NGN - Focus Farms and discussion groups to improve faba bean yield stability through agronomic management in the Wimmera

Investment

GRDC Code: FFS2401-001SAX

NGN - Focus Farms and discussion groups to improve faba bean yield stability through agronomic management in the Wimmera

The Wimmera NGN forums highlighted the instability of faba bean yields as an important issue across the region. An important part of the rotation in the region, faba beans can struggle with yield stability and growers are keen to understand the management levers to increase their profitability and decrease the yield gap between plots and paddock. Increasing the reliability of faba bean yields towards those achieved by wheat across a variety of seasonal conditions will increase the confidence of growers, and the contribution of faba beans to the rotation. This investment will look at what is being done currently to increase the level of podding and disease management within bean crops and leverage work conducted through the Grain Legume D&E investment to help drive this on farm.
This investment with Frontier Farming Systems will deliver a range of activities to understand grower practice around faba bean management and help demonstrate how research translates across a paddock. This will be done through:

An agronomic practice survey from two seasons to understand current faba bean management on farm and potential gaps in implementation
Delivery of three focus farms with on farm demonstration in the Wimmera over two seasons, leveraging existing faba bean research (DJP2105-006RTX - Development and extension to close the economic yield gap and maximise farming systems benefits from grain legume production in Victoria). Any practices demonstrated in the focus farms will include economic analysis and discussion around how research fits within farming systems.

This investment in grower-led discussions and research into grower practice will help to improve grower understanding of best practice faba bean management and assist in increasing faba bean yield stability and profitability throughout the Wimmera.

Project start date:

01/01/2024

Project end date:

30/06/2026

Crop type: