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Weed kill without crop damage Before spraying, growers and agronomists are encouraged to check NVT Online for information on the safety of herbicide use on their varieties Weeds and disease 12 By Emma Leonard Crop yield can be compromised by damage from herbicides, even when products are applied appropriately at the label rate. Varieties are known to differ in their tolerance to herbicides and this can vary between regions. The good news is that more than 70 per cent of all crop varieties are tolerant to most herbicides. The remaining varieties can experience yield losses of 10 to 30 per cent and, in some cases, 50 per cent yield loss has been recorded. This occurs with the use of registered herbicides applied at label rates under good spraying conditions at the appropriate crop growth stage. To provide growers with clear information about the herbicide interactions of a variety for their region, four regionally based herbicide-tolerance screening projects have been established. The projects are run by Jenny Garlange and Harmohinder Dhammu, Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia, Rob Wheeler and Michael Zerner, South Australian Research and Development Institute, Peter Lockley, New South Wales Department of Primary Industries, Steve Walker, the University of Queensland and John Churchett, Queensland Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF). The four projects have recently been combined under a national program, coordinated by Mr Wheeler. Results from all the herbicide tolerance trials can be easily accessed via NVT Online (www.nvtonline.com.au). National approach Screening of varieties for herbicide tolerance has been undertaken in most states since the early 1990s. The main crop varieties tested were in wheat and barley. The new coordinated approach tests the tolerance to commonly used in-crop herbicides of wheat, barley, oats, peas, lentils, faba beans, chickpeas and lupin varieties emerging from the NVT. This will ensure that the tolerance to important herbicides is known at the time of a new variety’s release. Crop types tested vary between regions in relation to their importance in a region. For example, lupins are only tested in WA. Varieties and advanced lines are generally tested for two or more years to validate varietal responses and to minimise the seasonal influences on herbicide tolerance. The project also tests new chemistries in collaboration with chemical companies. “Independently testing a variety’s herbicide tolerance before its market release, ensures growers have the most relevant information available to them when selecting new varieties,” Mr Wheeler explains. Herbicides are applied individually and in tank mixes at label and above label rates in weed-free field sites. Treated plots are monitored for crop damage (colour change, necrosis, biomass and stunting) and compared to unsprayed plots. Crop damage and retardation is assessed visually and with crop sensors that measure crop greenness using the normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI). These measurements help to establish if observed damage results in yield loss. Bringing these projects together in a coordinated national program has enabled research approaches to be standardised. It has also facilitated collaboration on projects such as those assessing genotype, environment and herbicide interactions. A significant step in the research has been the development of a simple rating system using symbols to categorise the sensitivity of varieties, based on the yield responses across all trials. Tables of herbicide tolerance ratings can be found at NVT Online (www.nvtonline.com.au). A variety that has no significant yield reduction from both the label recommended rates and higher rates is marked with ‘’. An ‘N’, indicating a narrow safety margin, denotes significant yield reductions at the higher-than-label-recommended rate, but not at the recommended rate, and these varieties are shaded in yellow. When there is a significant yield reduction at the recommended rate, a warning is noted if recorded in one trial only (shaded in brown) or in two or more trials (shaded in red). In these instances the magnitude of yield reductions are noted in the table. photo: Steve Walker Researchers involved in the herbicide tolerance screening work at an annual review meeting in Birchip, Victoria. (From left) Hanwen Wu, Kaylene Nuscke, Peter Lockley, Rob Wheeler, Harmohinder Dhammu, Courtney Ramsey and Steve Walker. Regional application Variety herbicide-tolerance testing for wheat and barley has been carried out in Queensland since 1999. More recently chickpeas have been added to the project, which is run by John Churchett, principal experimentalist, Queensland DAFF. In 2011, 22 trials were sown, treated and harvested in the northern herbicide tolerance project. This figure hides the size of the project, which included the testing of 32 NVT wheat lines with 12 herbicides (those considered to be the most commonly used) in three trials and the testing of 20 NVT barley lines with eight common herbicides in two trials. A further seven trials assessed advanced wheat lines and new varieties that had shown potential sensitivity to specific herbicides in the previous season. In a further two trials, the sensitivity of three varieties and two lines of chickpeas were tested with four herbicides. Trials are located at sites across southern Queensland to ensure regional environmental influences on herbicide–variety interactions are also identified in this project. The importance of conducting trials across Australia has been emphasised by the identification of different levels of crop sensitivity to some herbicides in the Northern Region trials compared with results in the south and west. This indicates a strong environmental influence on herbicide tolerance. □ GRDC Research Codes DAS00100, DAN00142, UQ00059, DAW00191 More information: Rob Wheeler, SARDI, 0401 148 935, rob.wheeler@sa.gov.au
Pushing the yield frontier 13 Identifying the varieties best suited to certain combinations of environments and management regimes is the aim of this CSIRO-led project By Dr Zvi Hochman As growers improve their wheat crop management practices a new opportunity is provided for discovery of genotype, environment, management (G×E×M) interactions that will push yields beyond the current frontier. This GRDC-funded, CSIRO-led project aims to capture the G×E×M impacts through field meaurement and cropping systems simulation. The results of the National Variety Trials (NVT) can be difficult to relate to an individual farm or paddock due to differences in soil type, rainfall, temperature and management practices. Currently, a variety’s estimated genetic value (EGV) is calculated to provide a prediction of the yield (tonnes per hectare) of the variety in a specified environment as defined by a geographic region. To help improve the assessment of varieties across trial sites, this project aims to establish a process to account for a site’s environment on the basis of its water-limited yield potential, rather than its location. This estimate requires the research team to factor in specific differences in soil type, climate and environmental stresses at each site. By fully characterising the environments (soil and climate) of the NVT sites and applying management that allows the site potential to be fully expressed, we can better understand how varieties differ in their response to environmental stresses and provide growers with variety data that is more appropriate to their specific situation. The project has established 11 field sites (at least two for each mainland state) alongside NVT sites. At each site seven current spring wheat varieties suited to the agro-ecological zone were selected, with the variety Janz sown at all sites as a reference variety. Three sowing times are being assessed over three seasons with management practices that will enable the expression of yield potential. For example, additional nitrogen fertiliser is top-dressed if, based on Yield Prophet ® , it appears likely that soil fertility might prevent the crop photo: Belinda Walters, CSIRO Eleven field sites have been established alongside NVT sites. Rain-out shelters are one of the tools being used to establish which varieties are best suited to the various combinations of environments and management regimes in the Australian wheat zone. from achieving its yield potential. Crop development (Zadoks growth stages), total dry matter, yield components and grain yield are also assessed. The soils at each of these sites are being characterised using electromagnetic mapping and soil coring for chemical and soil moisture analysis. Soils are also being tested for root diseases using the PreDicta B ® analysis. Rain-out shelters and ponds are being used to assess the influence of soil water-holding capacity and soil water stress. Automatic temperature and rainfall loggers have been installed to measure the environmental factors that influence crop growth and development. Data from the first two years of this four-year project are being used in crop simulation models to capture the measured variety, site and time of sowing effects. By using simulation models, the detailed G×E×M information can be extended across a wide range of locations and seasons. Simulation modelling also enables the timing and severity of water stress to be related to specific variety yields. Ultimately, the project aims to establish which varieties are best suited to the various combinations of environments and management regimes in the Australian wheat zone. □ GRDC Research Code CSA00027 More information: Dr Zvi Hochman, CSIRO, 07 3833 5733, zvi.hochman@csiro.au Value-adding to NVT data
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