Western Australia
May 20, 2009
Source:
GRDC's The Crop Doctor
It’s that time of the year again,
when we find ourselves looking to the heavens for the promise of
rain, hoping for the best and wondering what the coming season
will bring.
The weather is still the great wildcard of grain growing, isn’t
it?
We can plan meticulously, budget carefully and practice
sustainable farming, but it all counts for nought if the rain
doggedly stays away.
So, it’s little wonder that climate change, the uncertainty it
brings and its impact on the long term future of grain growing
is occupying the thoughts of many growers.
The Grains Research and
Development Corporation (GRDC), with other rural R&D
corporations, CSIRO and federal and state governments, recently
developed a draft national Climate Change Research Strategy for
Primary Industries.
In similar vein, the GRDC supported work by the Department of
Food and Agriculture WA (DAFWA) to better understand the impact
of climate change on the state’s grain industry.
The GRDC is also involved in the state government’s Agricultural
Climate Change External Reference Group which draws together
representatives from industry, the private sector and government
departments and which met for the first time in May.
The DAFWA study found that rainfall is likely to increase in
summer and decrease in autumn, winter and spring in most parts
of the state.
Such work will help guide the grain industry’s response to
climate change and in particular the all important research
strategy that will help growers adjust to the many challenges of
long term change.
Clearly, research into new grain varieties will become
increasingly important.
In 2007-08 the GRDC and its partners released 16 new wheat
varieties, four new triticale varieties, 15 new canola varieties
and a new oat variety.
All offered higher yields – two of the triticale varieties by as
much as 30%.
It’s vital that research work continues, not just to produce
varieties offering increased yields, but to breed varieties that
can do it in a drier climate.
And lack of rain won’t be the only problem new varieties have to
cope with.
It’s a fair bet that climate change will spur the development of
a whole gamut of new pests and diseases, while giving a few old
foes of grain growers a big boost as well.
Breeding resistance to such diseases into new varieties will be
important work.
The sort of research work the GRDC and its partners is already
renowned for will be absolutely vital to future generations of
grain growers in a changing world. |
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The Crop Doctor is
GRDC Managing Director,
Peter Reading |
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