Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Choosing A Calcium Supplement For Sheep Fed Cereal Grains, R L. Peet, Michael Hare

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Sheep fed cereal grains as an energy source over summer usually need added calcium because cereal grains are generally low in calcium (for example, 0.03 per cent calcium compared to 0.26 per cent phosphorus), and there may not be a natural source such as clover, weeds, leafy stubble or edible bush in the paddock.

The safestt and most effective calcium supplement is finely ground limestone added to the feed, but some farmers have used other sources of calcium such as gypsum and superphosphate in this manner.

The Development Of An Efficient Lupin Harvesting Front, E D. Blanchard

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Harvest losses represent a significant reduction in lupin production and farm productivity.

Since 1984, the Department's Farm Machinery Research and Liaison Unit at the Dryland Research Institute has studied the lupin harvesting operation to improve its mechanical efficiency. An experimental and a prototype harvesting front were built and tested in the field. Guidlines for efficient lupin harvesting were produced, and commercial modifications developed.

Flower : Predicting Flowering Times Of Cereal Crops, G A B Elliott, Stephen Loss

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

FLOWER is a computer program which predicts the flowering date of a given wheat or barley variety at a specified location and sowing date. Department of Agriculture agronomists, breeders and advisers are using the program to provide useful information on how the development of cereals responds to different environments across Western Australia's cereal growing areas.

Water Erosion Of Farmland In 1988, K J. Bligh

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Widespread heavy rains in WesternAustralian agricultural areas in 1988 caused severe water erosion, much of which could have been avoided by minimum cultivation and lower stocking rates.

Finishing Kimberley Cattle In The South-West, Brian L. Mcintyre, Bill Ryan, Neville Macintyre

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The idea of integrating the Kimberley cattle industry with that in the south-west of Western Australia is no new, but until recently it had not been critically evaluated.

Over the past eight years the Department of Agriculture's Beef Cattle Branch has been assessing the performance of Kimberley cattle transported south for finishing in the agricultural areas.

This research has show that Kimberley weaners can be finished in the south, and that under the present (December 1988) economic conditions it is more profitable than running breeding cattle in the south-west and comparable with fattening store steers.

Irrigation And Fertilizer Management For Horticultural Crops On The Swan Coastal Plain, I R. Mcpharlin, Greg Luke

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The Swan Coastal Plain is an important area for the production of vegetables, flowers and fruits in Western Australia. The yellow Cottesloe, Karrakatta and the white-grey Bassendean Sands upon which most of this production is based are infertile in their natural state and require large inputs of fertilizer for succesful production of horticultural crops.

Improved irrigation and fertilizer management will be needed to reduce nutrient leaching from horticultural crops on the coastal plain. This will probably involve applying fertilizer and water more frequently, but in smaller quantaties thaan currently practiced. The result should more closely match water and fertilizer supply …

Improved Fertilizing Practices On The Peel-Harvey Catchment, P T. Arkell

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Broad-acre farmers in the Peel-Harvey catchment have met a challange and achieved a great deal since the fertilizer extension programme started in 1983.

The main objective of the extension programme has been to ensure that every year three-quarters of the farmers make economically and technically sound fertilizer decisions, thus causing a minimum amount of phosphorus to enter the waterways of the Peel-Harvey estuarine system.

Rock Phosphates Are Poor Fertilizers For Non-Leaching Soils In South-Western Australia, Michael D A Bolland, Bob Gilkes

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Field experiments conducted on our non leachng soils from 1975 to 1988 have consistently shown that rock phosphates, compared with freshly applied superphosphate each year, are a relatively ineffective fertilizer in the year of application and in the years after application.

The Nitrogen Response Of Wheat Crops Following Lupins, I C. Rowland, Mel Mason, John Hamblin

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

One of the many benefitsof growing narrow-leaved lupins in a crop rotation (Rowland et al 1988) in the increased yield of the following cereal crop as a result of the improved nitrogen level of the soil.

This article reports the results from 41 wheat/lupin rotation trials involving a range of nitrogen rates throughout the Western Australian agricultural area between 1978 and 1987. These trials allowed scientists to assess the interaction of nitrogen fertilization with previous cropping history and to estimate some of the contribution of the nitrogen and other effects of lupins within the crop rotations. The results provide some …

Frost Injury To Wheat, S P. Loss

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Frost injury has not been a major concern to the Western Australian wheat industry despite causing spectacular but irregular crop losses on some farms.

