cropping because of perceived better economic returns from cropping rather than grazing their second-year stands of lucerne, which then became more persistent and productive stands for future grazing. Farmers who companion cropped into mature stands aimed to maintain year-round plant transpiration to minimize the impact of their cropping practices on local groundwater systems, through a better hydrologic balance between the rainfall and their vegetation. Decreased grain yields from companion-cropped crops were common, and were estimated to be 10 to 80% of those obtained in the absence of lucerne. The magnitude of the yield decreases appeared to be most strongly influenced by seasonal conditions. The use of herbicides for in-crop lucerne suppression was perceived to enhance grain quality by slowing lucerne growth over the late winter-spring period, thereby reducing lucerne seed and herbage contamination at harvest. As seasonal and soil water conditions critically influenced the success of herbicide applications, specialist advice was often sought.