Cereals for winter grazing on the Northern Tablelands of New South Wales

1974 ◽  
Vol 14 (71) ◽  
pp. 790 ◽  
Author(s):  
JV Lovett ◽  
EM Matheson

In field experiments conducted over three years at Armidale, New South Wales, the total winter forage production by barley, oats, wheat and rye was similar. However, barley and rye tended to outyield wheat and oats at early harvests, the reverse applying at late harvests. It is suggested that these characteristics of the cereals could be exploited to meet specific seasonal requirements for dry matter production more effectively than is possible with a single species. Response to high seeding rates in forage production was similar in all cereals and was confined to a late sowing. Significant differences in in vitro digestibility over the winter period were recorded and differences were also apparent in subsequent grain yield.

1975 ◽  
Vol 15 (72) ◽  
pp. 45 ◽  
Author(s):  
AD Wilson ◽  
JH Leigh ◽  
NL Hindley ◽  
WE Mulham

The diets of sheep and feral goats grazing a semi-arid woodland in western New South Wales were assessed using oesophageal fistulated animals. The diet of the goats consisted largely of browse, with the leaves of Heterodendrum oleifolium (rosewood) a consistent component, although a large proportion of herbaceous material (mainly Bassia spp.) was eaten on occasions. The sheep showed a preference for the pasture species Stipa variabilis (spear grass) and Bassia spp. (copper burrs). When these plants were not available they were replaced in the diet by a higher proportion of browse, mainly of the tree Casuarina cristata (belah). Nitrogen contents of the diets ranged from 1.6 per cent to 3.0 per cent, with that of the goats generally being greater than that of the sheep. In vitro digestibility data indicated comparable values for both animal species, with lower values occurring under higher stocking pressures. The woody weed Eremophila sturtii (turpentine) was ignored by both sheep and goats at all stocking rates. Another weed shrub Cassia eremophila var. platypoda (punty) was browsed very sparingly. This indicates that the use of goats in an attempt to eliminate established stands of these species is unlikely to be successful at low to moderate stocking rates.


2011 ◽  
Vol 62 (12) ◽  
pp. 1067 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. G. Gaynor ◽  
R. J. Lawn ◽  
A. T. James

The response of irrigated soybean to sowing date and to plant population was evaluated in field experiments over three years at Leeton, in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area (MIA) in southern New South Wales. The aim was to explore the options for later sowings to improve the flexibility for growing soybean in double-cropping rotations with a winter cereal. The experiments were grown on 1.83-m-wide raised soil beds, with 2, 4, or 6 rows per bed (years 1 and 2) or 2 rows per bed only (year 3). Plant population, which was manipulated by changing either the number of rows per bed (years 1 and 2) or the within-row plant spacing (year 3), ranged from 15 to 60 plants/m2 depending on the experiment. Two sowings dates, late November and late December, were compared in years 1 and 3, while in year 2, sowings in early and late January were also included. Three genotypes (early, medium, and late maturity) were grown in years 1 and 2, and four medium-maturing genotypes were grown in year 3. In general, machine-harvested seed yields were highest in the November sowings, and declined as sowing was delayed. Physiological analyses suggested two underlying causes for the yield decline as sowing date was delayed. First and most importantly, the later sown crops flowered sooner after sowing, shortening crop duration and reducing total dry matter (TDM) production. Second, in the late January sowings of the medium- and late-maturing genotypes, harvest index (HI) declined as maturity was pushed later into autumn, exposing the crops to cooler temperatures during pod filling. Attempts to offset the decline in TDM production as sowing was delayed by using higher plant populations were unsuccessful, in part because HI decreased, apparently due to greater severity of lodging. The studies indicated that, in the near term, the yield potential of current indeterminate cultivars at the late December sowing date is adequate, given appropriate management, for commercially viable double-cropping of soybean in the MIA. In the longer term, it is suggested that development of earlier maturing, lodging-resistant genotypes that retain high HI at high sowing density may allow sowing to be delayed to early January.


1992 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 447 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Sweeney ◽  
RS Jessop ◽  
H Harris

The yields and yield structure of cultivars of triticales and bread wheats (with a range of phasic development patterns in both species) were compared in 2 field experiments at Narrabri in northern New South Wales. The experiments were performed on a grey cracking clay soil with irrigation to prevent severe moisture stress. Triticales, both early and midseason types, appeared to have reached yield parity with well-adapted wheat varieties. Meaned over the 2 experiments and all sowings, the triticales yields were 19% greater than the bread wheats. Triticales were generally superior to wheat in all components of yield of the spike (1000-grain weight, grain number/spikelet and spikelet number/spike), whilst the wheats produced more spikes per unit area. The triticales also had higher harvest indices than the wheats. The results are discussed in relation to the overall adaptability of triticale for Australian conditions.


