Cropping, tillage and pastures march 2016 (low res)

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Cropping, tillage & pastures

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Down and dirty at Colbinabbin — pages 6 and 7

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Growing clover on heavy soils – page 14

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PAGE 2—‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016

cropping, tillage & pastures

Update offers research info ictorian grain growers are well V placed to make informed decisions to help them maximise yield and profit

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potential throughout the coming cropping season, according to the GRDC. The GRDC two-day Grains Research Update in Bendigo last month delivered critical research information to about 320 agronomists, consultants, researchers, growers and other grains industry personnel from across the state.

GRDC Southern Regional Panel member Rob Sonogan said the annual update was recognised as Victoria’s premier grains research forum, playing a vital role in keeping advisers and growers up to date with cutting-edge research and development outcomes and insights.

Mr Sonogan said the update was very much focused on supporting growers in generating profitability from their farming systems, especially after last year’s extremely dry season in many parts of the state. ‘‘At the end of the day, it is important that our farmers are making a profit,’’ Mr Sonogan said. ‘‘The GRDC updates are geared towards

providing the information and resources needed to help them make that happen.’’

Mr Sonogan said after the dry of 2015 it was important to test soils for nutrient and moisture levels ahead of the 2016 sowing programs. ‘‘That was a common theme in presentations from a number of speakers at the update,’’ he said.

Mr Sonogan said having a clear understanding of the soil base would enable growers to make sound judgements about input requirements and target yields.

He said international guest speaker Robert Saik, from Agri-Trend in Canada, provided an interesting insight into the key drivers that he believes will shape agriculture during the next decade. ‘‘To feed a growing world population, Mr Saik says there will need to be further integration into agriculture of technology such as robotics, artificial intelligence, sensor integration, biosynthesis (genetic engineering and genetically modified organisms), data systems and environmental sustainability,’’ he said. ➤ More on pages 8 and 9.

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Soil testing for nutrients and moisture has become a recurring theme in recommendations by crop advisers.

Test before sowing

rain growers who experienced G extremely dry seasonal conditions in 2015 are advised to determine their

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soil’s phosphorus (P) status ahead of this year’s sowing programs.

In areas where rainfall was minimal during the 2015 growing season, the removal of phosphorus in the grain of lowyielding crops was likely to have been low.

This also applies to failed cereal crops that were cut for hay.

In some cases, application of phosphorus may not be necessary, if soil phosphorus tests are in the optimal or high range.

Having soils tested to assess their phosphorus status could save growers significant input costs, according to GRDC Southern Regional Panel member Mike McLaughlin. ‘‘Fertiliser investment decisions should start with knowing how much P is in those soils where growers are planning to sow a crop,’’ Dr McLaughlin said.

In neutral and acidic soils, a significant

amount of phosphorus fertiliser applied to 2015 crops may still be effective for the 2016 crop, due to reduced and slower soil phosphorus fixation occurring in very dry soil conditions experienced last year.

Where crops failed in 2015 and soil phosphorus status is at the maintenance phase, 2016 phosphorus application rates of up to 5 kg/ha should be considered.

On soils in the ‘‘build-up phase’’, growers who have been experiencing dry conditions and low yields are advised to apply a level of phosphorus that can be afforded.

Dr McLaughlin said phosphorus must be accessed by the plant in the first six weeks of growth. ‘‘That means it must be applied at sowing; it’s not feasible to apply phosphorus to the growing crop.’’ ➤ More information on phosphorus management is contained in a GRDC fact sheet which can be viewed and downloaded at www.grdc.com.au/GRDCFS-PhosphorusManagement

‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016—PAGE 3

cropping, tillage & pastures

New climate emerges new climate is emerging in Australia, A according to new maps released by the Australian Export Grains Innovation Centre.

AEGIC analysed data from more than 8000 Bureau of Meteorology stations around the country, and discovered traditional rainfall zones had changed significantly since 2000.

In northern and eastern areas, summer (and summer dominant) rainfall zones are expanding southward.

Between these regions, there is a uniform rainfall zone where summer and winter rainfall are similar.

For regions with a Mediterranean climate, winter (and winter dominant) rainfall zones are contracting in a south-westerly direction.

The southern boundary of this zone has shifted from southern/central NSW down into central Victoria and the Mallee region of south-east South Australia.

Most rainfall zone boundaries have

typically shifted 100-400 km over the past 16 years.

The analysis revealed significant shifts in rainfall zones since 2000, which can be seen in the map (above).

The findings will be presented as part of a talk, entitled South-west Western Australia

is losing its Mediterranean Climate by AEGIC agro-meteorologist David Stephens at the 2016 GRDC Perth Grains Research Update in April.

Dr Stephens said the analysis highlighted the shift to earlier sowing of winter crops measured recently by AEGIC should continue because early sown crops take advantage of any additional summer soil moisture.

He said the new analysis revealed striking changes to the Australian climate over the past 16 years. ‘‘Since 2000, there has been a general increase in summer rainfall across Australia, and a corresponding decrease in winter rainfall, leading to shifts in rainfall zones extending for hundreds of kilometres,’’ Dr Stephens said. ‘‘Rainfall between May to October over much of the heavily populated regions of southern Australia has decreased 10 to 30 per cent, while summer rain has increased up to 40 per cent in some areas.’’

Performance was ‘abysmal’ he performance statistics released T by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority

recently were ‘‘abysmal’’ and highlighted the Federal Agriculture Department’s last round of reforms had failed on their key goal to improve regulatory efficiency, according to the CropLife organisation. ‘‘This abysmal performance is best demonstrated by the fact that the regulator is only achieving 52 per cent of work within its statutory timeframes,’’ CropLIfe executive officer Matthew Cossey said. ‘‘Such lengthy delays in assessing crop protection product applications for registration means that Australian farmers are being denied the benefits of new and innovative products that their global competitors already have. ‘‘The innovation of new crop protection products or new uses for existing products that is core to improving productivity by Australian farmers is being stifled by a slow, inefficient and cumbersome regulatory system.’’

