Community & Business
27 March, 2024
Successful Pacific Seeds Field Day, despite windy conditions
Strong winds were not enough to detract from a very informative Field Day at Melvin and Josh Mengel’s Kia Ora property on the Clifton Felton Road on Thursday, 21 March when the topic of Fall armyworm had everyone’s full attention.
Bill Smith from Pacific Seeds had organised a good group of guest speakers from a range of farm suppliers such as Queensland Machinery Agency on the New England Highway at Nobby and fuel suppliers IOR and Westlink.
Gus Somes from Pacific Seeds gave details on Grain Sorghum and Wheat variety updates and answered several good questions from farmers on the topic.
For those farmers feeding livestock, Gus also gave valuable information on forage for beef and dairy and corn for grain or silage.
Farmers concerns over the problem of Fall armyworm was very evident and agronomist Ant McConville from Eco Ag had plenty to say on the matter which was very much appreciated by farmers.
Ant McConville said Fall armyworm arrived on the Downs about two years ago from North Queensland and of great concern was the fact it could thrive in a wide range of hosts.
It has become a world wide problem as it spreads from one continent to another.
Corn appears to be its favourite host while sorghum is also favoured.
It seems the armyworm is entrenched in the area and Mr McConville said farmers needed to be vigilant in early identification of the pest because eradication was easiest during its early life.
Unfortunately the worm has become resistant to many of the older sprays and scientists are still working out the best way to combat the worm in our local environment.
Irrigated crops seemed to manage best against the pest but on a concerning note it seems it is now moving against vegetables.
While the information on armyworm was concerning the barbecue and drinks supplied by Rabobank put a smile on everyone’s face.
Melvin and Josh Mengel as usual were excellent hosts for the Field Day and prepared test crops for first hand discussion by Pacific Seeds experts and inspection by farmers.
A very well organised day that was much appreciated by the 71 in attendance.
