South Australian grain growers and agronomists are being offered an opportunity to access cutting edge cereal and canola disease management advice and support through two regional workshops in November.

The workshops at Cummins on Eyre Peninsula and Clare in the Mid North will also provide the latest insights on managing fungicide resistance.

Supported by the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC), the two-day workshops on November 23-24 (Cummins) and November 25-26 (Clare) are being presented by the Australian Fungicide Resistance Extension Network (AFREN).

Workshop facilitator John Cameron, of Independent Consultants Australia Network (ICAN), says the workshops will focus on issues of regional importance and offer tailored advice for growers and agronomists.

“All attendees, no matter how experienced, will pick up new and valuable understandings that have practical on-farm application,” Mr Cameron says.

Information and advice will be delivered by a line-up of experts including Nick Poole from the Foundation of Arable Research (FAR) Australia; Steve Marcroft from Marcroft Grains Pathology; AFREN extension co-ordinator Kylie Ireland from the GRDC and Curtin University co-invested Centre for Crop and Disease Management (CCDM); and plant pathologists Hugh Wallwork and Tara Garrard, from the SA Research and Development Institute (SARDI) which is the research division of the SA Department of Primary Industries and Regions.

Mr Cameron says the field expertise of up to 20 leading agronomists will drive discussion around the impact and management of disease and fungicide resistance at a local level.

Topics to be covered during the small group workshops include:

• Cereal growth stages and spray decisions
• Where different fungicides fit
• Fungicide resistance management and resources
• Integrating fungicides, varieties, epidemiology and seasons for profit
• Cereal canopy management interactions with foliar disease decision making
• Management strategies in cereal and canola that consider the underlying risk of fungicide resistance
• Strategies for managing succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor (SDHI) and other resistance issues, including net blotches in barley and triazole resistance in powdery mildew.

Participants will receive a first-class resource kit that includes GRDC publications, copies of presentations and regional reference documents.

The GRDC has established AFREN to provide growers with the information support they need to reduce the emergence and manage the impacts of fungicide resistance.

The initiative brings together regional plant pathologists, fungicide resistance experts, and communication and extension specialists from across the country. Project partners include AgCommunicators, Agriculture Victoria, CCDM, Centre for Crop Health at the University of Southern Queensland, Department of Primary Industries and Research Development (DPIRD) in Western Australia, FAR Australia, ICAN, Marcroft Grains Pathology, SARDI and the University of Melbourne.

To register for the workshops ($55 fee), go to visit the GRDC website or phone ICAN on 02 9482 4930 or email andrea@icanrural.com.au.

Meanwhile, growers and advisers with an interest in fungicide resistance are invited to connect with AFREN at www.afren.com.au or by contacting the project’s coordinator Dr Kylie Ireland at AFREN@curtin.edu.au.

Contact details

For interviews

John Cameron, ICAN
0427 209 709

Contact

GRDC Adelaide office Communications Manager – South
(08) 8198 8400
media@grdc.com.au