CropLife represents the agricultural chemical and plant science industry. ‘‘Australia is fortunate to have an independent, scientifically competent and technically proficient regulator, however, ongoing issues relating to efficiency, predictability and consistency are seriously affecting farmer access to the latest crop protection products,’’ Mr Cossey said. ‘‘These results are a direct consequence of the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources’ complete disregard for the impact of their previous reform agenda, developed between 2010 and 2014, on the APVMA.’’

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Farmers told to take it easy

By Jodie Symonds t’s that busy time of the Iandyear, particularly for grain cotton growers, and

experts have encouraged farmers to consider taking a post-lunch siesta to reduce the risk of fatigue.

Centre for Sleep Research senior researcher at the University of South Australia Siobhan Banks said a 15 to 20 minute nap could significantly improve a farmer’s productivity and reflexes, and reduce the risk of injury. ‘‘Being awake for 17 hours continuously is the equivalent of having a blood alcohol level of 0.05 or 0.08,’’ Dr Banks said.

According to a study by the Australian Centre for Agriculture Health and Safety at the University of Sydney, the death rate for farmers is 33 per

People as important as crops: During events like harvest, spraying or lambing, Dr Banks suggested using these tips to reduce the impact of fatigue: ➤ Take short, timely breaks. A 15 to 20 minute nap in the early afternoon fits in with the body’s natural clock. A nap in the morning will be less effective. ➤ If farmers are working around the clock, try to take a longer break during the high risk period for accidents and

cent higher than that of the general male population.

The study found most agricultural industries and fatalities were linked to vehicles, plant and machinery occurring in the grains industry.

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exhaustion, which is between 11 pm and 6 am. ➤ Stay hydrated. Dehydration will exacerbate feelings of weariness. ➤ Use caffeine in moderation. ➤ If you are feeling stressed before going to bed, try writing a to-do list for the next day. ➤ Have the airconditioning on in the cabin of your machinery.

Working in a cool environment will also reduce fatigue.

contractor Ken Felmingham said he thought the nap would be beneficial to farmers. ‘‘It’s about time management,’’ Mr Felmingham, of LKF Contracting, said. ‘‘They need to plan when they can fit it (the nap) in.’’

Mr Felmingham said most farmers started early and worked late at night.

Dr Banks said it was important farmers did what they could to counteract the impact of extra busy times.

She said farmers could not just stop planting or harvesting, and get eight hours sleep. ‘‘Go to bed a little earlier each night in the lead-up, eat well and exercise; think of it like a marathon runner preparing for an event and your stamina and recovery time will be better.’’

She recommended farmers use caffeine in moderation, and reduce the amount of caffeine before they need to sleep.

Mr Felmingham said he made the switch from drinking coffee to tea. ‘‘Some guys just love their coffee, though,’’ he said.

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PAGE 4—‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016

cropping, tillage & pastures

Top farmer

By Sophie Baldwin

I

n the six generations the Sims family has been farming at Pine Grove, south-west of Echuca, a lot has changed — especially since current custodian Grant has taken the reins.

In an effort to improve their soils, Mr Sims made the decision to turn away from conventional cropping methods and instead use liquid biological fertilisers and focus on soil health.

It has turned their old management on its ear and led them down an exciting new path. ‘‘My Dad and his brother had done a great job cropping then I started at looking into ways we could take things further and improve on what we were doing, starting with our soil health,’’ Mr Sims said. ‘‘In 2008 I started to look at biological fertilisers and our management changed from then on really.’’

The key to the whole system is keeping soil disturbance to an absolute minimum and getting as much residue and groundcover on to protect and feed the soil and letting the bugs and worms in the soil work for you — working with Mother Nature, not against her. ‘‘It is an easy approach — we don’t work the soil up, it is zero till. ‘‘We use a range of biological products, our soil health is amazing and we don’t use chemical fertilisers or fungicides

Sixth generation crop farmer Grant Sims is having a pretty good 2016 after winning the Weekly Times Coles 2015 Farmer of the Year award. His innovative approach to biological cropping and his ability to share information and network in the industry made him a standout winner.

and insecticides any more. ‘‘We certainly haven’t experienced any yield penalties; in fact, our yields are improving all the time, especially on what used to be our poorer ground, and that is just largely due to getting the soil health right.’’

Mr Sims firmly believes this type of system is robust and copes with climatic variability very well.

It also reduces risk because it is simple and not reliant on a large amount of expensive inputs. ‘‘It encourages water infiltration so if we do get some summer storms the rain doesn’t sit on top of the paddock until it evaporates, it gets down into the soil where it can be used.’’

Another stepping stone used in the success of the operation has been the purchase of a NDF disc seeder last year. This seeder allows the crops to be sown with minimal soil disturbance.

For the past two years, Mr Sims has been experimenting with cover crops. Around 10 different varieties are sown together in the one paddock to encourage root diversity and improve soil health.

Legumes are grown for nitrogen, while crops like radishes accumulate the nutrients from the soil and bring them to the topsoil. ➤ Continued on page 5.

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‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016—PAGE 5

cropping, tillage & pastures

shares his secrets ➤ From page 4.

When the cover crop dies, old roots create new channels in the soil which allow for water infiltration and new root growth.

Cover crops have been used extensively in the United States. A recent trip there with South Australian No-Till Farmers Association and Vic No Till Grower Group confirmed to Mr Sims there was a place for this type of crop in his management.

Grazing cattle can be used to harvest this crop which is grown largely for soil health, and the manure left behind becomes a valuable part of the system.

The 4000 ha farm grows a mixture of wheat, barley, oats,

cereal rye, vetch, faba beans, canola and field peas — the diversity in crops is a risk management tool.

The business has 110 ha of irrigation and, while it is only a small part of the operation, it is a handy part. It is where the seed crops for next season are usually grown.

Mr Sims is never afraid to experiment with ideas on his farm, nor is he afraid to share them, especially if they are successful, which is largely why he was nominated for and won the Weekly Times Coles 2015 Farmer of the Year award. ‘‘Winning awards is not what we are about and we certainly weren’t

expecting that, but I couldn’t have done it without my family and my workers, Matt Brereton and Steve McIntyre,’’ he said. ‘‘Surrounding myself with positive people and networking with people who are willing to share ideas has helped get me to where I am today. ‘‘I see a great future for agriculture and I want the next generation of my family to be able to keep doing what we love. ‘‘I treat my farm like a great big garden. The soil is a living thing and I nurture it. ‘‘Even though this year has been a low rainfall one, I am encouraged when I dig up a clump of soil and find soil moisture and worms.’’

