Western Australian growers can look forward to new higher yielding pulse crops with better disease resistance and standing ability within the next three years. 

Department of Agriculture pulse officers investigated the new varieties during a recent 12 day visit to New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. The Western Australian pulse team met with research officers and agronomists, and looked extensively at pulse trials and farm paddocks.

Pulse extension officer Ian Pritchard said all of the proposed new Desi and Kabuli chickpeas releases had very high levels of resistance to Ascochyta blight.

Mr Pritchard said Western Australian growers would be particularly interested in the new field pea lines, of which many were semi-leafless types similar to Kaspa in standing ability and ease of harvest.

He said the new lines were resistant to downy mildew, and many were earlier flowering than Kaspa or had an extended flowering and podding period compared to Kaspa.

Mr Pritchard said the Western Australian pulse team also gained a valuable insight into bacterial blight - a serious disease of field peas which had affected Kaspa crops in Victoria.  There are no existing in-crop control measures for bacterial blight.

“Bacterial blight has not been found in broad acre field pea crops in Western Australia, but we must take appropriate measures to minimise the risk of the disease,” Mr Pritchard said.

“While there is relatively little known about the disease, it is spread by stubble and seed.  Plant injury due to rolling, vehicle or animal tracks, frost or herbicide damage all seem to promote the disease.

“Bacterial blight appears to favour cold and wet conditions which could reduce the likelihood of it becoming a problem in Western Australia.”

Mr Pritchard said observations in the eastern states indicated that semi-leafless varieties such as Snow-peak and Kaspa were more sensitive to the disease than trailing varieties such as Dunwa and Parafield.

“Growers considering their choice of seed for next year should take care when selecting the seed source. A seed test is available for bacterial blight, but it is not sensitive enough to guarantee that the entire seed batch is free of bacterial blight,” Mr Pritchard said. 

“Western Australia Seed Net Partners, the major distributors of Kaspa Seed in Western Australia, have agreed to source Kaspa seed locally for 2005 to minimise the risk of introducing bacterial blight. 

“If demand for Kaspa seed exceeds local supply, the additional seed will only be sourced from areas with no known history of bacterial blight and where the crop has been inspected during the growing season.”

Mr Pritchard said growers should only purchase Kaspa seed via AWB and their Seed Net Partners, who were committed to supplying seed free from bacterial blight to Western Australia growers.