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December 2003 No. 103 A frost solution for crops? Summary thoughts on frost avoidance strategies 2003 season in review Did it yield like it looked? - possible reasons why it may not have A suggestion if it is dry next year as forecast Gairdner and Fitzgerald barley mix-up - you may not be growing what you thought you were Cleaved barley - an unusual problem this harvest More new triazine tolerant canola varieties Canola variety performance in 2003 Fungicide performances in 2003 Summer weed control options Lime calculator is now on the www.agronomy.com.au website - CLICK HERE ! Rutherglen bug control while swathing canola Bill Crabtree workshops - see www.no-till.com.au/courses.html USA 2004 study tour Two great speakers coming - Dr Don Reicosky and Herbert Bartz Agronomy Fertilisers update November 2003 No. 102 Crop-topping cereals - a good opportunity right now Stem rust problems Ergot and the link to Copper levels Missing grains problem - not enough sunlight? Things that matter - and things that do not? Back to bite you - lack of lime over time showing up Control of Rutherglen bugs while swathing canola 2004 rainfall outlook Weeds in furrows - how to fix this problem Warning on seed size in canola - some cleaners did not grade seed to the size requested Raptor observation - how to minimize crop damage risk on peas Varieties for 2004 Pickling canola seed for 2004 Jockey fungicide and acidic water problem Past years newsletters now on website - http://www.agronomy.com.au/Newsletters/NewsletterBackYears.aspx 2004 USA study tour update October 2003 No. 101 Cereal disease update on what is happening When Select and Aramo fail - what do you do when ryegrass is resistant to all grass selectives? Ryegrass is resistant to Gramoxone and Roundup in South Africa Anthracnose in lupins warning - widespread, even on resistant varieties Crop Dividers - a must have Harvest management in a jammed harvest - Where will it all fit? Three years in a row - David Stephens long range weather forecasts correct again A wet harvest forecast and what to do Organic carbon lessons from Brazil study tour Trace elements on summer crops Liquid fertiliser route - have you been conned? Crop-topping Gessner Walker residue manager - www.gessner.com.au 90+ options for marketing your wheat (by Ian Evans and Roderick Grieve) Albany bin now Type 4 and what this means to you (by Roderick Grieve) How wide is too wide - about row spacings Solar grain dryer - a novel way of cheaply drying your grain in the silo Aphids in cereals - should you still worry? USA 2004 Study tour update For your interest - a tyre that has lasted 110,000km so far, with at least 30,000km to go in tread. September 2003 No. 100 100th edition reached Rutherglen bug control while swathing - how to control them while swathing (windrowing) canola Watch out for Spot Type Net Blotch in barley Fungicide failure on barley Six hands free (autosteer) tractor options available Shields available for spraying between rows Wide Row Pulse Agronomy field day Dual (metolachlor) proved safe again in wet conditions Liquid fertilisers - how they compare Flexi-N (UAN) on its own and using it now late in the season to raise grain protein Length of time in no-till and N nutrition - results of very interesting research NUK sow and press assemblies (www.knuckeys.com.au) Arden Andersons philosophy - unfounded and expensive views North American Study tour update - join Wayne Smith and Bill Crabtree on a fantastic study tour through central USA in July 2004. South Australian report on No-till Nikon Coolpix 2000 - Bill Crabtree writes a brief report on his thoughts of his digital camera Canola aphids - do not ignore them Late radish control - options for control in cereals Swathing lupins with a sprayline on - spraying weeds while swathing (windrowing) lupins My farm - what my farm(s) would look like. You might be surprised Lessons from Brazil - a report on my trip to Brazil in August 2003 Saia oats and liming - Brazilian research shows Saia (block) oats best at moving lime down at depth Low protein risk - many wheat paddocks risk being too low in protein and what to do about it Harvest problems looming - potential record harvest with not enough room to store it Coming events August 2003 No. 99 Where is the stripe rust? Applying fungicides via misters Waterlogged crops - and what to do to help the crops recover Copper sprays to correct copper deficiencies White Leaf Spot in canola - uncommon disease a problem this year Canola aphid - control options Recording temperatures - a neat gadget called iButtons (www.ibutton.com) Rhizoctonia update Decision and crop damage - the new Hoegrass (diclofop) + Sertin (sethoxydim) herbicide and why it has caused some crop damage Setting up the sprayline on your swather (windrower) - so you can swath and spray at the same time Late germinating weeds - control options GM canola - banning them has a downside Wheat Streak Mosaic Virus update - authorities made a major blunder in destroying breeding material unnecessarily 2003 chemical performances - comments on what worked and what did not The better lucerne - why I am seeing forage sorghum grown as a perennial is better than lucerne Grain sorghum and millet - how to grow them Logran B-Power warning - avoid using by accident (confusion with normal Logran) Brazil No-Till conference - information on a conference I will be attending July 2003 No. 98 Disease and aphid status DFF - Diflufenicans are not all the same in quality and efficacy Bromoxynil + MCPA - why I do not recommend it very often Unusual bug problems - some crops are having problems with cockchafers and Bean Root Maggot Fly. Residue manager - new residue manager by John Walker that works well. Skeleton weed control options More options for controlling various weeds - including thistles, marshmallows and other broadleaf weeds OnDuty chemical now registered at half the rate for some weeds Ways to