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Skeleton Weed Program 2023-24: Annual report to Grain Growers
No full textSkeleton weed is a major pest of grain crops and can significantly reduce grain crop yields by competing for moisture and nutrients (mainly nitrogen), due to its deep perennial root system. Skeleton weed is a declared plant in WA under section 22 of the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act (2007) and is assigned to control category 2 (Eradication) for the whole of the State, except in the Narembeen and Yilgarn Shires, where it is category 3 (Management)
Armyworms and their management in cereal crops
No full textArmyworms are pests of cereals crops. They are frequently found along the south coast of Western Australia and occasionally in other grainbelt locations.
When barley crops are maturing in spring, large armyworm caterpillars climb plants and can chew through the stems, causing the heads to fall to the ground. Damage to wheat and oat crops occurs less frequently and is usually minor compared to damage in barley. Armyworms are seldom a serious problem in pastures
Managing barley powdery mildew in the face of fungicide resistance
No full textBarley powdery mildew populations resistant to some fungicide active ingredients are present in the WA grainbelt. Integrated disease management strategies to manage the disease include growing varieties with improved resistance and strategic use of fungicides
Blackleg and its management in canola
No full textBlackleg, caused by the fungus Leptosphaeria maculans, is the most common and serious disease of canola in Western Australia (WA). Blackleg can cause significant damage by infecting the cotyledons or first leaves early in the season, leading ultimately to crown lesions or cankers later in the season.
Changes in variety choice, crop rotation, earlier sowing times, and stubble retention have extended the risk of blackleg disease. Because of early emergence, later stages of crop growth are more likely to be exposed and infection can occur on all parts of the plant above ground, including canola flowers, stems, and branches (this is referred to as Upper Canopy Infection or UCI).
Diagnosis of blackleg in canola is available via our DDLS Plant pathology services, which is a chargeable service
Manage crop weeds at harvest
No full textThis management strategy provides an opportunity to control weed seed set in the pasture and during harvest. The strategy physically removes viable seed from the paddock by collecting weed seed and grazing crop residues.
Weed seed removal at harvest can be achieved in 2 ways:
1. collecting weed seeds from the system to prevent them being spread across the paddock or farm
2. grazing weed contaminated crop residue and pastures
Foliar diseases and their management in lupins
No full textThis factsheet describes symptoms and management of the major fungal and viral diseases affecting lupin foliage, stems, and pods. Several of these diseases have the capacity to cause significant losses if not managed effectively.
Inoculum can be carried in soil, seed, stubble, on green regrowth, or by insect vectors, depending on the disease. Therefore, an integrated approach to disease management is required using tactics such as crop rotation, stubble management, fungicide seed dressing, variety selection, and seed testin
Should crop sequences in Western Australia include more lupins?
No full textReducing greenhouse gas emissions is an increasing priority for Australian grain producers. Could substituting lupins for canola, as a rotational break crop, enable farmers to reduce their emissions by less use of nitrogenous fertilisers?
Aim
This study aims to identify if replacing canola with lupins in rotations at a range of locations in Western Australia’s grainbelt is environmentally and economically attractive.
Methods.
Bio-economic simulation modelling is used to examine the gross margins and emissions associated with replacement of canola by lupins at 14 locations in the grainbelt of Western Australia in variousland use sequences.
Key results
Replacing canola with lupins unambiguously leads to reduced emissions in crop sequences at all locations considered. However, the higher gross margins from canola production cause lupins to only be a preferred break crop option at 4 of the 14 locations. Even with various plausible incentives to favour lupins, they remain economically unattractive at most locations other than those where lupins are well adapted to the environment.
Conclusions
Lupins’ current lack of commercial attractiveness for farmers limits its role in emissions reduction in the region’s farming systems.
Implications
The profitability of lupins needs to increase if lupins are to be widely readopted. This requires developing higher yielding lupin varieties, grain quality improvements, and policy changes to reward lower emission cereals. However, this study shows these changes, apart from yield improvement, are unlikely in the short term. At locations with suitable soils alternative pulse crops may offer higher gross margins whilst delivering emission reduction
The nexus between rotation profits and emissions: the impact of legumes?
No full textMitigating greenhouse gas emissions is an increasing priority for Western Australian grain producers. This study investigates the environmental and economic viability of integrating lupins and legume pastures into crop rotations at three locations in Western Australia\u27s grainbelt. Modelling simulations using the Economic Valuation of Alternative Land Use Sequence (EVALUS) model were conducted at each location to examine the gross margins and emissions associated with including lupins and legume pastures in current rotations. Findings indicate that replacing canola with lupins consistently reduces emissions at all locations. However, retention of canola over lupins generally boosts profits, highlighting the need to develop other more sustainable and profitable alternatives to canola. Inclusion of legume pastures rather than lupins yields mixed results. A phase of pasture with legumes in the sward provides fixed nitrogen to subsequent cereal crops and thus reduces the need for applied fertiliser and educes attendant emissions. However, the trade-off is increased farm level emissions (Scope 1) from livestock grazing in the pasture phase, thus increasing overall farm-level emissions in several analysed scenarios. Modelling results demonstrate how land use diversification can support business resilience and profitability but also highlight the pressing need for technological and biological innovation to mitigate agricultural emissions. The results illustrate that continued research and policy support is needed to drive sustainable and profitable practices in dryland agriculture in Western Australia
2035 greenhouse gas modelling projections for the Western Australian grains industry
No full textKey messages: Greenhouse gas emissions from the Western Australian grains industry are expected to increase by 2035 due to industry growth. Average grains emission intensity is expected to remain relatively stable until 2035 due to low adoption of low emission practices. Strategies and potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions are highlighted
On the Line and Online: Higher Non-Response to Web-Based Surveys Over-Represents Avid Recreational Fishers Compared With Telephone Surveys
No full textRecreational fishing surveys have an important role in providing data to inform fisheries management. The selection of a contact method is an important and often challenging consideration that influences the potential for non-sampling errors that can result in unrepresentative data and biased estimates. Telephones are used for many off-site recreational fishing surveys, but widespread use of digital technology suggests that online surveys could be a viable alternative. We compared phone surveys with alternative online surveys using probability sampling from a licence database. Response rates were lower for online surveys (13%–26%) than phone surveys (97%–98%). The proportion of respondents who reported marine fishing in the previous 12 months did not differ between survey methods (98% for both survey modes), but the proportion of avid fishers was higher for online surveys (41%–54%) than phone surveys (37%–40%). These differences reflect higher respondent burden for online surveys where data are self-administered and respondents are more likely to opt-out. Higher non-response and over-representation of avid fishers from online surveys may compromise data reliability. We recommend comparative studies to quantify and correct for biases when evaluating alternative survey modes for new or ongoing surveys