GRDC Podcast

The Longmire’s farm at Beaumont, near Esperance in Western Australia, have been experimenting with variable rate technology for more than 20 years. As pros at using precision agriculture, Tom and Phil presented at workshops across WA earlier this year to share their experience implementing the technology on-farm. Tom joins us on this episode to tell us more. Download the transcript for this episod...

The Soil Quality ebook series, developed by SoilsWest with GRDC investment, draws upon a wealth of scientific published information, knowledge from dedicated soil science practitioners, industry perspectives and first-hand experience of growers. The 10th and final book in the series, covering the topic of plant nutrition, was released in October 2023 and the entire series is available to download...

The price of fertiliser has reached record highs over the past few seasons, so any option to reduce the amount of inputs being used on-farm, without impacting yield or productivity, can only be a good thing.  With GRDC investment, the Society of Precision Agriculture Australia has been hosting a series of face-to-face workshops around the country to try and help growers do just that.  To find out...

The second tier of the Australian Grains Pest Innovation Program (AGPIP) looks at beneficial insects in Australian grain crops as an alternate pest control option. With the use of endosymbionts, the team at the University of Melbourne’s Pest and Environmental Adaptation Research Group (PEARG) are using new technology to help increase beneficial insect populations and supress plant virus transmissi...

Join Dr Arun Shanmugam and Dr Gary Rosewarne from Agriculture Victoria as they discuss the impact of GRDC’s investment on the Australian Lentil Industry since its establishment in the 1990’s. This podcast also looks at the increased scale in operations and infrastructure to deliver new varieties for growers and also how new GRDC investment is expanding lentil production as a national program, into...

Growers at the GRDC Grains Research Updates at Minyip in Victoria in July 2023 were told by Gerard McMullen from the National Working Party on Grain Protection that applying chemicals according to the label rate did not necessarily mean grain would meet export market requirements.  Gerard joins us on this podcast to talk about changing MRLs, the chemical review being undertaken by the APVMA and wh...

A virtual goldmine of data generated from thousands of research, development and extension projects – all supported by GRDC – will soon be discoverable, accessible and able to be used to accelerate research outcomes.  GRDC’s Data Partnerships Initiative is a $2.8 million investment over 18 months and it brings together 12 Australian research organisations that are currently working on projects in...

Spring is a critical time for disease detection in order to avoid or at least minimise yield losses; and already we are seeing higher infection levels than in previous years.  Dr Hari Dadu is a senior research scientist with Agriculture Victoria has nearly a decade of experience working with crop diseases and is now leading the Septoria tritici blotch research in wheat, in the low and medium rainf...

Plant pathologist, Kurt Lindbeck from the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries (DPI) at Wagga Wagga, discusses the challenges for growers when assessing disease risk this season. What signs should growers be looking for, how is and does weather affect decision making and what are the considerations for fungicide application? Kurt’s key message for growers this season around disease det...

Data recently collected as part of the GRDC investment "Measuring Harvest Losses in the western region," has helped to identify opportunities for growers to reclaim grain that is lost during harvest. A report published on the back of this investment shows that more than $320 million dollars’ worth of grain was lost in Western Australia during the 2022/23 harvest. The podcast explores the data and...

Join agricultural procurement specialist and speaker at a recent GRDC Farm Business Update Rob Dawes talk about the urea supply and how to prevent getting caught short again. And then Horsham agronomist Matthew Sparke will share his insights on the strategic application of what nitrogen you do have to get the most out of it. Lack of urea supply is a major issue for growers, particularly in the sou...

At GRDC Grower Network Forums in the Western region, the issue of poor canola establishment was raised by growers in the low rainfall zone who mainly flagged problems when the crop is dry sown. This investment aimed to validate and extend previous agronomic and management research on how to successfully establish canola in those regions and conditions. To find out more, we speak to Living Farm’s A...