Biological liquids are stored in this easy-to-use set-up designed by the family.

Stubble is left in the paddock. The tree line in the background has been established around the farm to encourage wildlife into the area to help with pest control.

The workhorse and backbone of the operation is the NDF disc seeder. It treads lightly across the paddocks, not disturbing the soil at sowing time.

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Grant Sims is currently experimenting with cover crops. Legumes, brassicas and carbon building plants (around 10 different species) are sown together, lightly grazed, sprayed and then left in the ground to improve soil health.

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PAGE 6—‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016

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machinery put into action at Colbinabbin, Tocumwal, Tungamah and Cosgrove. ‘‘It’s a great opportunity for farmers to get into the tractors and see the machinery,’’ Shepparton O’Connors branch manager David Collier said. ‘‘It gives everyone a chance to actually

jump in and drive. ‘‘We’ve been doing them for some time and sharing them around with other branches.’’

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The demonstration and drive day was held on the Hill family farm at Colbinabbin.

Malcolm Hill, 85, took a look at the new tractors and machinery that was demonstrated on the day. The farm was established by Mr Hill’s grandfather in 1906 and today it is mostly a cropping enterprise with wheat, barley, oats, canola and faba beans, run by Mr Hill’s son David and grandsons Tom and Tim.

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Phillip Rice from AF Gason, with the ParaMaxx 100 which has parallelogram planter with independent hydraulic adjustment on both coulter and tynes.

‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016—PAGE 7

cropping, tillage & pastures

in and have a go at demo days

Lely representative Brendan Prentice with the Lely 3 m Tulip multi-disc. The disc units are mounted on a rubber torsion suspension system. This unique disc suspension translates to low power requirement and optimal performance in various soil and ground conditions.

The Case IH 340 CVT Magnum in a Rowtrac configuration was one of the bigger units at the Colbinabbin demonstration day.

Croplands territory manager Matthew Plunkett set up the Pegasus 5000 sprayer, which boasts a low-profile and easy-to-clean polyethylene tanks, dual venturi agitation, tank-rinsing facility and large drain outlet as standard.

A close-up of the business end of the Tulip multi-disc.

The Case IH 4430 self-propelled sprayer took a few turns around the Colbinabbin paddock. The cab-forward, rear-engine Patriot sprayer design means even weight distribution across the machine, getting into the paddock earlier while causing less soil compaction and maximising tight operating windows.

Ausplow says the hydraulic tines ensure the transfer of damaging vibrations to the parallelogram is virtually eliminated.

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PAGE 8—‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016

cropping, tillage & pastures

grdc update

Probing for data oil moisture probes S could be a valuable tool in informing soil

Leighton Wilksch speaking at the GRDC grains research update.

moisture-based management decisions for grain growers and their advisers in the southern cropping region.

Soil moisture probes quantify how much moisture is in the soil, what depth it is at, where plant roots are active and how much moisture is being used by the crop, according to Leighton Wilksch from Agbyte.

Speaking at the Grains Research and Development Corporation grains research update in Bendigo last month, Mr Wilksch said multiple years of data could give a clear picture of how much soil moisture there was at any point in time

compared to previous seasons. ‘‘This can assist with making decisions associated with when and what to plant during autumn, and how much nitrogen to apply and potential for the crop to reach target yield,’’ he said. ‘‘Sometimes if a grower is installing two SMPs, they may want to install one in a poorer soil type if that soil type makes up a sizeable portion of the farm. ‘‘Increasingly, we are seeing local networks of SMPs (and weather stations) pop up that allow a grower to invest in one site, but have access to multiple sites set up by neighbouring growers.’’

Some users of SMPs are now installing the tools to a greater depth.

‘‘Often, the first generation of SMPs were placed 80-100 cm deep, but now some sites are heading to 1.6 m deep to better understand what is occurring at depth,’’ Mr Wilksch said.

He encouraged growers to develop a sound understanding of the soil type they are installing into. ‘‘This means recording horizon changes down the profile and even stratifying out a soil sample in order to get it analysed for chemical and physical constraints.’’

He said the data from SMPs should be looked at regularly and growers should seek interpretation from those who have experience with the data.

Farmers can make sweet deals ustralian research shows A the presence of pollinating insects such as honeybees and

feral bees lifts the yield and quality of crops such as canola and faba beans, as well as fruit and vegetable crops.

Speaking at the Grains Research and Development Corporation annual state research update conference in Bendigo last month, Saul Cunningham said it was economical and worthwhile for farmers to pay beekeepers to place hives near crops in ‘‘sensible cropping scenarios’’. ‘‘Yields are up to 10 per cent and even higher for crops such as fava beans and canola with hives close by,’’ Dr Cunningham said. ‘‘There is no benefit if hives are a kilometre or more from the crop.

But although we can demonstrate the benefits, many farmers don’t do anything about it.’’

Honeybees are just one of the 3000 bee species in Australia which can pollinate farm crops.

Hoverflies, which are often mistaken for bees, can also act as pollinators. ‘‘Australian agricultural industries are vulnerable to a decline in domesticated honeybee populations because

Saul Cunningham (left) suggested farmers could pay beekeepers to place hives near their crops. they rely on unmanaged feral honey bees for much of pollination,’’ Dr Cunningham said. ‘‘So we need a healthy beekeeper industry and a diverse wild bee community.’’

Providing even small patches of woody native vegetation near crops, including on fence lines and roadsides, as well as single mature trees, provided stable habitat for nesting and food for

bees, leading to increased bee numbers in adjacent crops.

Addressing the impacts of insecticides and other chemicals on bees, Dr Cunningham said seed treatments were generally

low risk, but pre-bloom foliar applications and some soil treatments could kill bees.

Correct use of neo-nicotinoids was probably safe, but off-label use was harmful to pollinators.

‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016—PAGE 9

grdc update

cropping, tillage & pastures

Science is the way of the future t’s something all farmers have Ibreaks experienced: the harvester down with 100 ha of prime crop still to cut and a thunderstorm on the way.

