It was a sea of work shirts and dusty boots at the Cotton Seed Distributors’ Namoi Valley Field Day as the Wee Waa-based company showcased variety trials, research and partnerships.
The event took place at CSD Farms, ‘Little Mollee’ property.
The morning kicked off at 7:30 with delicious breaky rolls and a coffee van to fuel the appetites of attendees.
They had five guest speakers that discussed different areas surrounding cotton production. After breaky, the crowd made their way over to field nine where the first speaker was introduced.
Research scientist for cotton breeding at CSIRO Dr Lucy Egan discussed the topic of breeding for verticillium wilt resistance.
“A huge amount of work is being done in the breeding program using traditional breeding and selection – an approach that is well proven,” Dr Egan commented.
“In addition, we are developing technology to screen more lines with more accuracy for Verticillium wilt resistance, which should result in improving the speed of selection for improved resistance, whilst maintaining the very important yield and fibre packages that Australian cotton is renowned for,” Dr Egan said at the Namoi Valley CSD field day, held on March 19.
The second speaker was the business development manager for RDO Equipment, Steve Frahm.
Steve spoke on the importance of planter downforce for cotton establishment. He explained its role in staying engaged with the soil and why it matters to achieve optimal seed placement and plant emergence.
With 17 years of experience in John Deere dealerships, including the last nine as a planter specialist, Stephen brought a wealth of knowledge on planting technology and best practices.
The crowd then made its way back to the gazebos and took a seat for the third speaker, Paul McIntosh from Pulse Australia, WeedSmart. Paul discussed the ongoing challenge of weeds in cotton systems, emphasising the increasing threat of herbicide resistance.
Paul discussed managing weed resistance with XtendFlex technology. With more than 46 years of agronomy experience, Paul provided plenty of insight into how resistance has increased over time and why proactive, long-term management strategies are essential to maintaining effective weed control in cotton and beyond.
It was then time for the business development manager at Nufarm Lauryn Riordan to speak about optimising glufosinate use in cotton and fallows, the best practices and program integration.
Lauryn supplied the crowd with some key tips for using Biffo and how Biffo fits within the XtendFlex cotton system.
Lauryn is based in Moree, and her role is focused on customer relationships with channel partners, consultants, growers and industry; as well as showcasing and generating demand for Nufarm’s differentiated product range through technical sales and marketing activities.
There was then a CSD varieties discussion by E and D Manager Oliver Knox as well as an introduction into the ‘red sticker activity’ with a prize hidden in the crop.
Morning tea came around, as attendees grabbed a sneaky lamington and some other refreshments, the sticker game began.
Attendees had a chance to get an appreciation of the varieties and to show each other through the red stickers on what looked attractive to them within the crop, sparking conversations and different opinions.
CSD commercial research manager Dr Mick Bange discussed the evolution of the CSD trials program and engaged in an interactive Q and A session with the audience.
There was then a discussion on the future of cotton varieties as CSD’s Natalie Aquilina and Oliver Knox presented each variety selection.
The next speaker was Dr John Snider, a Professor of Crop Physiology at University of Georgia, USA. Dr Snider spoke on cotton seed quality and vigour research in the USA.
John brought a very insightful perspective to the field day as he went through some of the similarities and differences between American and Australian soil.
The next session was covering the success seed brings and optimizing quality through management.
To talk about this was past owner of ‘Little Mollee’ property Mark Cathcart.
Finally, the closing talk and wrap-up was conducted by Dr Ian Taylor who gave a CSD update and open Q and A for any last-minute questions, as well as the lucky door prize giveaway.
Attendees were visibly impressed and engaged with the event, a sign it was another wonderful day out at the Namoi Valley CSD field day.
