fbpx
Print this page
Thursday, 01 August 2019 13:55

Growing resistance worries arable sector

Written by  Nigel Malthus
Phil Rolston. Phil Rolston.

Initial results from the first national survey of herbicide resistance in arable farming have shown surprising resistance to glyphosate.

Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) senior research advisor Phil Rolston says nine of the 48 farms sampled – nearly 19% -- showed some resistance to glyphosate.

“We had some haloxyfop and pinoxaden resistance turning up, and that’s not a surprise because we’ve had farmers self-reporting some problems before. But finding glyphosate turning up on some of them was a surprise.”

The MBIE funded survey is a five year project in which FAR takes weed seed samples from farms randomly chosen from its database, and the samples are germinated then tested against a variety of herbicides by AgResearch Ruakura.

The survey started last summer on farms between the Waimakariri and Rakaia Rivers. FAR staff collected wild oat, brome and ryegrass plants from wheat and clover paddocks on the 48 farms, which represent about 20% of all cropping farms in the district. 

Resistance has so far been identified in ryegrass on 13 of the farms (27%). 

No resistance was found in any of the bromes and the results from the wild oat testing are not yet available.

The survey showed a wide range of resistance, Rolston says.

“Some farms showed [resistance in] more than 90% of the plants being tested, but others were down as low as 5%.”

The survey identified ryegrass resistant to Group A, Group B and Group G herbicides. Group A includes clethodim, haloxyfop-P and pinoxaden. Group B includes iodosulfuron-methyl and pyroxsulam. Group G is glyphosate.

“The results of this survey, particularly on glyphosate resistance, are causing us some concern,” said Rolston. 

“We are now working to understand how to manage such resistance on cropping farms.”

The survey will probably move into South Canterbury next summer and Ashburton district the year after. It should eventually cover all major cropping districts including in the North Island.

The facts

What to do if you are concerned about resistance on your farm:

❱❱ Check paddocks after herbicide application and remove any plants which have ‘escaped’ treatment

❱❱ Do not allow any ‘escaped’ plants to go to seed

❱❱ Contact your agrichemical rep or FAR if you believe that ‘escapes’ are the result of resistance, rather than application conditions

❱❱ Consider the use of non-chemical weed control.

More like this

'Building resilience key to success'

To survive and thrive in this changing world, New Zealand farmers must take a new look at what resilience means to them and their farming operations, Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) chief executive Alison Stewart says.

Soil nitrogen way to reduce maize growing costs

Agronomic tools and practices are available for maize growers facing the headwinds of increasing costs of production, extreme weather events and environmental considerations, Foundation for Arable Research senior maize researcher David Densley says.

FAR referendum

Arable farmers are being encouraged to vote before the August 23 deadline in a referendum, which will determine the future of the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR).

Planting green on display

Planting green a developing trend here and overseas where growers plant directly into a green crop, will be demonstrated at the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) premier maize field day near Hamilton this month.

Maize a real fodder option

Climate change could make maize silage a more realistic fodder proposition for South Island dairy farmers, according to researchers speaking at the recent Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) CROPS 2022 event.

Featured

An 'amaizing' season

It's been a bumper season for maize and other supplements in the eastern Bay of Plenty.

Leaders connect to plan continued tree planting

Leading farmers from around New Zealand connected to share environmental stories and inspiration and build relationships at the Dairy Environment Leaders (DEL) national forum in Wellington last month.

Planting natives for the future

Te Awamutu dairy farmers Doug, Penny, Josh and Bayley Storey have planted more than 25,000 native trees on the family farm, adding to a generations-old native forest.

National

Ploughing Champs success

Sean Leslie and Casey Tilson from Middlemarch, with horses Beau and Dough, took out the Rural News Horse Plough award…

Farmers oppose work visa changes

Farmers are crying foul over changes announced by the Government this week to the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) scheme.

Machinery & Products

PM opens new Power Farming facility

Morrinsville based Power Farming Group has launched a flagship New Zealand facility in partnership with global construction manufacturer JCB Construction.

AGTEK and ARGO part ways

After 12 years of representing the Landini and McCormick brands in New Zealand, Bay of Plenty-based AGTEK and the brands’…

100 years of Farmall Tractors

Returning after an enforced break, the Wheat and Wheels Rally will take place on the Lauriston -Barhill Road, North-East of…