But that won’t be such a major problem in the not-so-distant future, when the new part will be produced pronto on-farm with a 3-D printer. ‘‘Instead of hoping the dealer has the part, the farmer will email the manufacturer for a plan, turn on his 3-D printer in the workshop, or go to the dealership, and the new part will be regenerated in real time. He can then activate his driverless tractor and get back to work,’’ said Robert Saik, a Canadian agronomist and entrepreneur.

Mr Saik, founder of international company Agri-Trend, was speaking at the GRDC’s annual state research update conference in Bendigo last month.

Addressing the topic ‘10 key drivers that will shape agriculture into the next decade’, Mr Saik said the currents pulling agriculture were ‘‘going at breakneck speed’’ and farmers would increasingly need to move between the physical and digital worlds.

Developments in bioengineering, 3-D printing, sensor technology, robotics, data, precision agriculture and artificial intelligence would all assist agriculture to feed a world population of nine billion people in 2050. ‘‘In-field sensors, drones, micro

Robert Saik offered some insights into cropping in the future at the GRDC annual state research update conference in Bendigo last month.

Landmark agronomist Greg Toomey from Elmore, DEDJTR seasonal risk agronomist Dale Boyd from Bendigo, Birchip Cropping Group livestock systems officer Alison Frischke and SouthEast Soil and Water soils consultant Christian Bannan from Bendigo.

satellites and full internet wi-fi over the whole farm will allow us to detect and measure changes in growth, soil moisture, nutrient and even disease spores in the air, and spoon-feed our crops with precise fertiliser, crop protection and water needs,’’ Mr Saik said. ‘‘New IT languages will lead to the development of new hormones, polymers, biocatalysts, bio-fuels and nutrientdense foods.

‘‘It’s interesting to consider whether vegetarians would eat bio-generated meat.’’

Instead of 36 m-wide boom sprays, the future might see 120 30 cm booms travelling in a swarm, controlled autonomously by robotics. Variable rate precision agriculture would enable seeding rates, fertiliser, crop protection and irrigation to be applied in micro zones for maximum efficiency.

Mr Saik said another of the 10 drivers, market segmentation, would see farmers focusing on specific markets and niches, such as organic, ‘‘eat local’’ and specific city markets, shipping directly from the farm to the consumer, and supplying traitbased foods such as wheat high in selenium, which helps mitigate prostate cancer.

Nominating water as another of the 10 key drivers, Mr Saik said

water-use efficiency was everything. ‘‘Our ability to utilise science and technology to better meter out and use water is absolutely critical. We could reduce plant evaporation rates through biosynthesis, improve irrigation efficiency through more use of soil moisture sensors, help crops sweat less by using soil tests and technology to measure fertiliser needs accurately, and grow crops closer to where they are eaten,’’ he said.

In his presentation, Mr Saik also spoke out strongly in favour of genetically modified crops and said the industry had been targeted by ‘‘a very strong antiscience movement’’. ‘‘We need technology to maintain our food supply.

Genetically modified is not an ingredient, it’s a process,’’ he said. ‘‘It has been engineered, not modified. Food paranoia is a First World problem. When you travel to Third World countries you see how the non-science movement can affect poor people. ‘‘Genetically modified organic foods could be the future. GM would allow us to have greater salt and drought tolerance, and insect resistance. For instance, if you could breed potato plants to fight late blight and not have to use fungicides, wouldn’t that be a good idea?’’

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PAGE 10—‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016

cropping, tillage & pastures

Lupin development boost ustralia’s largest plant Abreeding company,

Australian Grain Technologies, is adding lupins to its grains breeding portfolio.

Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA) and the GRDC announded last month that AGT would take forward its successful lupin breeding program.

The move delivers considerable commercial and technical breeding capability to lupin breeding in Australia and provides a sustainable footing for the industry.

AGT chief executive officer Steve Jefferies said the company was committed to developing varieties that delivered greater returns to growers. ‘‘AGT has the scientific expertise and track record in the development of successful wheat varieties including Mace and more recently Scepter, to accelerate the rates of genetic gain in lupin breeding,’’ Dr Jefferies said. ‘‘We want to make a real difference to the value of lupins in Australian cropping systems. ‘‘I am also very pleased to announce the appointment of lupin breeder Dini Ganesalingam to our team. ‘‘Dini is a young enthusiastic Western Australian with relevant

Growers urged to specialise growers are able Vtoegetable benefit from increased

Darren Trewick’s lupin crop at Elmore. training and expertise in plant breeding. ‘‘Dini will work from our newly expanded Northam base and in close collaboration with DAFWA’s lupin breeding and genetics expert Jon Clements.’’

Dr Jefferies said lupins

complemented AGT’s existing cereal breeding work which included wheat, barley and durum. ‘‘Lupins are the fifth largest winter grain crop in Australia and we will be examining how we can best increase the value of lupins in Australian farming systems

through improved yield, disease resistance, broader adaptation, herbicide tolerance and seed quality,’’ he said.

DAFWA and GRDC have coinvested in the breeding and commercial release of lupin varieties for the past 20 years.

productivity by focusing their growing operations on producing a single commodity, with efficiencies created by investing in labour that is specialised for a single crop.

This is one of the outcomes from an economic discussion paper produced by vegetable grower body AUSVEG, using data from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences, which aims to provide growers with an accessible analysis of complex economic data that can improve on-farm productivity and profitability. ‘‘The results from this economic analysis indicate that those farms that specialise in growing fewer crops, are likely to have much more productive employees,’’ AUSVEG economist Andrew Kruup said. ‘‘The discussion paper has produced an economic model that quantifies the productivity of labour and infrastructure and equipment, which has been devised to highlight to growers the economic returns that can be gained from specialising their production,’’ Mr Kruup said.

Thanks from On December 16th 2014 there were 3 major bush fires in Lake Rowan, Stewarton and Creighton’s Creek districts. The fires burnt thousands of hectares, including the farms of many Advanced Ag clients.

