WANTFA has identified the next challenge for no-till cropping in Western Australia is to direct research efforts to develop a new generation of no-till systems for WA conditions.
WANTFA was a major force in raising no-till technology adoption from 20 per cent of the area cropped in Western Australia in 1992 to over 80 per cent in 2005. Despite this rapid uptake, the quality of the no-till systems being used in WA differs widely with cropping methods varying from full retention of crop residue and sowing with a tyne or disc seeder, to burning stubbles and sowing with knife points, through to separation of grazing land from cropping land, or, cropping only.
With such a range of techniques challenges inevitably emerge including herbicide resistance, chemical dependence, improving soil health by increasing organic carbon and moisture utilisation. It is widely accepted that successfully introducing alternative crops into the rotation is a likely solution to address many of the current challenges, but it is difficult to find crops that grow well and are economically viable in the Mediterranean environment of WA.
In contrast, there are areas in North and South America where the no-till system has been successfully developed to include technologies such as full stubble retention, disc systems, diverse rotations and cover crops, although this level of no-till is rarely practiced on WA farms.
To establish a benchmark for no-till systems, WANTFA, the Grains Research and Development Corporation and the Australian Government National Landcare Program co-hosted a visit to Western Australia and South Australia in 2005 by internationally acclaimed no-till specialist, Rolf Derpsch from Paraguay. 
Rolf Derpsch takes a closer look at stubble retention on his no-till tour of Western Australia.
Back to Top
Rolf Derpsch was commissioned to prepare a Situation Analysis of No-Till in Western Australia, the Derpsch Report, which you can download from this page. This report identifies the knowledge gaps and highlights areas where changes in current no-till practice could deliver significant gains. These changes are aimed at areas that are widely accepted as currently being major limitations to progress.
The next step for WANTFA, with support from members and research partners, is to direct research efforts to implement the Derpsch report recommendations and develop a new generation of no-till systems for Western Australian conditions.
Click here to download the Derpsch Report in PDF format.
You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to access this file.
Back to TopThe main challenges identified in Derpsch Report were herbicide resistance and weed control, lack of cover on the soil and inadequate diversity in the rotation. It was found that practices such as over grazing, burning, tillage and poor crop rotation were contributing to the problems.
Western Australia’s grain enterprises are currently dominated by cereals, particularly wheat, largely due to poor economic returns from other crops when grown under dry conditions. As a consequence, the area sown to alternative crops such as canola, lupins and other grain legumes has declined in recent years.
A long term systems study to determine the effect of new conservation farming philosophies, as outlined in the Derpsch Report, on weed, pest and disease control, soil health and moisture and yield and quality was started in 2007.
The sites will be selected in collaboration with the Grower Group Alliance (GGA). Relatively large plots will be used in the trial and the treatments will be based on different conservation farming philosophies and will be overseen by a grower, who will be the ‘champion’ of the philosophy, and possibly a technical person. The different philosophies will provide a wide range in the amount of soil cover.
Each trial philosophy will be related back to a nearby farmer’s paddock, preferably that of the champion, for some monitoring and large-scale demonstration. This project supports extensive involvement of individual growers and grower groups.
The proposed project will integrate work on stubble management techniques from harvest to sowing to achieve full stubble retention. Part of this will involve the development of disc seeders and WANTFA will be collaborating with the South Australia No-tillage Farmers Association (SANTFA) on this aspect.
It will also include a crop rotation and cover crop component to manipulate the amount of soil cover and the level of diversity in the system. Diversity through the use of different crops and cover crops will allow for a more holistic approach to the management of weeds, pests and diseases.
Monitoring the system will be a crucial part of the study. Measurements of yield and quality of crops, weeds, pest and disease levels and soil physical, chemical and biological components will be obtained by a team of collaborating scientists, industry and growers. In addition, an economist will assess the profitability of the system.
It is essential that this study is done over a number of years to detect changes in the system, as the sustainability of cropping cannot be determined in the short term. Find out more about the long-term no-till farming systems project
Back to TopWANTFA is proposing a second project to screen and develop suitable cover crops to provide soil cover, weed control, improved soil health and greater diversification in conservation farming systems.
This project will build on the work of the Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture (CLIMA), Department of Agriculture Western Australia (DAWA) and Murdoch University scientists who have developed some excellent pasture material that could be used for low cost cover crops.
The hard seeded characteristics of some of these new varieties of pastures (Serradella, Biserrula, Prima Gland Clover and Eastern Star Clover) and the recent development of ALOSCA granules for inoculation (the inoculant can survive in dry soil) now provide a tremendous opportunity for low cost cover crops as the cover crop and inoculant can be under-sown with hard seed when seeding a cereal crop and the following year the cover crop will establish itself.
This research was funded by:
Australian Government, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry National Landcare Programme
