And just like that February is almost gone and seeding is just around the corner again. It has been a busy summer for everyone coupled with a slow drawn out harvest and then many hours conserving precious moisture preparing for 2021 season.
We appreciate the feedback on previous blogs/newsletters it makes it all worth while knowing it has relevance in our "own back yard" and that you are getting valuable information.
Challenging times are still upon us with supply of AG-Chem products but we have been busy securing our pre and post emergent products for the coming
season. Please call in or ring and have that discussion with our team about your requirements to avoid delays at sowing time, refer to the check list above.
Safety Supplies
We have a large range of spraying and seeding safety gear in store for your protection and comfort.
. Spraying, Rigger, Mechanic, and Welding Gloves
. Dust and Chemical Masks
. Spray Aprons
. Disposable Coveralls
. Sun and Safety glasses
. Face Shields
. Hearing Protection
Plus plenty more, so call in and have a chat to Bob, and if we don’t have we can get it in
Local Insect Update
With the spring rainfall that we received late last year we have seen an increase of moth flights and activity in paddocks, below is our update on species and what to expect moving forward.
Heliotrope Moth
With summer rain this season we have seen fantastic germinations of Potato Weed (Heliotrope) across the district.
And with this you may have noticed the vast number of moths flying around in these paddocks, these would be the Heliotrope Moth as seen in the photo.
The sightings of these in paddocks is not to be concerned about and will not be an issue moving into the 2021 cropping season.
This species is only know to feed on potato weed and occasionally salvation jane and not any cereal or grass species.
If you do look closely in the paddock you will see moths and larvae like the ones in these photos on your potato weed and most likely the damage on the plants like you would expect from a caterpillar species.
Common Armyworm Sighting
Last week we collected some grubs that have been identified as Common Armyworm, still surviving in a paddock close to Kimba. The grubs are laying in the moist dirt in the previous years crop row and providing a great food source for the local crows.
It is unusual for a species like this to have not pupated by now and moved into the adult moth stage of their lifecycle, possible due to lack of "green feed" late in their instar growth stage which they require to pupate.
This is something we will be monitoring and remaining vigilant moving towards seeding however at this stage we believe they should not be an issue in the early part of the cropping season but important to be aware of.
Other Moth Activity
As you may have noticed lately moth numbers are high throughout the district, some of these species are from the two above that have been mentioned however there are a few other species that we are confirming identification. If we receive rainfall events in the next 6 odd weeks it is the perfect time for moth type species to lay eggs that often take between 3-28days to hatch.
We are advising all growers to be organised and prepared to use alpha cypermethrin or an alternative insecticide in you pre plant knockdown. At a cost less @$0.70c/ha it is cheap insurance and peace of mind with the current moth flight numbers, so make sure you make contact to discuss your insecticide options.
Fertiliser Market Review
Fertiliser season… you have to love it!
A big thank you to all our clients who backed us in and supported our judgement in this frustrating and challenging period for which most of you were right in the middle of harvest when our decisions needed to be made.
Well I am happy to say we locked all your fertiliser away back in December prior to the price increase which the industry did not see coming. Traditionally early
season deals are ones to take up and at the levels they were at in December they were still at a 10 year low ($600 DAP-18:20) I don’t think I have seen the Fertiliser market as volatile as this during the procurement season with increases of $300.00 /tonne Over the past 5 weeks.
for AP fertilisers (DAP/MAP $900 currently) and that’s hoping product is available by May??
With global demand strong in the northern hemisphere and Chinese product historically cheaper for the Australian market, China took the opportunity to divert tonnage away from our market to a more lucrative markets like American and other northern neighbours. (read into that what you will given our stained relationship with China at present)
In addition to that China’s own season was very buoyant and they used additional production capacity to service their own needs.
The Nitrogen market had its own challenges with price increases due to the cold winter in the northern hemisphere also which pushed ammonia gas prices high (used in the production
of urea) as they diverted product from fertiliser production into heating creating shortages of gas supply.
