RR canola shines at Goomalling

Goomalling farmer Jason Haywood is so convinced of the yield and weed clean-up benefits of new Roundup Ready hybrid canola varieties, they are likely to make up the family's entire canola program.

Jason, his brother Simon and their father Barry crop 2700ha to wheat, barley and canola on their Quarralling property.

Jason said the RR herbicide technology, in addition to other management practices, would help them counter emerging weed resistance to herbicide clethodim in some parts of the farm.

The family has used chaff carts for many years and is now looking at some of the latest options in harvest weed seed management.

Double knockdown sprays are also on the agenda for most crops, especially wheat, while they plan to maintain a wide cropping rotation.

"The clean-up with the Roundup (Ready Plantshield) is excellent and so we will probably go all Roundup Ready for our canola next season," he said.

The Haywoods planted 280ha to triazine-tolerant canola last year and devoted 380ha to RR varieties, but are now keen to reap the yield benefits of a complete RR program.

"The decision over TT is more yield. The yield advantage with the new varieties is great," Jason said.

"They are certainly another tool (for weed control), but it's all about profitability.

"Some people talk about the extra $30(/ha) for the seed, but that's only minor in terms of the yield gains."

Jason said the other, practical bonus of adopting a RR-only canola program was avoiding the need to decontaminate booms and "muck around with chemicals".

"Going full RR will make it easy with products and gear," he said.

In addition to hosting a site for breeders' lines, the Haywoods had a demonstration of a range of RR hybrid varieties on their property last season, including Bayer's IH 50 RR and its newly released IH 30 RR.

The large-scale trial was situated in a paddock that can have up to an eight-year rotation.

The trial site was sown early last May, after a summer spray and knockdown, with an 8kg/ha potassium ratio.

It also received bifenthrin and chlorpyrifos insecticides and the two recommended Roundup Ready Plantshield herbicide applications of 900g/ha.

Jason said all varieties germinated in four to five days and were establishing well before the prolonged June-July dry spell which halted growth. "Breeders say canola won't grow through a dry band and so the roots went sideways," he said.

Jason said he thought the IH 30 RR variety was gone and so was surprised by its recovery.

Farmers can contact Bayer representatives for further details.