1963 ◽  
Vol 3 (9) ◽  
pp. 114 ◽  
Author(s):  
JD Colwell

The effects of the different sowing rates of 20, 40, and 60 lb of seed an acre on the yield, bushel weight, composition, and response to fertilizers, of wheat grown on soils of high fertility has been studied in seven field experiments in the wheat-belt of southern New South Wales. Seasonal conditions ranged from drought to lush growing conditions and in addition one experiment was irrigated to reduce the effects of moisture stress on plant growth. Yields ranged from 10 to 70 bushels of wheat an acre and fertilizer treatments gave both positive and negative effects. For the wide range of growth conditions, variation in seeding rate had only small and non-significant effects on grain yields, with the exception of the irrigated experiment where a consistent trend indicated the need for higher seeding rates for maximum yield. Effects of the seeding rates on grain size and composition and fertilizer response, were negligible. Losses in potential grain yield, caused by the exhaustion of soil moisture reserves by excessive vegetative growth of high fertility soils before grain development has been completed, does not seem to be reduced appreciably by the use of low seeding rates.


1992 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 465 ◽  
Author(s):  
AD Doyle ◽  
RW Kingston

The effect of sowing rate (10-110 kg/ha) on the grain yield of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) was determined from a total of 20 field experiments conducted in northern New South Wales from 1983 to 1986. Effects of sowing rate on kernel weight and grain protein percentage were also determined from 12 experiments conducted in 1985 and 1986. Two barley varieties were tested each year. In all years fallow plus winter rainfall was equal to or greater than average. Grain yield increased with higher sowing rates in most experiments, with the response curve reaching a plateau above 60-70 kg/ha. For 13 of the 40 variety x year combinations, grain yield fell at the highest sowing rates. Only in an experiment where lodging increased substantially with higher sowing rates was there a reduction in yield at a sowing rate of 60 kg/ha. The average sowing rate for which 5 kg grain was produced per kg of seed sown was 63 kg/ha. Grain protein percentage usually fell, and kernel weight invariably fell, with increasing sowing rate. Increasing sowing rates from the normal commercial rate of 35 kg/ha to a rate of 60 kg/ha typically increased grain yields by 100-400 kg/ha, decreased kernel weight by 0.4-2.0 mg, and decreased grain protein by up to 0.5 percentage points. In no case was the grain weight reduced to below malting specifications. It was concluded that sowing rates for barley in northern New South Wales should be increased to about 60 kg/ha.


1992 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 105 ◽  
Author(s):  
DF Herridge ◽  
JF Holland

The effects of tillage practice and double cropping on growth, yield and N economies of summer crops were examined in field experiments near Tamworth, northern New South Wales. Sorghum, sunflower, soybean, mungbean, cowpea and pigeon pea were sown into alkaline, black earth soils which contained either high (Site A, sown January 1983), moderate (Site B, sown December 1983), or low concentrations of nitrate (Site C, sown December 1984). During the previous winters, the land had been sown to wheat (double crop) or fallowed using cultivation or no-tillage practices. At Sites A and B, dry matter yields, averaged over all crops, were increased by 34 and 14% under no-tillage. Average increases in grain yields at the two sites were 22 and 11%. At Site C, tillage practice did not affect yields. Soybean showed the greatest responses to no-tillage. Increases in grain yields were 46, 15 and 18% for Sites A, B and C respectively. The least responsive legume was mungbean. Yields of sorghum were increased by 41% at Site A; responses at Sites B and C ranged between a 9% decrease and a 7% increase. With double cropping, grain yields were, on average, 18 (Site A), 81 (Site B) and 72% (Site C) of the yields in the cultivated (fallow) plots. However, when comparisons were made for the 12 month periods, i.e. wheat and summer crops v. fallow and summer crops, production was more than doubled at Site B and tripled at Site C, compared with the cultivated fallow. Significant in the responses to double cropping were the 192 (Site B) and 230 mm rainfalls (Site C) during November and December that replenished the soil profile with water to a depth of >0.75 m. Assessments of soybean N2 fixation using the ureide method indicated large effects of site and season on the proportion of plant N derived from N2 fixation (range, 0-0.83), on the amount of N2 fixed (range, 0-233 kg N ha-1) and on the N balance as a result of the cropping (range, -69 to +45 kg N ha-1).


2004 ◽  
Vol 44 (12) ◽  
pp. 1165 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. M. Bowman ◽  
W. Smith ◽  
M. B. Peoples ◽  
J. Brockwell