One of the biggest lesson out of all of this and I feel it applies to the whole of the Australian Agriculture Industry and that’s the heavy reliance on China for supply. I think we will
See a big shift in 2022 with Incitec Pivot utilising their own phosphate mine (Southern Cross in Queensland) to focus more on domestic supply rather than export and promote
“Aussie Made” products…let’s hope so anyway.
New Variety Releases
In 2021 we will again see some great new varieties released and available to be sown in your paddocks this season.
Have a read about the new varieties below and please give us a call if you would like more information, keep in mind as always with new varieties seed may be difficult to source.
We will have all of the below varieties in our 2021 Ep Ag n Fert Agronomy research site for our growers to come and visit.
Hammer CL Plus Wheat (0AGT0016)
Hammer CL Plus is a high yielding AH Clearfield wheat variety. Closely related to Mace with similar adaption and sowing window. Tolerant to Clearfield Intervix herbicide technology. Hammer CL Plus produces a strong grain package with low screenings losses and high test weights, while also offering one of the best Clearfield wheat disease packages, with good levels of resistance to CCN.
Released by AGT. EPR of $4.25/tonne + GST
Ballista Wheat (RAC2598)
Ballista is a quick-mid maturity, slightly quicker than Mace AH classification high yielding wheat variety targeting medium/low rainfall and Mallee type environments. Ballista has produced higher yields than Scepter and Vixen in these environments. CCN resistance package equal to Scepter.
Released by AGT. EPR of $3.50/tonne + GST
Maximus CL Barley (IGB1705T)
Maximus CL is a high yielding, quick-mid maturing imidazolinone tolerant barley, which is a replacement for Spartacus. Maximus CL is slightly later maturity than Spartacus (3-4 days). Similar to Spartacus, it is an erect plant type with a low-medium head loss risk with an improved Spot Form Net Blotch disease rating. It has been accepted into the Barley Australia malt accreditation program with the earliest potential accreditation In March 2021.
Released by Intergrain. EPR of $4.25/tonne + GST
Beast Barley (AGTB0113)
Beast is a high yielding barley targeted for the low-medium rainfall or Mallee type environments. It is a quick maturity, almost a week quicker than Compass and performs well in stressed, tight finishing seasons. It is a Compass plant type, with similar early vigour and has consistently out yielded Compass across many environments. Beast will be released as a feed variety and has been accepted into the Barley Australia malt accrediatiaion program, however a result on its malt status will not be know until at least the 2023 season.
Released by AGT. EPR of $4.00/tonne + GST
Commodus CL Barley (IGB1908, IGB1967)
This new Imi barley is high yielding, quick maturing line that is agronomically similar to Compass and are ideally suited to lighter soil types and medium-low rainfall environments.
Similar yield potential to Compass, CCN resistance, excellent grain size with the same lodging and head loss risk to Compass.
Commodus has been accepted into the Barley Australia malt accreditation program.
Released by Intergrain. EPR of $4.25/tonne + GST
Kingbale Oats (GIA101O)
Kingbale is a world first Imi tolerant oaten hay variety. It is a mid-maturity Wintaroo type, with a similar disease and agronomic package as Wintaroo. Kingbale is a single gene oat, meaning it can be sown where imi herbicide residues are expected, or Sentry (imazapic/Imazapyr) will be registered as a Pre Emergent ONLY, Imidazolinone herbicides cannot be used Post Emergent. It is a tall variety with good early vigour.
Released by Intergrain EPR of $3.65/tonne + GST
PBA Kelpie XT Lentils (GIA1701-L)
Kelpie is a large red Lentil with Imidazolinone herbicide tolerance. Slightly smaller grain size than Jumbo 2, with its flowering and maturity earlier than Jumbo 2 and shows good early vigour.
Released by Seednet. EPR of $5.40/tonne + GST
Seraph Medic (PM250)
Seraph Strand Medic is the latest release out of the SARDI breeding program. It is the first of the program exhibiting both SU tolerance and Powdery Mildew tolerance in a world, medic first. Seraph exhibits increased winter production compared to other strand medic varieties and maintains a moderate level of hard seed. Seraph also appears to thrive well on a wider variety of soil types compared with other Strand Medics. It has excellent dry matter production exceeding both Angel and Jaguar. However, as with most Strand Medic varieties it excels on light, free draining, sandy soils, out producing most other annual pasture legumes including other medics.