Trials taking place in Western Australia aim to provide growers with information and resources to increase the effectiveness of claying on poor soil. In this podcast, Dan Fay from Stirlings to Coast Farmers discusses the benefits and long-term soil amelioration that can be achieved by claying and grower Ben Webb shares his experiences with the trials and how it has positively affected yields. Cont...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Terry Horan. Joining us from central Tasmania this week is agronomic specialist Terry Horan, in our last episode of Series 2 of the GRDC podcast In Conversation. For more than 40 years, Terry has been actively involved in agronomy in the low, medium and high rainfall cropping areas. He grew up in between Trundle and Parks, NSW, studied in...

As part of the Australian Grains Pest Innovation Program’s (AGPIP) blue sky approach to tackling insect pests in Australian grain crops, endosymbionts are being used to influence an insect’s ability to transmit crop viruses and resist pesticides. Dr Perran Ross from the University of Melbourne’s Pest and Environmental Adaptation Research Group (PEAR–G) explains what endosymbionts are, how they are...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Dr Allan Mayfield. In 2021, Allan was granted the GRDC Recognising and Rewarding Excellence Award for the southern region for his long-standing input and commitment to the nation’s grains industry. And it's not just the grains industry he's impressed, with Allan named as SA's Australia Day Citizen of the Year 2020. Allan grew up on the Ey...

WeedSmart provides solutions to control crop weeds using the ‘Big 6’ principles utilising herbicide, mechanical and cultural tactics. 2023 marks ten years of the WeedSmart program, with a focus on spray efficacy as part of the ‘Big 6’. WeedSmart agronomists, Jana Dixon and Greg Condon discuss the benefits of the WeedSmart ‘Big 6’ as they prepare for WeedSmart Week on 1 August in Dubbo, New South W...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Dr Lynne MacDonald. Dr Lynne MacDonald is a research scientist with CSIRO where she leads a portfolio of research on soil carbon and low emissions agriculture. Her early love of agriculture and childhood memories of playing in the dirt stem back to Scotland. Years later, she was awarded a fellowship which saw her move to Canada, but she e...

Across the country, many growers have not had much of a break between harvest and this season's operations… and this comes on top of a tough couple of years that included the unpredictability of mother nature, as well as a global pandemic. This podcast explores strategies for maintaining a healthy mindset while under pressure. We spoke to Kim Huckerby from ‘The Wellbeing Affect’ who shares practic...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with James Hunt. James Hunt is a Professor of agronomy at the University of Melbourne, but his journey there was interesting and included touring Europe as part of a heavy metal rock band and some home brewing detours. He grew up on a farm in western Victoria and has done quite a bit in the world of grain crop research and farming systems. Jam...

Dr Kym Perry from SARDI discusses all things snails including how they got to Australia and have spread across the whole country. He also discusses the new GRDC investment looking at monitoring techniques, biological control and a multifaceted approach to dealing with the widespread problem affecting the grains industry. Download the transcript for this episode Contact: Dr Kym Perry SARDI Entomolo...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Lawrence Richmond.  Growing up in Watchem in western Victoria, Lawrence Richmond had no idea that there were opportunities to be a farmer beyond his farm gate. But at 21, he picked up work in the world of corporate agriculture, opening his eyes to a world of possibility. Fast forward to today and Lawrence joins us from Romania, where he c...

Soilborne disease and root health in cereals and pulses often doesn't get the attention it deserves because it's quite literally out of sight, out of mind. In this podcast, researchers Blake Gontar and Dr Liz Farquharson of the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI), the research division of the Department of Primary Industries and Regions in South Australia, share their insig...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Tanja Morgan.  Twenty years ago, Tanja took up a job in the Mallee for a better work opportunity but was ‘devastated’ to move to the area. However, the place grew on her and farming in the Mallee has since become a large part of her life. She’s even moved further away from the big smoke residing in the little town of Geranium where she is...

GRDC, the Irrigated Cropping Council and the NSW Department of Primary Industries have teamed up to explore the influence of soil amelioration and soil amendments on crop yield and profitability in irrigated farming systems. So far there have been mixed results from the project which aims to give growers an understanding of the costs and benefits of deep ripping on sodic soils. Download the transc...