Contents - Greenmount Press

Award winners included:
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2012 ANZ Highest Yield Irrigated:
Jason Sinclair 14.61 bales per hectare.
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2012 ANZ Highest Yield Dryland:
Brett Kelly 9.91 bales per hectare.
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Greg McVeigh Outstanding Yield Trophy: Brett Kelly.
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2012 Darling Downs Service to Industry Award: Ian Walton.
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2012 Darling Downs Young Achiever Award:
Meg Kummerow.
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Dalby Rural Supplies Dryland Grower of the Year:
Scott Reichelt.
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Dryland Consultant: Geoff Rudd.
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Chesterfield Machinery Irrigated Grower of the Year:
Hamish Bligh.
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Irrigation Consultant: Mathew Holding.
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Vanderfield Machinery Darling Downs Cotton Grower of the
Year: Tim and Katrina Conlan, Kevin and Rhonda Conlan.
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Grower of The Year Consultant: Geoff Rudd.
Duncan Weir
August 21, 2012
Gwydir Valley
Gins still have cotton in the yards and there are some
instances of cotton still on farm, as the Gwydir Valley cotton
industry tries to put the 2010–11 season to bed prior to
commencing the 2012–13 season.
Dry conditions have persisted in the Gwydir Valley since the
middle of the year. Winter crops have held on with good levels of
sub soil moisture but as the temperature increases, signs of stress
are increasingly visible. But the dry conditions have enabled many
growers to finishing of their ground preparation for the coming
season.
The general consensus at planting will be that the back
to back paddocks will be pre-watered to enable a chance at
volunteer control prior to the emergence of plant lines. Whereas
the paddocks coming out of fallow situations will be watered up.
Planting began in the last week of September, mostly in fields
to be watered up. There was some concern about the cool
change predicted for the long weekend, with some leaving the
planters in the sheds till after the weekend.
Sicot 74BRF is by far the predominant variety choice for
growers in both irrigated and dryland conditions this season.
Conditions for planting irrigated cotton in the early part of
October have been quite good. Soil temperatures have remained
high and even the colder fronts passing through or the addition
of water have not significantly dropped the temperature.
Cotton is up and out in six to seven days which is encouraging
considering some of the difficulties encountered last season.
Cold weather associated with a front mid October will test the
resilience of the soil temperature.
Dryland planting opportunities have been very limited to date,
some cotton has been planted on lucky storms but many will
need more than an inch to get the moisture to join up.
James Quinn
October 12, 2012
Namoi Valley
Up until mid October planting conditions have been good for
irrigated crops. Well over half the crop is planted in the lower
Namoi and about 20 per cent of crops in the upper Namoi are
District Reports…
in the ground. A very cold change on October 12 has held up
further planting for a few days and will challenge crops already
sown. It has been dry in most parts of the valley and very few
dryland crops have been planted. At least 30 to 40 mm of rain
will be required before dryland planting can get underway.
Winter crops that looked great four weeks ago are now
under severe moisture stress. Yields will be average at best. Bad
virus infection has taken the shine off local chickpea crops. They
looked great 3 weeks ago.
Planting intentions have been revised down as some growers
include sorghum and corn in their summer cropping program.
The irrigated cotton area in the upper Namoi will drop back
to around 18,000 hectares and rain will be needed soon for
dryland cotton to be planted. In the lower Namoi, an irrigated
area of about 48,000 hectares seems likely. Some dryland in
the north east and southeast has been planted but more rain is
needed within the next four weeks for the full area to be sown.
The dryland cotton area will range between 5000 and 25,000
hectares – depending on the rain.
Early seedling disease is evident following the cold conditions.
We have had a week of cold shocks in October. We need some
warm weather to get the crop moving.
Weed germinations have been far less than last season but
fleabane remains a significant problem. Over 99 per cent of the
crop is BRF with Sicot 74BRF the main variety in the lower Namoi,
while Sicot 71BRF is the most popular in the upper Namoi.
Early season insects have been light so far. Whitefly can again
be found in home gardens around the Namoi.
The water supply situation is excellent. Keepit dam is at 100
per cent, and Split Rock dam is over 80 per cent full. On farm
storages on the Barwon are generally in good shape and most
fields have full profiles.
Current cotton prices are most discouraging and higher grain
prices have taken the shine off cotton. Growers will be looking
for high yields to make up for the price.
Robert Eveleigh
October 15, 2012
Macquarie Valley
Cotton planting is progressing cautiously with growers
now wanting some warm weather to ensure good seedling
emergence. Around 60 per cent is planted in the valley with
many fields emerged. By the end of this week all fields should be
planted. There are some small areas of dryland cotton to go in
and more rain will be needed to top up the profile.
Most irrigated fields are being watered up as there has not
been sufficient rainfall to completely fill field profiles.
The total planted area will be down on last season due mainly
to the reduction in the cotton price. Some growers have been
increased and others have reduced their area and are planting
alternate crops such as corn. There are a number of growers who
will not be planting cotton this season.
The current general water security allocation is 58 per cent.
There is also access to carry over water. Burrendong dam is
October–November 2012 The Australian Cottongrower — 63