Optimising Weed Management Efficiency

This project will explore the potential of using residual based products during the in-crop/growing season period as a summer weed management strategy.

Key objectives

Assess Herbicide Impact

Analyse Cost Efficiency

Explore Alternative Strategies

About the project

This project seeks to understand the impact that residual based herbicides have on summer fallow weed management strategies in and around the Wentworth region.

At the GRDC Wentworth NGN forum, growers identified the cost of summer fallow weed control as a significant and escalating input cost. More specifically, glyphosate has gone from $2.5 to $8.0/L over a 4-year period. Similarly, but over a slightly longer period of 5 to 6 years, growers have transitioned from single spray applications to using a double knock strategy 5 to 7 days apart. Each application pass is costing $12 to $16/ha (machinery and labour cost) and both the number of passes required and the cost of herbicide products have increased significantly.

This is a major issue that is impacting profitability for low input farming systems. This project will explore the potential of using residual based products during the in-crop/growing season period as a summer weed management strategy.

Are you a farmer in the Wentworth region and have you used a residual based herbicide in the 2023 growing season?

We need your feedback! Click the button below to complete our quick survey.

The Aim of optimising Weed Management Efficiency
Projects

Assess Herbicide Impact

Investigate how residual-based herbicides affect summer fallow weed management in the Wentworth region.

 

Analyze Cost Efficiency

Evaluate the escalating costs of weed control methods, including the shift from single to double knock spray strategies and the rising price of glyphosate.

Explore Alternative Strategies

Explore the viability of using residual herbicides during the in-crop/growing season as a cost-effective summer weed management solution.

Resources

Acknowledgments

Working together with farmers

Other MSF Projects

Enhancing farmer knowledge of soil function

Our project, '101 Questions About SA Cropping Soils,' will boost farmer knowledge through easy-to-access e-publication and targeted social media Q&As.

Building drought resilience on Mallee Farms

This project funds Mallee farmers to combat wind erosion by enhancing groundcover on vulnerable soils.

Grain Legume Production in South Australia

Development and extension to close the economic yield gap and maximise farming systems benefits from grain legume production in South Australia.

Mallee Seeps
Optimising Weed Management Efficiency

A holistic approach to seep management for preventing land degradation in the landscape.

RISKY BUSINESS

Strengthening Mallee Farmers and Communities for Sustainable Futures and Enhanced Resilience.

Mallee-REEL-Culture

Empowering Mallee's youth to share and celebrate their stories of resilience and community through captivating social media reels

Growing Carbon Farming Demonstration Pilot

Enhancing sustainable agriculture through innovative carbon farming practices across South Australia’s Murray Mallee

Better Frost Decisions

We can see that harvest is on the horizon but we are not quite there yet. So what could possibly go wrong?

GRDC National Risk Management Initiative

Supporting farmers across the Mallee to make better decisions GRDC National Risk Management Initiative (RiskWi$e)

Demonstrating soil zone mapping

Demonstrate how farmers can manage their own investigation of nutrition requirements when setting up VRT soil zones and fertiliser recommendations

Developing robust ground cover

Enhancing drought resilience and groundcover management in low-rainfall farming.

Building knowledge and capacity in growers

Improving Sandy Soil Management for Farmers

Fixing Saline Soils

This project will demonstrate farmer ready management practices that break the cycle of saline land degradation exacerbated by very dry or drought conditions

Improving sheep nutrition

MSF with the support of Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) is on a mission to close the knowledge gap around feed and nutrition in low rainfall zones. 

Optimising Soil Amelioration Costs

Maximising soil amelioration efficiency and profitability in South Australian Mallee

Mallee Seeps
Mallee Seeps

A holistic approach to seep management for preventing land degradation in the landscape.

Barley grass Management in a mixed farming system
Barley grass Management

Demonstrating and validating the implementation of integrated weed management strategies to control barley grass in low rainfall farming systems.

MSF Farm Talk - Legumes on sands
Legumes on Sands

Improving the production of legume crops on sandy soils to improve ground cover and reduce erosion risk

Sustainable implementation of no-till farming systems – NSW

Exploring nitrogen strategies to boost crop yields in NSW Mallee region

Area Wide Weeds Management
Area Wide Weed Management

Area wide management for cropping systems weeds, investigating the weed management, social and economic opportunity.

Riverland Mallee Mesonet
Riverland Mallee Mesonet Network

This project has delivered a state-of-the-art network of 30 weather stations, to the Riverland and Mallee, designed to observe localised meteorological phenomena.

High Work Rate Plough
High Work Rate Plough

This MSF led project has delivered a high work rate plough prototype in collaboration with UniSA Research Engineers and John Shearer.

Mallee Sustainable Farming
SAGIT Deep Ripping

Deep ripping to enhance production on Mallee Sandy Soils