Advanced Ag Agronomist Tony Kelly looked to the company’s suppliers of Ag Chem, Seed and Fertiliser for support, the response was overwhelming with $20,000 in donations raised. The money has been donated to the company’s clients as well as the Creighton’s Creek, Stewarton, Goomalibee and Lake Rowan Fire Brigades.

ABOVE: A nice change from Blackened paddocks after the lake Rowan fire on Dec 16 2014.

Advanced Ag Agronomist Tony Kelly and Lake Rowan Farmer Chris Kellock standing in a crop of Pioneer 45Y25, sown in April 2015.

Advanced Ag would like to thank the following companies for their donations, as well as a number of clients who generously donated hay, trucks and labour to the fire recovery.

LEFT: From left to right: Bernie Wallis, Tony Kelly, Aidan Hamill, Captain John Chiswell, Brian Kelly and Chris Bakker. Advanced Ag presenting a $1500 cheque to members of the Creighton’s Creek Fire Brigade.

Agronomists: Tony Kelly 0427 311 307 Tim Anderson 0419 896 230 Mark Thompson 0417 844 381 Luke Nagle 0419 320 998 Cameron Pogue 0419 320 925 Ellen Grinter 0447 529 878

72 Williams Rd, Shepparton Ph: (03) 5822 4862 www.advancedag.com.au

‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016—PAGE 11

cropping, tillage & pastures

Ukraine wheat threat may grow krainian wheat has the potential to U displace Australian exports in key South-East Asian markets, according to

analysis conducted by the Australian Export Grains Innovation Centre (AEGIC).

AEGIC is currently preparing a major report into Ukraine’s wheat export industry entitled Ukraine: An emerging challenge for Australian Wheat Exports.

This report, covering the Ukrainian wheat industry and the implications for Australian exports in nearby markets, is the end-product of detailed analysis conducted by Professor Ross Kingwell and his team.

Prof Kingwell will discuss the report — ahead of its full release in April — at the 2016 GRDC Perth Grains Research Update.

Prof Kingwell said Ukrainian wheat exports had already begun to enter Australia’s key South-East Asian markets. ‘‘We found that Ukrainian wheat exports are currently a modest threat to Australian wheat exports, but their potential threat is large, albeit uncertain for many reasons,’’ he said. ‘‘Ukraine’s competitiveness is underpinned by greater rates of yield advancement and greater cost efficiencies in their grain supply chains. ‘‘Over the next decade, these

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advantages will undermine Australian price competitiveness.’’

However, Prof Kingwell said Ukraine was currently less able to reliably satisfy the wheat volume and wheat quality needs of end-users in Asian markets when compared with Australia. ‘‘It’s a tide, not a tidal wave. The Australian wheat industry has time to plan and co-ordinate a useful response, and we should use this opportunity wisely,’’ he said. ‘‘We need to understand what characteristics of Australian wheat make our wheat preferred in our main markets, and then convey that market information to the Australian stakeholders whose reactions can help increase returns to Australian wheat producers.’’

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PAGE 12—‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016

cropping, tillage & pastures

Hey Presto – work’s all done ime is short and work is hard, T but choosing a machine with superior design and durability can deliver enormous productivity gains and free up many days of work.

The Wood family has a mixed cropping and beef cattle operation on a 243 ha farm at Kerang.

Tim Wood offers hay contracting and cultivation services, with help from his father, Cliff.

He has found a machine that can get through the work in a third of the time — the Maschio Gaspardo Presto.

He recently bought a 5 m Maschio Presto mounted multidisc harrow with hydraulic folding frame.

Tim Wood said he was immediately impressed with the design, the strength of the build and the size of the Maschio Presto. ‘‘We wanted a machine that would give us good weed control, good straw incorporation, and tillage that could repair compacted soil without too much disturbance,’’ Mr Wood said. ‘‘I’ve used the Presto on about 405 ha so far. ‘‘It gives an excellent seedbed, and the time and fuel we’re saving is fantastic.’’

The Presto is designed for use in no-till soils to incorporate crop residue and in tilled soils to complete seedbed preparation.

It has concave, toothed 510 mm

Monsanto on notice merican seed company A Monsanto is welcome to leave India if it does not want

The 5 m Maschio Presto slashes tillage time. boron steel discs, angled at 18 degrees to ensure a constant flow of soil from the first to the second gang without clogging.

Perfect overlapping between the front and rear gangs gives consistent soil mixing without machine drift.

A high clearance frame and the

narrow distance between the gangs could improve stubble incorporation with low fuel consumption.

Rear rollers stabilise the machine during work and define the working depth, which can be easily adjusted.

Mr Wood used the Presto on a

200 hp tractor working at about 15 km/h. ‘‘We were biting in pretty deep at that speed, a good 10 cm,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s very good at breaking up heavy weed cover and we’re not getting the clogging that we had with the offset discs.’’

PastureMasta

to lower prices of genetically modified cotton seeds as directed by the government, a minister has said, in a sign the rift between New Delhi and the firm is widening.

The comments come as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s nationalist government expects to develop its own genetically modified cotton varieties early next year to end Monsanto’s dominance; it controls more than 90 per cent of cotton seed supply.

New technologies are critical to lifting India’s poor farm productivity, although even if India did develop a home-grown GM cotton variety in 2017, it would struggle to sustain a program that needs to refresh seeds every decade or so, experts warned.

The introduction of Monsanto’s GM cotton seeds in 2002 helped turn India into the biggest producer of the fibre, while other crops like pulses continue to suffer as transgenic food is banned and local research has stalled.

Despite the gains GM cotton brought for more than seven million cotton farmers in India, some of them and their associations have complained Monsanto overprices its products.

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‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016—PAGE 13

PAGE 14—‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016

cropping, tillage & pastures

New plan to tackle problem soil question that has been A vexing Tocumwal farmer Hayden White for some time is

how to establish subclovers on his heavy black clay soils.

Mr White sees nitrogen fixation, improved soil structure from organic matter and a disease break for cereals and canola as just some of the major drawcards, and although he has been playing around with sub-clovers for some time, unreliable results have meant it has not established itself as an important part of his rotations.

However, things are likely to change after the last season with the trialling of a new sub-clover variety called Antas and armed with a new approach to clover establishment.

