GRDC Podcast

The ‘Fungicide Resistance Five’ is the basis for an integrated disease management strategy that growers can use on-farm to reduce fungicide resistance pressure on crop pathogens. This six-part podcast series, produced through the Australian Fungicide Resistance Extension Network (AFREN), unpacks the individual elements of the strategy to inform growers why and how they should minimise the risk of...

In Western Australia, outbreaks of fungicide resistance have occurred in several important diseases of barley. Resistance is a significant but preventable problem that can largely be managed by taking care not to repeatedly expose a pathogen to the same product or chemical Mode of Action Group. It is important for growers to recognise that this management regime can include fungicide seed treatmen...

South Australian grain growers have been alerted to several cases of fungicide resistance in recent growing seasons, including in net form net blotch of barley, and wheat powdery mildew. In this podcast, Dr Hugh Wallwork, from the South Australian Research and Development Institute, the Department of Primary Industries and Regions’ research division, talks about the factors that contribute to fung...

Growers in the north could consider fungicide resistance less of a threat than growers in the south and west, however there is no room for complacency. As Professor Levente Kiss from the University of Southern Queensland’s Centre for Crop Health points out in this podcast, as long as there are fungal crop diseases there is a risk of fungal resistance. Barley, wheat and pulses can all be affected....

Some ground breaking research has resulted in a breakthrough for growers and agronomists wanting to measure the potential impact of disease on yield. A national network of trials over five years will result in a new ability to quickly and accurately assess potential disease impact on some of the more popular cereal varieties. On this podcast we look at the results of that research and also how it...

Farmers across the Western Region are using a variety of stubble strategies to protect soil moisture over summer and to protect those soils from harsh winds. Noel Keding has taken stubble strategies to the next level using a stripper front on his cereals. Noel has some experience using stripper fronts in both low and higher rainfall environments, so his experience may help other growers who are wo...

Losing just one millimetre of topsoil in a wind erosion event can result in significant changes to soil fertility and cause yield losses in subsequent crops of up to six per cent. But there are some measures growers can take to protect their topsoil and reduce the impact of severe wind. In this podcast, Cropfacts consultant Harm van Rees, Agronomy Solutions director Sean Mason and South Australian...

The GRDC has for the first time committed to a multi-million-dollar global investment into dedicated research programs to address crop production constraints and the opportunities machine learning can provide, with the aim of driving profitability gains for Australian grain growers. Nine “use-cases” will form the core of the investment which will involve national and international research partner...

Online Farm Trials (OFT) is a website that contains a wealth of cropping data from the nation’s leading research organisations, and it’s proving to be an invaluable resource for both growers and researchers alike. This podcast shares how growers can use the platform to make informed management decisions, and how research organisations can benefit from getting involved and contributing trial inform...

Changing rainfall patterns in the drier parts of the western region have prompted a rethink of strategies for grower Clint Della Bosca. On this podcast focusing on stubble management in Western Australia, Clint talks about the vital importance of stubble in his system as weather patterns unfamiliar to his area begin to emerge. Clint is undertaking a soil amelioration program while adjusting to les...

Plant Available Water, is key to determining potential crop yield. It’s also the basis for sowing decisions and fertiliser applications. Many things affect how much stored soil water is available, rainfall before and during the growing season, infiltration, evaporation and transpiration. And then there’s Plant Available Water Capacity, which is the total amount of water a soil can store and releas...

As many Western and Southern region grain growers start preparations for sowing this year’s winter crops, there are still a few areas in the eastern states northern region where late sown summer crops such as sorghum are still standing. In this podcast you’ll hear from a leading authority on Mouse behaviour and management, about the challenges facing growers yet to harvest and those needing to pla...

New research is harnessing advanced computer capabilities and artificial intelligence to fast-track the development of new barley varieties with improved foliar pathogen resistance – shaving years off conventional breeding program processes. Dr Kai Voss-Fels is the project lead and senior research fellow with the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, based at the University of Q...

Foliar diseases are a major constraint to profitable barley production across Australia, affecting both yield and quality. In this podcast, senior plant pathologist Dr. Lisle Snyman from the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Queensland discusses the presence and spread of barley foliar pathogens across Australia's growing regions. Dr Snyman was part of the barley foliar pathogen project. The...

Growers are set to get better variety recommendations faster through a new GRDC investment, INVITA, which is adding value to the National Variety Trial (NVT) program. The investment is led by Prof Scott Chapman from the University of Queensland (UQ) which is working in collaboration with Australian partner, CSIRO. The investment, INVITA, leverages off a major EU investment INVITE (Innovations in p...

Until now, only limited information has been available about in-paddock summer weed distribution and abundance in Western Australia. However, a two-year survey, which will be completed in 2021, will provide hard numbers for the entire wheatbelt. The survey, completed with investment from the GRDC, has been coordinated by Albany-based agronomist Andrew Storrie, of AGRONOMO. Contact: Andrew Storrie,...

A new GRDC publication containing the latest research into canola production in Western Australia’s low rainfall zones is now available. This detailed GRDC publication also contains grower case studies outlining how growers manage their crops to get the best results in these challenging environments. In this podcast you’ll hear from one of those growers Tony Murfit, who farms near Merredin, about...

Australia’s ongoing reliance on a limited range of chemicals has set a concerning trajectory for insecticide resistance. Integrated pest management (IPM) strategies play an important role in curbing future resistance cases, however there’s a strong social dynamic at play when it comes to growers and advisers adopting these strategies on-farm. In this podcast, Bruce Howie from C-Qual Agritelligence...

At the December 2020 Crop Protection Forum in Perth, Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development research scientist Ben Congdon spoke about the collaborative research effort underway to develop better proactive management strategies for Green Peach Aphid. GPA is a major vector for the transmission of Turnip yellows virus, a serious disease of canola crops which can result in yield lo...

Roberto Busi from the GRDC-supported Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative is working on the use of herbicide mixes as a powerful tool to combat resistant weeds. Dr Busi gave a presentation on this subject at the Crop Protection Forum in Perth in late 2020. Contact Roberto Busi roberto.busi@uwa.edu.au Useful resouces Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative (AHRI) Centre for Crop and Diseas...

Many decisions growers make are the result of trials undertaken to test any number of variables. These small plot trials are replicated and the results are reliable because they are small plots with little chance of spatial variability. However, the same analysis that is used to decide the results of small plot trials can not be transferred to large plot trials. On this podcast, Katia Stefanova an...

Calcareous soils are very common in the southern grain-growing region and cover 60% of the region’s cropping country. These soils are high in calcium carbonate, resulting in poor crop establishment and low grain yields compared to less hostile soils. But a new research initiative is set to improve the grain industry’s understanding of these soils and how they constrain crop yield and profitability...

The Kuhlmann family has been farming on the western side of South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula for more than a hundred years. Peter Kuhlmann is the latest generation to farm the challenging calcareous soils in this part of the state. Like many growers, Peter has been keen to see more done to better understand these soils and has welcomed the new GRDC calcareous soils investment. The $6.75 million GR...

For grower James Heggaton who farms around Kojunup in Western Australia, stubble is a crucial part of his farming system but one that must be actively managed year on year. On this podcast, which is one of a limited series looking at how farmers are managing stubble across the western region, James explains the role of stubble in a climate where moisture retention is just one of the factors that g...

Stubble retention is practiced by farmers across the western cropping region for a variety of reasons. A special series of GRDC/West Australian No Tillage Farmers Association podcasts have been produced featuring growers and advisers who explain how stubble retention fits into their systems, the advantages it brings and how they manage the issues sometimes heavy stubble loads create. On this podca...