Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! In this episode of Regional Update, we hear from Erin Dalton, Baker Ag Advantage, an experienced agronomist working closely with growers in her region to tackle the season’s biggest challenges. Erin shares valuable on-the-ground insights into how local conditions are shaping cropping decisions, the strategies farmers are using to manage weeds, and the role weed management practices are playing in building resilience. Erin brings ...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! Tom Wolfe pulls back the curtain on the forces driving (and sometimes derailing) new spray technology – and how farmers can cut through the noise to find what will work for them! In this episode of Beyond Resistance, spray technology expert Tom Wolfe tackles one of agriculture’s most complex balancing acts – aligning stewardship, technology, and on-farm practicality. As optical spot spraying, precision application, and automa...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! Austin Rayner, farm manager with EF Smart Pty Ltd, brings an update from Midwest WA with insights into the weed strategy after a period of soil amelioration investment combined with new chemistry, leading to a low weed seed bank plus leaving plenty of other tools in the toolbox for future management. While building to this situation using a diverse weed management program based around the Big 6, the Smart's enterprise contin...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! Our June Regional Update gives us an insight into the Northern cropping region during this year, as crops are being harvested and sown simultaneously with the season presenting a few challenges. Hear from UQ graduate, Max Schmelzer as he talks about herbicide resistance and tools in the box working to address the weed seed bank across their family farm. A focus on the insights from new technology used helps to address the wee...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! In this episode, we hear from our WeedSmart Extension Agronomists, Jana Freebairn and Greg Condon, updating from their respective Southern and lower Northern growing regions. With many farms commencing a dry seeding program to efficiently get across the hectares in what will be a less than ideal start to the winter growing season, the podcast focuses on tactics for short-term management with a long-term weed strategy. ...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! As our farming environment changes with our management, so to do the plant populations growing across our landscape. Gazania, a long-term weed within Australia is taking advantage of harsher summers competing well where water is a scarce resource. Ali Bajwa, weed researcher and Senior Lecturer in Weed Science and Agronomy with @LaTrobe university is aiming to nip gazania in the bud with @GRDC research project (GRDC Code...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! The regional update from the southern growing region with WeedSmart Extension Agronomist Chris Davey, providing you with a dry seeding update for 2025, soil moisture observations and challenges for crop health. With negative moisture levels in the soil and limited rainfall over the last 12 months, looking over the spray records will be the key to success to plot the best course of action for the 2025 rotation. Knowing...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! Welcome to 2025! The first Regional Update of 2025 takes us to Lock Valley Farms in South Australia, with Henry Coleman, a mixed operations grower and Youtuber. Documenting his life on the farm alongside his family, he filled us in on the season just been - though dry, he's remaining optimistic this coming year is going to be a ripper, and has been tackling the ryegrass, brome and legacy weed issues through optimising his rotations...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! In this episode of the WeedSmart Podcast, we talk about how weed seeds can adapt their dormancy, discussing the selection pressures, interactions with herbicides and the recommended actions from growers to get ahead. We also caught up with Pete for a quick recap of the season in the West, after an explosion of weeds thanks to an especially wet winter. If you're interested in finding out more about today's episode, you can catch D...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! Join WeedSmart Southern Extension Agronomists Jana Freebairn and Chris Davey in discussing the rising resistance to imi’s (imidazolinone) in broadleaf weeds, in 2024 and beyond. Imi resistance is a growing issue within our cropping systems and is becoming ever more important when considering crop rotation, herbicide selection and yearly environmental pressures. Jana and Chris share their experiences with imi resistance so far this ...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! Ian Pursehouse is our guest for this episode of the Regional Update. Located in NSW, in West Wyalong, Ian and his family transitioned from a mixed operation to 100% dryland cropping in the late 2010's, and have been learning from every experience since. Ian has a systems-focused approach, with an emphasis on optimising rotations to not only control weeds - one of the WeedSmart Big 6 principles - but minimise costs across the boar...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! This Regional Update Podcast episode, we're joined by grower Stuart Vlahov from Western Australia. Stu is a grower in Ellendale, WA, around 35kms south-east of Geraldton near Walkaway, who has recently been using two drones to spray crops within his mixed farming operation spanning 3500ha. With bogged crops and wild radish flourishing, Stu is employing the two DJI drones for weed control and fertiliser application. Talking with ...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! In this episode of the WeedSmart Podcast, we heard from Josh Hollitt, an Independant Agronomist located in the Eyre Peninsula, who is presenting at the upcoming WeedSmart Week in Port Lincoln. Speaking on summer weed control strategies, Josh has over a decade of experience to share and is looking forward to hearing from other growers and agronomists in the region. We also heard from co-host Pete Newman about his panel, focusing ...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! This week on the Regional Update, we are joined by former agronomist and grower Vicky French. With nearly 10 years of experience working for Elders as an agronomist, and now a grower with her husband in Derrinallum, Victoria, Vicky French has a wealth of knowledge to share - and will be doing so at WeedSmart Week this July! Vicky will be speaking about glyphosate resistance and the strategies they have implemented to contro...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! Joining us on this extra-long episode of the WeedSmart Podcast was Mike Bell, who shared his extensive experience of soil nutrition and more recent work into P&K deep placement in the northern regions. We also talked with Kurt Mayne, a grower from Rolleston, QLD, who has been implementing a deep placement regime into his operations, and heard about his recent experience with milk thistle. NEWS and LINKS Crop Competition: Im...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! This week on the Regional Update, we are joined by agronomist Angus Dalgliesh. Angus is an agronomist with Nutrien Ag Solutions who has recently moved from Dalby to Cloncurry in north-west Queensland, taking on the challenge and opportunity in the burgeoning cropping region. Though weeds aren't a problem at this early stage, growers are finding an overabundance of rats impacting their systems, to which Angus is keen to find...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! In this episode, we talk to Bevan Addison of Adama about pre-emergent herbicide options in canola, and getting the best out of products. We also spoke to Senior Research Officer Mechelle Owen, who works within the Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative (AHRI) to monitor herbicide resistance and development. NEWS and LINKS Webinar: Achieve effective pre-em weed control while protecting the crop at seeding Join WeedSmart Exten...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! This week on the Regional Update, our new podcast host (and WeedSmart Communications Lead) Siobhon Eacott talked to Farm Manager Cameron Jenkin. Cameron manages the wheat and chemical fallow operations of Mark and John Flannagan near Pindar, 125km east of Geraldton in WA in the low rainfall zone. The Flanagan's have recently employed the services of an autonomous sprayer, named Alfie, who roams the 44,500ha property for primarily...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! In this episode, we look at management strategies for glyphosate resistant weeds. We're joined by University of Adelaide researcher Chris Preston, who recently presented on the topic at the GRDC Crop Updates in Dubbo. We're also joined by Delta Ag agronomist David Strahorn who speaks about the current state of glyphosate resistance in his patch. NEWS and LINKS Webinar: Spot Spray technology – opportunities & challenges incor...
Got a question or topic you're interested in? Send us a text! This week on the Regional Update, we are joined by grower and agronomist James Kearines. James is an agronomist with Elders near Lake Cargelligo in central NSW, where he specialises in broadacre dryland agronomy, mainly dealing with the major crops of wheat, barley, canola, oats and pulses. His family also manages a number of farms in the area and along with cropping, they also have a few Black Angus cattle. After a below averag...
Baxter Maisie
Seriously? In this day and age we are talking about spraying chemicals?? Is this the last ditch attempt by chemical companies to stop the slide of their revenues as more people produce more and increase soil health organically and regenrativly.