Come spring, Mr White had about 7.3 tonnes/ha of round bales filled with high quality clover hay in the paddock — something he had never been able to achieve before.

Feed test analysis revealed some pleasing results including 19.4 per cent for crude protein.

The Belubla farm manager said when he took over the 2150 ha property it had been extensively cropped to cereals.

In his words, ‘‘the soils needed a bit of loving’’ — so Mr White opted for a shorter rotation with more canola and legumes to improve soil structure. ‘‘Germinating seedlings have trouble pushing through the clay crust. In an effort to improve the sodic black soils we generally put a couple of tonnes per hectare of gypsum in front of the canola, which also supplies sulphur,’’ Mr White said. ‘‘In 2014 we sowed clover and the season started with lots of rain. The clover struck, but as time went on we could go out and pull up a slab of dirt an inch thick the size of a dinner plate. Underneath the crust was clover that just couldn’t get through.’’

Mr White contacted Heritage

Belubla farm manager Hayden White (left) and Heritage Seeds territory manager Reece Hardwidge inspect the bulk of this paddock of Antas sub-clover.

Seeds and with the help of local territory manager Reece Hardwidge put together a sowing plan for 2015. ‘‘The aim right from the start was to do it right. We broadcast 200 kg/ha of single super and 2 tonne/ha of gypsum and

followed by working the paddock up with discs, then levelled with a grader board.’’

The hoses were taken off the air seeder to let 12.5 kg/ha of Antas sub-clover seed sprinkle on top of the soil and 50 kg/ha of MAP was drilled underneath.

A light harrow, allowing a thin cover of soil over the seed, was followed by a very light water of about 0.5 Ml/ha on March 22. ‘‘Because I really wanted the Antas to succeed I kept the grazing on it quite light, running about 800 lambing ewes in there

for just three weeks,’’ Mr White said. ‘‘Despite it being a challenging season with very little winter and spring rainfall . . . Antas proved to be a vigorous variety. It handled the conditions, spread out and grew really well.’’

‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016—PAGE 15

cropping, tillage & pastures

Weed fight goes global ayer and the Australian B Grains Research and Development Corporation

met in Germany earlier this month to discuss the Herbicide Innovation Partnership.

Director of Australia’s Herbicide Resistance Initiative at Bayer Stephen Powles and GRDC representatives discussed experiences, current developments and challenges in tackling global weed control.

Bayer said the rapid evolution of weeds including rye-grass, wild radish and others was threatening Australian wheat production. ‘‘Growers have consistently told us that managing resistant and poorly controlled weeds is the biggest problem they face,’’ GRDC chair Richard Clark said. ‘‘We believe this partnership will put Australian farms at the forefront of tackling herbicide resistance.’’

According to Bayer, one major focus of the discussion dealt with the dramatic increase of herbicideresistant weeds across the globe.

Bayer crop science division head Liam Condon said Bayer

Achieving the right balance educed screenings, improved R grain weight along with soil moisture retention and reduced

The GRDC is looking at weed control and herbicide resistance at an international level. firmly believed collaboration models like the HIP would make a difference in the battle against weeds. ‘‘In the light of the challenges to increasing

productivity and sustainability in crop production, it is even more important that we collaborate in order to accelerate research activities,’’ Mr Condon said.

input costs ticked all the boxes for mixed farmer Charlie Webb from Urana in NSW. His aim was to achieve a healthy, balanced soil to conserve every millimetre of rainfall to lift productivity and profitability.

Mr Webb had used organic soil activation product TM Agricultural produced by Best Environmental Technologies across his cropping land for the past four years. ‘‘Everyone has told us for years the soil pH is the issue, but we really need to balance the soil microbes to achieve soil health,’’ Mr Webb said.

Last harvest, he achieved a yield of 3.2 tonnes/ha in the F1 barley undersown with lucerne.

The barley was sown at 40 kg/ha and the lucerne at 2 kg/ha on a 30 cm row spacing on knife points.

Mr Webb said yield variations in paddocks had reduced from 40 to 10 per cent. ‘‘Thirty years ago nobody really cropped this country because it was so hard to work,’’ he said.

Mr Webb and his wife Tana run 3000 Gum Hill and Centre Plus blood Merino ewes at Urana.

The sheep graze pastures of lucerne, clover, annual rye-grass, wild oats and native grasses.

The crop rotation comprises of two wheat crops, followed by barley undersown with lucerne (not inoculated).

In one barley paddock, where only half was treated with TM, there was a lift in yield of one tonne per hectare.

Satellite normalised difference vegetation index images revealed a clear increase in biomass on that half of the paddock through the growing season.

Soil tests in a 40 ha paddock in 2011 revealed a low pH of 4.3 (calcium chloride), organic carbon of 1.24 per cent, moderately low phosphorus of 34 mg/kg, low zinc of 0.6 mg/kg, and a phosphorus buffering index of 62.5.

After three years of TM application only, the 2014 soil tests revealed pH had increased to 4.5, organic carbon to 1.4 per cent, phosphorus to 57 mg/kg and an improved phosphorus buffering index of 55.

There was a reduction in exchangeable sodium from 4.8 to 1.3 over the three years.

Mr Webb estimates he is now saving $6000 in fertiliser freight costs alone.

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PAGE 16—‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016

cropping, tillage & pastures

Seeders shown Plains is running a Seeder Riverine Day, on Tuesday, March 22 at

Barooga and Dookie.

Farmers can catch up with other farmers and see their machines in action through stubble.

Machinery dealers will also be on hand.

The Barooga event starts at 9 am and is located on Barooga-Mulwala Rd, about 20 km from Barooga.

It will include a 7.5 m Horwood Bagshaw with PSS tines, and 8 m Gason Scaritil with in-frame press wheels, a 9 m Morris C2 contour drill, a 12 m Seedhawk, a 12 m DBS

with CTC coulters, and a 12 m Equalizer with hydraulic coulters.

At 1.30 pm at Dookie, farmers will meet at Mark Harmer’s paddock, Irishs Rd, Boxwood (adjacent, south-east of 2015 Dookie Stubble Trial Site).

Phil Kerr will be at Dookie to discuss the finer points of disc versus tine.