Released by S&W Seeds
Studenica Vetch
Studenica Vetch is a Timok replacement with a similar maturity. Studenica was bred for low rainfall areas and can be used similarly to other common vetch varieties for grain/seed, grazing, hay or green manure. Studenica is particularly suited to shorter season areas where the growing season finishes sharply. It has superior winter growth when compared to existing common vetch varieties. Studenica is classified as a very early flowering and maturing variety, which results in earlier nodule development and nitrogen fixation for ,crops in rotations.
· All-purpose common vetch, Timok replacement
· Fantastic early vigour
· Selected to be sown late in the season, with excellent tolerance to seedling frost
· High dry matter and grain yields
Released by S&W Seeds
What's New with Herbicides for 2021
In 2021 we will see some exciting new products brought to the market and available to be used this cropping season.
It great to see new products being released to combat resistance and improve weed control, keep in mind however that we are fortunate that a lot of older chemistry still works for us and new products come with a
Have a read about the new products below and please give us a call if you would like more information. We will have trail product available and Kevin will be putting these products out around the district for our growers to come have a hands on look at.
Terrador
Company: Nufarm
Active ingredient(s): 700g/kg Tiafenacil
Mode of Action: Group G
Terrador is a new group G knockdown spike for broadleaf and grass weed control recently released by Nufarm in water-dispersible granules. Terrador will be most commonly be used as a tank mix partner with either Glyphosate or Paraquat as a knockdown product.
Terrador will provide improved control of marshmallow, medic, tares and grass weeds than what is expected with Carfentrazone and Oxyfluorfen. Terrador has no residual activity at labelled rates, which allows short plant-backs to key crops – 1 hour to Wheat, Barley, Field Peas, Faba Beans, Lentils, Lupins and Oats and one week to Canola at the 15-20g use rate.
Saracen
Company: Nufarm
Active ingredient(s): 50g/l Florasulam
Mode of Action: Group B
Saracen is a new flexible tank mix partner for broadleaf weed control in wheat and barley.
Saracen is a valuable option if the residual nature of clopyralid or metsulfuron may cause plantback problems and has a very similar weed control spectrum. Saracen is another option where dicamba may present crop safety concerns or has a restriction on early in crop application application, it provides excellent efficacy on volunteer pulses, wild radish, medic and vetch and provides plantback flexibility therefore not restricting your crop rotation in coming seasons. Saracen is extremely compatible with in crop tank mix partners and also has a large application window, 3-leaf up to 1st node in cereals.
Overwatch
Company: FMC
Active ingredient(s): 400g/l Bixlozone
Mode of Action: Group Q
Overwatch is a Pre-Emergent product for the control of annual ryegrass, suppression of Barley grass and Brome grass aswell as activity on some broadleaf weeds.
It will be registered for IBS use in Wheat, Barley and Canola. With Overwatch being a group Q herbicide it is another tool in managing herbicide resistance.
Reflex
Company: Syngenta
Active ingredient(s): 240g/l Fomesafen
Mode of Action: Group G
Reflex is a new pre-emergent herbicide released by Syngenta for broadleaf control in lupins, field peas, chickpeas, lentils, vetch and faba beans. Care will need to be taken with this product on light soil types and will have a plantback of 9 months with 250mm of rainfall for cereal crops.
Callisto
Company: Syngenta
Active ingredient(s): 480g/l Mesotrione
Mode of Action: Group H
Callisto is a pre-emergent herbicide that controls broadleaf weeds in wheat and barley. Callisto will have no grass weed activity so will have to be partnered with other pre-emergent. residual control can last 10 to 16 weeks and plantback for broadleaf or legume crops is 9months.
As always, please feel free to ring us to discuss any of your specific issues, questions or you are looking for more detail.
Kevin Dart - 0474 272 577
Troy Maitland - 0499 272 544
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