reduce Flexi-N (UAN) scorching Rutherglen and Bryobia bugs still causing problems Decisions and Atlantis - two new herbicides from Bayer. Apron is working - update on Metalaxyl as a pickle on canola Balaustium update - new high quality photos and information summary of control methods When to spray grass selectives - what to do when there is a frost, or dust, or stress Canola shows its symptoms - how to tell what the problem might be Pledge (flumioxazin) on sunflowers Sowing warm season crops - summary of what you need to do to grow sunflowers, safflower and corn. Sunflower potential yield - it is higher than you may have thought Molybdenum deficiency - and what to do about it Other trace element sprays Study tour July 2004 coming - notice of a study tour we are organising to USA and Canada (all are welcome). Slug control observation - methidathion gave excellent control in one farmers paddock. June 2003 No. 97 Early sown canola - nitrogen and sulphur topdressing rates Aphids started - BYDV risk also high Rainfall outlook update - by Dr David Stephens Use Ammonium Sulphate with grass selectives Pledge herbicide registration delayed Triadimefon 500g/kg powder - farmers experience coating fertiliser with it. Rust starting - leaf and stem rust started, stripe rust not far away Fenceline or firebreak brews Post-emergent chemical brews - large article on herbicide brews for many crop types For post-emergent grass and broadleaf weed control Roundup resistance in ryegrass - you probably have some already Ryegrass needs dark to germinate, not cold Low rates bring on resistance - low herbicide rates do increase weed resistance to herbicides Interim newsletters - update on this service to subscribers. May 2003 No. 96 Wheat Streak Mosaic Virus - new virus in Australia, or is it? What to do to avoid getting it Weed Web Moth - current problem on early sown canola Do not skimp on knockdown herbicides Seasonal comments on central wheatbelt Topdress Urea before or after sowing? Do not delay Trifluralin incorporation unless soil is dry Trifluralin points to ponder - great photo showing why old Trifluralin research is invalid in a no-till seeding system. No-till and ryegrass resistance - very difficult to control in a full-cut sowing system; easier in no-till. Controlling Guildford (onion) grass out of pastures. Rust risk update Pasture manipulation options Check your mites - you need different chemicals for the different mite problems. What is that big red mite? - the Anystis mite is a friendly one. Top-up chemicals on TT and IT canola - various post-emergent herbicide suggestions on triazine tolerant (TT) and IT (Clearfield) canola. Spraying with dews on the weeds. Triadimefon in-furrow trial results Chasing the moisture - how to sow deeper when chasing moisture. April 2003 No. 95 Pasture manipulations - can start now if geranium a problem Sowing crops now - Now that it has rained, how early should you start sowing? CAN vs Urea - Calcium Ammonium Nitrate vs Urea Rainfall outlook - update from Dr David Stephens Season summary so far Includes rust risk update, and Aphid risk update Three stages of stripe rust resistance Ca;Mg ratios - comments on calcium to magnesium ratio trials Slugs/snails - update on Clartex pellets and other control options Cheaper Talstar - Bifenthrin off-patent and cheaper imports available Blocked tank mixes - Supa-Link can come to the rescue Bounty Herbicide - new brassica herbicide for use in Lupins Logran + Treflan brews - for wheat pre-sowing. Bromegrass and barleygrass control options Trace elements and UAN Insect control in canola 32:10 - Mix of DAP and Urea and why it is not good for no-till. Triadimefon powder on fertiliser Wetting agents for water repellent soils Chickpeas and wide row spacings March 2003 No. 94 Strategy for 2003 - what to do if the weather forecast is correct Moisture comes up from below - No-tillers regularly see dry furrows becoming wet after sowing Claying mistakes - how to avoid them when spreading and incorporating clay on non-wetting soils. Economics of claying non-wetting soils Herbicide carryover risk this year - suggestions on what to do Knockdown spikes Affinity, Logran B-Power and others And why not to use Dicamba and Goal Canola choices this year Three way mixture update - mixing three or more chemicals pre-sowing in no-till paddocks for better grass control Plus why Treflan is still preferable over Stomp Molybdenum - how to fix and prevent deficiencies Wide row lupins - summary of why it is the right thing to do (50-100cm row spacings) Dolomite, Lime and Ca:Mg ratios - update on why you should not be worrying too much about the ratio's Vitavax Seed pickle - Net blotch control claim over rated Breeding for smut/bunt control - waste of money Wheat on wheat - a good option after last years drought Termite control with Fipronil Canola varieties and aphids - update on trials and comments on variety susceptibility Gaucho on canola seed Victorian farmer association formed February 2003 No. 93 2003 Season Outlook - David Stephens predictions for the coming season Press wheels - which shape, pressure, and type is best? Update on fungicides for stripe rust control - use Jockey, Real, Triadimefon, Impact or nothing? Blackleg on canola - Jockey now registered. Canola seed size - bigger is definitely better Surpass 501TT performance in 2002 Rutherglen bugs in canola windrows - an increasing problem Sunflowers for frosty paddock - we can sow much earlier than we thought No-till in Victoria - it is starting to take-off and Bill Crabtree is visiting this month What has No-till done for WA? Deep drainage - the quickest solution to removing salinity Yitpi - Summary of this wheat varieties performance in WA Lupin row spacing - wider is better (yield results in the next newsletter) Coming events Agronomy Fertilisers update Digital cameras a good camera for everyday use, plus being able to take close up photos of pests and diseases to email in for identification.