Machinery includes a Boss single disc SX25 row unit on a 9 m Paraflex frame, and a Boss parallelogram tine TX65C row unit on a 12 m B frame ➤ For more information phone Riverine Plains on 5744 1713 or email info@riverineplains.com.au

Soil in the spotlight itrogen cycling and trace element N management will be under the microscope at two workshops for

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agronomists, advisers, consultants and growers in Victoria in April.

Funded by Grains Research and Development Corporation, the workshops will be held in Bendigo on April 11 and in Ouyen on April 12.

They will provide information and technical advice, with scientific support, for determining organic matter cycling in the soil in relation to nitrogen nutrition, paddock planning and fertiliser rates, plus trace element identification and management.

Speakers at the workshops will include

International Plant Nutrition Institute’s Australia and New Zealand regional director Dr Rob Norton; CSIRO soil scientist Dr Jeff Baldock; University of Adelaide’s Dr Glenn McDonald; NSW DPI’s Tony Cox and Dr Ehsan Tavakkoli; Charles Sturt University and CSIRO’s Dr John Angus; and South Australian Research and Development Institute’s Dr Nigel Wilhelm.

The workshops, from 8.15 am to 3.15 pm, will be at the Bendigo RSL Club and the Ouyen Football Club. Tickets cost $88. ➤ More information about the workshops, including registration details, is at www.agcommunicators.com.au

‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016—PAGE 17

cropping, tillage & pastures

Kate Durrant, 9, the daughter of Natalie and Peter of Bunnaloo, pictured in the farm’s canola crop last year.

Spring irrigation reaps results

uring the past four years the D Finley Discussion Group’s irrigated canola results have shown spring-irrigating canola is profitable.

Last season most farmers decided to use most of their limited water on wheat but the few farmers who irrigated canola had great responses, although the early October heat reduced potential.

The four spray irrigation crops had the highest average yield of 2.7 tonne/ha and highest water use efficiency (WUE) of 1.1 tonnes/Ml. This was 1.2 tonne/ha higher than the average dryland yield of 1.5 tonne/ha.

A 45Y88CL crop with good spring water used 1.7 Ml/ha and

yielded 3.1 tonne/ha.

The four flood-irrigated crops with spring water used 1 Ml/ha or more and yielded 2.5 tonne/ha with a WUE 0.8 tonne/Ml. The top yielding crop of 45Y25RR yielded 3.3 tonne/ha with two spring irrigations of 1.4 Ml/ha.

At the recent group meetings, several farmers said they wished they had watered their canola.

In the past two seasons the highest yielding irrigated crops were sown into soil moisture in mid to late April after good rain.

Last season many crops emerged in seven to 10 days.

However, if April stays dry and no rain is predicted, farmers should consider watering up on good slopes which gave the

highest yields in 2012 and 2013.

A Southern Growers 2015 trial at Finley managed by NSW DPI researcher Rohan Brill showed little difference in yield between April 6 and 21, confirming the 2014 results.

The 3.1 tonne/ha-yielding spray-irrigated 45Y88CL crop was sown on April 10 and the 3.3 tonne/ha-yielding 45Y25RR crop on April 28.

In 2014, a 3.5 tonne/ha Crusher TT spray-irrigated crop was sown on April 1.

Midseason varieties can be sown in the first half of April and earlier mids in the last half of April.

At the recent meetings it was good to hear of many farmers using variable liming sampling services following on from last

season’s talks.

We were surprised to hear from Andrew Parr of Murray Valley Rural Services in Berrigan of his soil testing results, where 80 per cent of the paddocks had an aluminium content above five per cent from low pH. This restricts vigour and tap root growth and yield.

The recommendation for canola is to have no more than three per cent aluminium.

No rice history paddocks should be used for canola unless there are soil tests giving the go-ahead.

The urea top-dressing range for the highest canola yields has been 200-300 kg/ha.

However at the recent meeting with Rohan Brill, evidence was presented that the higher the

canola biomass the higher the yield.

The finding was supported by the Southern Growers Finley 2015 trial results.

This means nitrogen should be split between pre-sowing and topdressing.

A few group high-yielding crop results also support splitting.

It is suggested farmers evaluate pre-sowing nitrogen by applying 100-125 kg urea/ha in a couple of bays of paddocks where the soil nitrogen is less than 70 kg N/ha.

The few paddocks with soil 100-120 kg N/ha don’t need presowing nitrogen.

— John Lacy

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PAGE 18—‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016

cropping, tillage & pastures

Irrigated wheat yields surprise he 2015 Finley Discussion Group T irrigated wheat system results were a surprise with the highest yield and water use efficiency (WUE) system spray irrigation yielding 6.6 tonne/ha at a high WUE of 1.9 tonne/Ml. This is in contrast to 2014 when the spray WUE was 1.4 tonne/Ml and the flood 1.5-2 Ml spring-irrigated system had the highest WUE of 1.9 tonne/Ml. A key factor for the highest yields in each system was the early sowing date for most crops, from April 30 to May 7 and early emergence by May 15-20.

The early sowings flowered around the optimum September 25 target. Shorter

height Cobra and Corack were the highest yielding varieties along with Suntop, similar to the irrigated variety trial results.

At recent group meetings farmers estimated the early October heat reduced yields by 1.5 tonne/ha when most crops were flowering or in early grain development by aborting flowers and young grains.

This led to the flood systems yielding below target.

We hope 35°C temperatures are not seen again.

Ironically a few farmers with late-sown crops which flowered after the heat, had yields 7-8 tonne/ha from two irrigations.

Strangely the higher biomass 1.5-2 Ml

(two or three irrigations) spring flood system had a lower WUE of 1.4 tonne/Ml compared to the 1.5 Ml or less (one or two irrigations) system of 1.6 tonne/Ml given the dryness of September and October.

We think it was more affected by the heat.

Some of the later sown 1.5 Ml system crops benefited from the late October rain which was the equivalent of another irrigation.

Another factor reducing yields was severe lodging from all varieties from the late October/early November high winds and storms.

Lodging was worse where crops had been irrigated within four days of the storms.

A number of high-yielding crops were sown at 90 kg/ha which was better than 100-110 kg/ha enhanced by the early sowing, good emergence and good plant populations.

