Showcasing six trial sites and multiple demonstrations, about 70 farmers and agriculture professionals attended the Elders Merredin biennial crop walk last week.
The event highlighted cutting-edge technologies and findings to assist in paddock planning for next season.
The crop walk exposed farmers to trial work by FMC, SLR, Nufarm, Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC), CSBP, Gentech, Pioneer and Adama.
Elders Merredin agronomist Keith Perry said the walk was beneficial for eastern Wheatbelt farmers.
"From a farmer's perspective, you've only got to learn one or two things to make the whole day worthwhile," Mr Perry said.
"If you can learn something on a day like today, that might make you or save you tens of thousands of dollars next season in the property program, that's the important thing.
"Not everybody's going to get something out of every site, or every little plot that we look at, but as long as you go home with a couple of messages at the end of the day, that's all you really need."
Mr Perry believed there were lessons that could be learned from each site.
An aptitude herbicide broadleaf weed trial by FMC demonstrated groundbreaking solutions for managing invasive broadleaf weeds that have long plagued paddocks.
The new herbicide is an early post-emergence herbicide for the control of certain broadleaf weeds in winter cereals.
With a patented mixture of the highly effective herbicides Carfentrazone (Group G) and Metribuzin (Group C), it appears to be an effective rotation tool for areas with multi-herbicide resistance.
The pre- and early post-emergent ryegrass and radish control with SLR provided growers with a comprehensive understanding of effective control measures to combat these persistent weeds, paving the way for healthier crops.
SLR and Synergy Consulting agronomist Joel Lancaster guided farmers through the trial and answered any questions about ryegrass and radish control.
FMC technical extension WA, Stephen Pettenon said 50 ryegrass plants per hectare could decrease yield by about 14 per cent.
He argued it was worth spending more money on effective herbicide control to combat decreased yield in cereals.
"If you're in a production where weed pressure is becoming a prevailing problem, you've got to run the numbers," Mr Pettenon said.
In a bid to address the issue of suspected resistant sites, SLR and Nufarm presented a post-emergent radish control demonstration, aiming to tackle the problem head-on with innovative strategies.
GRDC conducted a canola emergence trial, comparing results with and without soil wetters, providing critical data to enhance crop yield and germination rates, a topic of utmost importance in today's ever-changing climate.
The trial found that sowing into moist soil in early April generally improved canola establishment and increased canopy cover in comparison to sowing during late April in a drying soil profile.
Banding UAN three to four centimetres below the seed was observed by Living Farm research agronomist Chloe Rout to improve establishment for the first time of sowing and canopy cover for both times of sowing.
Ms Rout experimented with the addition of soil wetter (SE14), which didn't appear to influence canola establishment.
This sparked an interesting discussion with farmers about the benefits of soil wetter, and in what conditions soil wetter did improve crop establishment.
CSBP presented two trials focusing on nitrogen response in wheat and canola.
The trials showcased the benefits of their new product Urea Sustain, which was one of the more strikingly visual trials when compared to standard urea.
"Usually with fertiliser trials, it's really hard to demonstrate much, they are usually not very visual," Mr Perry said.
"This particular one was, so I was really pleased with that."
Adama demonstrated Ultro, looking into grass control in lupins, exploring tank mixes and current grass control practices.
This demonstration seeked to offer farmers effective tools to manage grass infestations, ensuring healthier lupin crops and higher yields.
McIntosh & Son showcased the revolutionary Bilberry green-on-green spray technology.
Using cameras and embedded computers, the Bilberry system spot sprays paddocks on a subscription service using artificial intelligence to recognise weeds.
The technology is cutting edge and promises to revolutionise the way farmers apply herbicides, boosting precision and reducing environmental impact.
On display was a sprayer with the Bilberry technology, which farmers had a chance to look at and ask questions.
Many research trials are conducted in Northam or York, or closer to Perth, with Merredin and the surrounding Wheatbelt often being missed.
There is a gap in the research being conducted in the Merredin area, which Mr Perry has sought to solve with the Elders crop walk.
"We've seen in the past 20 years that a lot of research work that used to happen out here in the Central Wheatbelt region has faded away to nothing," Mr Perry said.
"We could see there was a need for something like that, so we tried to fill the gap."
Elders Merredin agronomist Andrew Harris said it was good for farmers to have exposure to more trials that were relative to their farming practice.
The crop walks are biennial so that there were lots of new products and developments to discuss with farmers.
After the walk, a barbecue sundowner was provided and gave farmers an opportunity to socialise and discuss the learnings of the day.
This is the third field day Mr Perry has hosted here since 2018.
He hoped to continue offering the crop walks to encourage innovation and adoption in the area.
Jasmine Peart
Jasmine is a earnest listener and a passionate advocate for justice. She feels privileged to be trusted by farmers across Western Australia to tell their truth.
Jasmine is a earnest listener and a passionate advocate for justice. She feels privileged to be trusted by farmers across Western Australia to tell their truth.
