Following on from the success of the Hyper Yielding Cereals (HYC) project in Tasmania, the Hyper Yielding Crops project has recently commenced on a national scale, with GRDC Centre of Excellence trial sites established in Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, NSW and Western Australia.
A Centre of Excellence has been established at Wallendbeen, near Cootamundra in NSW, with the research site chosen because it had a water-limited yield potential of 10 tonnes/ha for cereals and 5 tonnes/ha for canola.
Supporting this site are three trial sites in southern NSW, which were set up by the Riverine Plains group.
“Riverine Plains has also worked alongside lead organisation FAR Australia to establish three focus farm sites ... a canola site established at Gerogery and wheat sites established at Culcairn and Howlong,” Riverine Plains project officer Kate Coffey said.
Grower involvement is a major focus of the project, and Riverine Plains Innovation Groups are being established to link local growers with the focus farm paddock trials at Gerogery, Culcairn and Howlong.
The 2020 focus-farm paddock trials will look at nitrogen and fungicides, while future focus-farm paddock trials will be based on ideas arising from the local innovation groups, as well as from growers visiting the Centre of Excellence.
“We are hoping to conduct small-group discussion field days at the farm paddock trial sites during September 2020, however this will depend on COVID-19 restrictions during spring,” Mrs Coffey said.
Riverine Plains is also seeking 10 paddocks from across the region to be nominated for the 2020 Hyper Yielding Crop Awards.
The awards will benchmark agronomic aspects of individual wheat crops, with participating growers to receive an agronomic benchmarking report comparing that paddock to all others entered, both regionally and nationally.
For more information, visit: or contact Kate Coffey on 5744 1713 or email: riverineplains.org.aukate@riverineplains.org.au