Lower sowing rates help to reduce lodging.

All of the spray system crops were sown after canola, and higher yielding 1.5 Ml system crops had more crops sown after canola compared to the other systems which had more crops sown after wheat.

The spray system row spacing for most crops was 18-23 cm which was narrower than the other systems, where 30 cm was common.

— John Lacy Consulting

Prices push growers out nly one grower in the West O Corurgan irrigation district has a rice crop planted this season.

Simon Nowlan’s MF9730 air seeder doing its job.

Massey Feguson fits the job

property Glenesk is Thehome to the Nowlan family in Bimbi, NSW. Sixth generation farmers, Simon and Clare Nowlan operate 1600 ha of cropping land and are slowly expanding.

They are in the old sheep and wheat belt west of Sydney, though nowadays it is more wheat than sheep, as cropping increases.

A specific change for this

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generation, according to the Nowlans, was switching to Massey Ferguson machinery. ‘‘We were looking for a new air seeder,’’ Mr Nowlan said. ‘‘It came down to two, and at the Conservation Agricultural Field Day we ran into Jeremy Whitty from JGW Tillage and Harvest. ‘‘We were impressed with the Massey Ferguson range.’’

They needed a bigger air

seeder to fit the new system — 12.2 m up from 10 m — and wanted to drop from 30 cm to 25 cm row spacings. ‘‘When the row spacings are too wide, we believe there are issues with rye-grass resistance and weeds,’’ Mr Nowlan said. ‘‘The 25 cm spacings are better to provide competition.’’

They bought an MF9730 air seeder with a 12.2 m working width and 25 cm row spacing,

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The air seeder arrived in time for Christmas in 2013 and has completed two sowings covering 3000 ha.

The MF9730 air seeder has had no trouble sowing through break crops during the past two dry seasons.

This year Mr Nowlan said he was hoping for a better growth year and a chance to see how the drill would work in a thicker trash layer.

• • • • •

Normally there would be 20.

The irrigation district’s spokesperson Tanya Thompson said it was a stark result of poorly planned and executed water policies.

With the Murray-Darling Basin Plan the catalyst, Ms Thompson said low irrigation water allocations and subsequent high temporary water trade prices had simply made growing rice unviable for many farmers. ‘‘With low allocations and allocation water trading up to $300/Ml, some farmers have reluctantly made the decision to trade water, rather than put it into a crop,’’ Ms Thompson said. ‘‘The flow-on effects are huge for the community when farmers are not using the water productively — they’re not value-adding. We need water to value-add to the community.’’

The basin plan recommends diverting at least 2750 Gl of food producing water to environmental projects.

The West Corurgan system, developed in the 1960s, services irrigators from Corowa to Berrigan and from Oaklands to Billabong Creek near Jerilderie.

Ms Thompson said there had been a five per cent increase in external allocation trades this season. ‘‘Having less water has huge third-party impacts,’’ she said. ‘‘It impacts on the income West Corurgan generates but also, when there are no crops, the ripple effect flows on to the community.’’

As an example, Ms Thompson said no crops meant less farming machinery being used and irrigation infrastructure being upgraded or maintained, which she said affected businesses in the district.

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‘Cropping, Tillage and Pastures’, March, 2016—PAGE 19

cropping, tillage & pastures

Aiming for better fertiliser decisions ertiliser input costs are the F largest single variable expense for grain growers,

comprising up to 25 per cent of variable costs per annum.

Despite the expense, fertiliser decisions made by grain growers do not always rely on soil test knowledge as part of a suite of knowledge sources contributing to a rate recommendation.

This reflects a significant level of scepticism among some grain growers and advisers that soil testing does not explain crop response, that the recommendations provided using a soil test are flawed due to biased data, or both.

The Making Better Fertiliser Decisions for Cropping Systems in Australia project sought to address this challenge.

The project is funded by Grains Research and Development Corporation.

In this project, all available public and private soil test-crop response data that could be found from across Australia were collated for nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and sulphur (S) use in cereals, oilseeds and pulses.

These data were stored in a single central repository for access by approved users through an online query tool, the BFDC Interrogator.

The BFDC Interrogator is used to derive soil test-crop response calibration relationships and critical soil test values based on

Not much is known about fertilising crops other than wheat, canola and barley, research is showing. specified criteria (e.g. a cropping region or soil type).

The soil test-crop response data held in this repository are recognised by the Fertiliser Industry Federation of Australia’s Fertcare program as the ‘‘best available’’ data set in Australia.

The development of the BFDC Database and BFDC Interrogator as live online resources represents a significant step forward for fertiliser

recommendations in Australia.

No longer will subsets of data be used as part of recommendations without knowledge of the other data available. Instead, soil testcrop response relationships can be derived from a large body of trial data using a series of identified and agronomically valid filtering tools (e.g. the use of the Phosphorus Buffering Index to interpret Colwell P tests).

Another significant finding from

BFDC was the dearth of knowledge that exists for crops other than for wheat, barley and canola nationally and for lupins in Western Australia.

There also tends to be limited trial work for potassium and sulphur across all crops. To further complicate the development of soil test-crop response calibration relationships, many trials have inadequate data and so could not be included in the database.

While traditional single season nutrition rate experiments are still being undertaken, some of the more significant trial work is tending to address long-term applications of nutrient(s) and their subsequent impact on plant nutrition.

A further investment in BFDC needs to account for the collation of new response work conducted in the traditional manner, but also needs to address the inclusion of other relevant trial data (e.g. suitable long-term trials) and their use in association with traditional single season trials for the determination of soil test-crop response calibration relationships and critical soil test ranges for cereal, oilseed and pulse crops.

The GRDC More Profit from Crop Nutrition phase 2 initiative provides the opportunity for trial data to be collected that address some of the knowledge gaps within BFDC. It is thus the role of Making Better Fertiliser Decisions for Cropping Systems in Australia phase 2 to address the challenge of collating these new data (single season and other trials) and subsequently using these data within the BFDC Interrogator to derive nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium or sulphur soil testcrop response calibration relationships for different grain growing regions in Australia.

— Dr Mark Conyers NSW DPI, Wagga Wagga

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