Total productivity and legume nitrogen fixation (N2 fixation) in dryland pastures were examined in a 2 year study (1999–2001) on 118 farms in central-western New South Wales. Pasture exclosure cages, placed at 217 on-farm sites, were harvested on 7 occasions and the foliage hand-sorted according to species in order to measure shoot dry matter (DM). The separated legume shoot material collected in spring 1999 (52 different legume samples) and 2000 (76 different legume samples) from a subset of representative pastures (41 cages on 28 different farms in 1999, 32 cages on 25 different farms in 2000) was also analysed for concentration of nitrogen (%N) and 15N natural abundance. These data were subsequently used to calculate the proportion of the legume shoot N derived from atmospheric N (%Ndfa), comparative measures of the relative efficiency of N2 fixation (kg N fixed/t DM accumulated) and the amounts of shoot N fixed (kg N/ha). The survey encompassed 8 common pasture types, and 5 others that were less common, ranging from native perennial grass pastures with little legume content to lucerne (Medicago sativa L.) pastures with and without companion clovers. Fifteen legume species were found in the pastures, some only occasionally. Lucerne and white clover (Trifolium repens L.) were the only perennials. Mean spring estimates of %Ndfa were similar in 1999 and 2000 for lucerne (72 and 81%, respectively), rose clover (T. hirtum All., 82 and 77%) and annual medics (Medicago spp., 89 and 86%). For the remaining 12 legume species, measures of %Ndfa ranged from 64 to 95% and averaged 83%. Shoot %N contents were greater for lucerne than for the other 14 legumes and this was reflected in the comparative measures of N2 fixation which ranged from 14.5 kg N/t DM for rose clover to 25.7 kg N/t DM for lucerne in 2000. The most productive pasture type comprised lucerne plus balansa clover [T. michelianum Savi var. balansae (Boiss.) Azn.], white clover or arrowleaf clover (T. vesiculosum Savi), but all pasture types that contained lucerne were highly productive. Spring was the most productive season and summer the least. Lucerne was overwhelmingly the most productive legume and was responsible for >83% of the fixed N in those pastures that contained both lucerne and other legumes. Lucerne productivity was approximately uniform throughout the year whereas, for other pastures, especially those based on rose clover or subterranean clover (T. subterraneum L.), there were sharp peaks in spring and little or no dry matter production over summer. The presence of lucerne in pastures significantly (P<0.05) reduced broadleaf weeds. It was concluded that, where there are requirements in central-western New South Wales agriculture for uniform forage production throughout the year and a high input of fixed N, lucerne is substantially superior to other species.


1963 ◽  
Vol 3 (10) ◽  
pp. 190 ◽  
Author(s):  
JD Colwell

The usefulness of five contrasting methods of soil analysis for estimating the phosphorus fertilizer requirements of wheat in southern New South Wales has been investigated, using yield data provided by 27 field experiments. Because the level of yield of wheat is strongly affected by seasonal environmental conditions poor correlations are obtained between soil analysis and absolute or relative yield of wheat, Much better and often significant correlations are obtained between soil analysis and the absolute increase in yield from fertilizer application. The best correlations were obtained with an 0.5M NaHCO3 extraction of soil phosphorus. A regression response surface calculated from these relationships provides a method for making direct estimates of fertilizer requirements for maximum economic return to farmers under average climatic conditions. The precision of these estimates is limited more by the flatness of the response surface and uncontrolled variation in the field data, than by inadequacies in the representation of available phosphorus by the NaHCO3 analysis.


2001 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andy Sharp ◽  
Kerry Holmes ◽  
Melinda Norton ◽  
Adam Marks

Between winter 1995 and winter 1998, seasonal spotlight counts for rabbits were conducted along three transects in western New South Wales. Rabbit Calicivirus (RCV) arrived at the study site in spring 1996 and had an immediate marked effect on rabbit densities. Prior to the advent of Rabbit Calicivirus Disease (RCD), rabbit abundance followed the expected annual pattern of positive growth during the winter to summer period and negligible or negative growth during the summer to winter period. With the arrival of RCV, rabbit abundance was observed to decline by 47% and 75% within low density populations and by 84% within a medium density population. In the subsequent 21 months, the low density populations returned to levels approximating those prior to the arrival of RCV. In contrast, rabbit abundance within the medium density population remained at consistently lowered levels. These data suggest that RCD will have a minimal effect on semi-arid zone rabbit populations below a density of 0.4/ha and that additional management actions will be required to further reduce rabbit abundances.


1989 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 215
Author(s):  
RJ Martin ◽  
WL Felton ◽  
AJ Somervaille

Three field trials and a glasshouse experiment were carried out in northern New South Wales to determine the effects of reduced mechanical incorporation and the presence of crop residues on the efficacy of liquid and granular formulations of triallate [S-(2,3,3-trichioroallyl) diisopropylthiocarbamate] for control of wild oats (Avena fatua and A. sterilis ssp. ludoviciana) in wheat. In field experiments, fallow management practices with surface crop residues ranging from nil to complete retention from the previous wheat crop, did not affect the performance of tri-allate (incorporated by sowing) in terms of control of wild oats and wheat grain yield response. Application of a granular formulation resulted in lower than expected wheat grain yields in 2 of the field experiments and phytotoxicity to the crop was suspected as the reason. Although soil incorporation improved the performance of tri-allate at the recommended rate of 0.8 kg/ha, satisfactory control of wild oats and profitable increases in wheat grain yield were obtained with tri-allate at 1.2 kg/ha when incorporated by sowing into seedbeds containing up to 2 t/ha of crop residue. We conclude that tri-allate as the liquid formulation at 1.2 kg/ha gives economic control of wild oats in no-tillage and stubble-mulched seedbeds when incorporated by sowing provided that the weed-free wheat grain yield potential is not less than 1.5 t/ha. Results from the glasshouse experiment, farmer experience and published literature support the practice of incorporating tri-allate into dry soil with subsequent activation by sowing rain. The potential use of the granular formulation is limited by the greater risk of crop damage compared with the liquid formulation.


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