Publication Date
1989
Description
In traditional pasture areas, there is little economic opportunity to provide a 'clean' seedbed for replanting of new pasture. This is thought to enable the carry over of weed seed from the old to the new pasture phase resulting in premature decline of the improved pasture. The growing of a crop or crop rotation at the end of the old pasture phase however, would utilize improved soil fertility and enable the pasture sequence to be broken, thereby increasing the probability of a 'clean' seedbed (Reeves, 1984). Grazing oats has been used in this role but the alternative of selecting crops with greater yield and income potential (peas, lupins, rape, wheat), the use of a wider range of selective in-crop herbicides, and returns on investment within 6-8 months offers greaters opportunities for pasture management. The flexibility of an integrated crop/pasture program is significantly improved when direct-drilling techniques are employed for crop and pasture planting, but weed control, especially of annual grasses, has been a problem. The aim of this research is to demonstrate that new pastures when planted by sod-seeding/direct-d1illing methods will be less weedy and have a longer and more productive life when planted following a cropping phase than when immediately preceded by the old pasture. This paper reports on effectiveness of weed control by crop rotation and pre-season management.
Citation
Dowling, P, "Integrating Crop and Pasture in a High Rainfall Environment in South Eastern Australia" (2025). IGC Proceedings (1989-2023). 3.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1989/session4b/3
Included in
Agricultural Science Commons, Agronomy and Crop Sciences Commons, Plant Biology Commons, Plant Pathology Commons, Soil Science Commons, Weed Science Commons
Integrating Crop and Pasture in a High Rainfall Environment in South Eastern Australia
In traditional pasture areas, there is little economic opportunity to provide a 'clean' seedbed for replanting of new pasture. This is thought to enable the carry over of weed seed from the old to the new pasture phase resulting in premature decline of the improved pasture. The growing of a crop or crop rotation at the end of the old pasture phase however, would utilize improved soil fertility and enable the pasture sequence to be broken, thereby increasing the probability of a 'clean' seedbed (Reeves, 1984). Grazing oats has been used in this role but the alternative of selecting crops with greater yield and income potential (peas, lupins, rape, wheat), the use of a wider range of selective in-crop herbicides, and returns on investment within 6-8 months offers greaters opportunities for pasture management. The flexibility of an integrated crop/pasture program is significantly improved when direct-drilling techniques are employed for crop and pasture planting, but weed control, especially of annual grasses, has been a problem. The aim of this research is to demonstrate that new pastures when planted by sod-seeding/direct-d1illing methods will be less weedy and have a longer and more productive life when planted following a cropping phase than when immediately preceded by the old pasture. This paper reports on effectiveness of weed control by crop rotation and pre-season management.
