Innovation drives summer fallow efficiency in the Riverina
Grain growers in the northern Riverina, NSW have adopted innovative summer fallow weed management practices that have vastly improved the reliability of dryland cropping in this low rainfall region. Although facing herbicide resistance challenges, growers are keeping weed numbers low through effective seedbank management.
WeedSmart extension agronomist, Greg Condon says Griffith will host the flagship WeedSmart Week event this year, showcasing the innovative weed management systems local growers have established.
“The Riverina has a unique and varied agricultural landscape where horticulture, viticulture, rice, cotton and dryland grain production intersect,” he says. “For the broadacre cropping enterprises, this brings with it some significant challenges for weed management and herbicide use. But these challenges have driven much of the weed management innovation in the region.”
Greg says that herbicide-resistant annual ryegrass, fleabane, sowthistle, Jersey cudweed and feathertop Rhodes grass are the main targets for growers.
“A number of these persistent summer weeds have evolved herbicide resistance, with seeds moving between irrigated and dryland landscapes,” he says. “Innovations in herbicide application technology, including weed detection and spot-spraying, alternative herbicide programs, and more diverse farming systems have been critical to tackle the challenges of herbicide resistant weeds in a low rainfall cropping zone.”
WeedSmart Week plays an important role in extending practical and science-backed weed management tactics and grower innovations throughout the industry.
Project manager Karen Smith says the WeedSmart Week event in August will showcase the successful implementation of both sustainable herbicide use and non-herbicide practices that underpin low-weed cotton and grain farming systems in the Riverina.
“The two-day event will delve into how Riverina growers have adopted diverse weed management strategies to expand their crop options,” she says. “Just as importantly, the presentations and farm visits will also open up future-looking discussions about some challenges that are ahead for all growers.”
WeedSmart Week begins with the forum day at the Griffith Regional Theatre on Tuesday, 18 August. The second day includes a bus tour to local farms, seeding tactic response trials and a machinery expo on Wednesday, 19 July. For those able to stay, there is an optional third day of concurrent farm tours – join the dryland farming systems tour or investigate weed management innovation in irrigated systems.
Greg says that the whole event will centre on how growers have implemented the WeedSmart Big 6 pillars to conserve soil moisture over summer, and optimise water efficiency to remain profitable despite variable climatic conditions. He has appreciated the enthusiastic support of the local organising committee members keen to make WeedSmart Week 2026 a valuable learning experience for all attendees.
“The forum program is built around the WeedSmart Big 6, with respected growers and agronomists sharing their knowledge and experience,” he says. “Spray technology, mixed farming, soil amelioration and herbicide management adjacent to sensitive crops and other areas in the Riverina will provide food for thought for both local and visiting growers and agronomists.”
The field tour on Day 2 involves visits to farms in the Rankins Springs area, where the growers will outline how they are dealing with resistant weeds in fallow, spray drift, evolving rotations, optical spot-spraying, autonomy and managing risk in a low-rainfall cropping zone.
The bus tour will also visit field trials conducted by Barry Haskins, Ag Grow Agronomy and Research, comparing seedling establishment tactics to improve crop competition in lentils on sandy soils. The machinery expo will feature the latest in spray and camera technology, impact mills and other mechanical weed control tools.
The optional third day of the 2026 event offers attendees the opportunity to join one of two tour groups for the day, visiting either dryland or irrigated farms in the region.
This flagship annual event attracts growers, farm workers, agronomists and students from all mainland states, highlighting the practical nature of the event. Attendees will have the opportunity to engage with WeedSmart’s industry sponsors who will showcase their weed management tools at the forum and the machinery expo.
Check the interim program and register for this important event at the ‘early bird’ single ticket price of $300 until 30 June 2026, after this, the single ticket price is $350. This includes the farm tours, machinery expo, and weed management forum, all fully catered. Group bookings and student discounts are also available. The optional Day 3 bus tours are priced from $75 per person.
“This will be the thirteenth WeedSmart Week event and is made possible through the support of the GRDC as the major investment partner and a wide range of herbicide and machinery companies – all with skin in the weed control game,” says Karen. “Growers and advisors from other areas are encouraged to take advantage of GRDC’s financial support for study tours to attend events such as WeedSmart Week.”
The Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) is a platinum supporter of WeedSmart. This investment ensures growers can access world-class research outcomes and strategies to mitigate weeds and control herbicide resistance.