The development of suitable herbicides, direct drilling technology and the adoption of early flowering varieties in the late 1970s and early 1980s led to wheat crops being sown and flowering earlier than previously. This resulted in an increase in the incidence of frost damage.

Research into frost indicates that most wheat producers face low to moderate risks of yield loss caused by frost. However, individual farms in particular years can suffer devestating widespread losses. Grost injury …

Planning For Horticultural Expansion On The Swan Coastal Plain, P Coghlan, Geoff Moore, Jim Dixon

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Horticulture is an intensive, high value form of agriculture highly dependant on the availability of good water supplies for the year-round production of fresh produce. Production increase in Western Australia and the encouragement and development of export markets has caused rapid expansion if the industry in recent years.

Expansion is expected to continue, placing severe pressure on available water supplies and suitable land close to markets. At present' 90 per cent of the Stase's horticultural land is on the Swan Coastal Plain and minor selected hills areas around Perth.

Coastal Plains : Land Use And The Environment, P R. George

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Five years ago, this Journal of Agriculture reported on ways to overcome severe algal pollution of the Peel-Harvey estuarine system, 70 km south of Perth.

Several articles in this Journal of Agriculture discuss improved agricultural practices on the Swan Coastal Plain in particular, although the principals will apply to similar eutrophication of the Slbany harbours, Wilson Inlet and the Vassee-Wonnerup Estuary. They also emphasixe the fine balance between man's demand for potable water and land for rural, industrial and urban use.

Rangeland Surveys : A Basis For Improved Land Use, P J. Curry, Alan Payne

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

In mis 1988, the Department of Agriculture started a three-year programme to assist pastoralists in the Murchison River catchment to update land management planning of their stations. This Project, which is funded by the National Soil Conservation Program, will use interim results from a recent rangeland survey which has investigated and mapped the grazing recources throughout the region.

Elsewhere in Western Australia's pastoral areas, information on the productive potential of each area - and the management problems inherent for each class of land - are being used to help pastoral managers of Soil Conservation Districts rehabilitate degraded areas. This information …

Intensive Animal Industries In The Peel-Harvey Catchment, R W. Payne

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The Swan coastal plain to the north and south of Perth is attractive for the intensive production of pigs and poultry for several reasons. It is close to markets, feed manufacturers and labour; has a less extreme climate than inland areas; and is underlain by a large reserve of high quality groundwater.

Because these are all intensive operations, large quantaties of nutrient-rich waste are produced over a very small area. They can severely damage ground and surface waters unless steps are taken to control the wastes which they produce.

This article oulines both the nature of intensive aniamal industries in …

Erosion Potential Of Phomopsis-Resistant Lupins, D J. Carter, Paul Findlater

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

During lupin harvesting, up to 20 per cent of the grain remains on the ground. This non-harvested or pilt grain is a valuable feed for sheep during early summer because the pods, leaf and stem generally provide little nutrient in the stubnbles. In addition, the more efficient the weed control, the less valuable are the stubbles.

The disease lupinosis caused by Phomopsis leptostromiformis restricts the amount of grazing from the lupin stubbles, and hence the risk of wind-erosion of stubble paddocks.

However, the introduction of lupin varieties moderately resistant to Phomopsis and with reduced potential to cause lupinosis means that …

The Effect On Farm Profit Of Conserving Stubble To Prevent Wind Erosion, A D. Bathgate

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Over-grazing of stubbles is a major cause of winf erosion on WesternAustralian farms. Stubble contributes to the 'roughness' of the paddock; as the roughness is reduced, the risk of winf erosion is increased.

The risk of lupinosis in sheep has previously reduced the likelihood of lupin stubble being over grazed, but the development of Gungurru, a phomopsis-resistent variety of lupin, has increased the potential for over-grazing and hence the probability of wind erosion.

This article describes the economic benefit (or cost) of conserving stubble at the conservation standards.

Breeding Field Peas : Screening Pea Lines, G H. Walton

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

The early use of field peas in Western Australia was as a green manure crop or to feed stock be grazing the mature crop. Varieties which produced a large bulk of green material were sown. There was no control over insects or diseases.

In 1985, the Feseral Government recognised that to realize the potential of grain legumes grown throughout Australia, more research was needed.

One of the Grain Legume Research Council's (GLRC) priorities is species evaluation and variety improvement.

Since 1983, the Western Australian Department of Agriculture has screened advanced crossbred lines from the South Australian breeding programme for its …