Preserving herbicide chemistry long-term
Herbicide resistance is challenging growers and agronomists as they plan weed management programs to make the most of both old and new chemistry.
Ed Nixon, general manager of AGRIvision Consultants, says northern Mallee growers still have the chance to preserve older herbicides and keep as much diversity in the program as possible.
“In the Victorian Mallee, over time grain growers are coming up against new weed challenges as our farming systems and control methods select for different weeds and resistance to herbicides,” says Ed. “We know that the routine use of any herbicide mode of action inevitably leads to resistance and that diversity in both herbicide and non-herbicide tactics is the best way to manage weeds.”
Knowing what chemistry is working now and what is falling over is invaluable information when planning future herbicide programs.
Ed says most growers are also managing a significant chemical budget, and keeping old chemistry ‘in the mix’ is an important component of maintaining cost-effective solutions, while accepting that using some new chemistry for long-term sustainability and profitability is inevitable.
Growers like Bec Marshall, who farms a diverse cropping program of wheat, barley, hay (vetch and oaten), lentils, canola and irrigated faba beans at Normanville uses multiple tactics such as haymaking, double knocking and crop-topping to stop weed seed set.
Wade Nickolls is another grower taking a diverse approach to managing weeds on their 8000 ha family farm at Pinaroo. The Nickolls family takes an ‘everything – including the kitchen sink’ approach that includes using impact mills for harvest weed seed control, diverse herbicide use, legume break crops, deep ripping, variable rate technology and hay making to keep weed numbers low.
Pinaroo grain grower, Wade Nickolls takes an takes an ‘everything – including the kitchen sink’ approach to keeping weed numbers low.
Listen to these presenters and more from WeedSmart Week 2022 Mildura.
