The 2008–09 year has seen extensive development of the online portal to support myBMP, the web-based version of the industry’s environmental management system, Best Management Practices. myBMP is designed to enable cotton growers to self-assess their performance and practices against industry agreed standards. It will enable growers to access streamlined information packages and tools as they seek to improve practices and their business. The web-based system also provides a pathway for delivering R&D knowledge, providing targeted support for adoption and evaluating the impact of R&D on practice change. The role of FarmPlus was to deliver a knowledge resource far broader than the information contained within the myBMP site. The intention was for accreditation candidates to access broad topical information associated with a particular module. CRDC investments and personnel were central to a pilot project designed to shorten the time and reduce the complexity involved in discovering up-to-date information on cotton R&D. This was developed for the 14th Australian Cotton Conference in August 2008. Organisers provided all delegates with a USB memory stick that allowed them to upload conference presentations, video of many presentations and the papers from presenters. After the event all available information, including videos of most presentations, remained available to delegates on the Conference website. The aim of making the 14th Conference a ‘paperless’ event is being extended through a new project, managed by FarmPlus Info. This system aggregates on-line content from all cotton industry information websites and make it available inside the industry’s online BMP system. It will also provide access to the content contained in the industry’s pilot e-Learning project and provide the framework for social networking. FarmPlus is based around aggregation of industry specific information by experts with industry know-how and knowledge. It presents an opportunity to consolidate both national and international research findings to better inform primary producers, regional communities, policy makers and researchers. Upon the merge of ACGRA with Cotton Australia in 2008, CA supported the myBMP framework as industry’s knowledge system and the FarmPlus Pilot project being developed was to be tested in that environment rather than the Cotton Conference Knowledge System (see Attachment 1). FarmPlus project implementation was put on hold while Cotton Australia finalised and validated all content to be contained in the my BMP portal. Therefore FarmPlus’ system has been effectively ‘parked’ until such time as the whole system is made live and tested with the myBMP reference group of growers. The FarmPlus /my BMP project cannot progress until this is enacted. The FarmPlus /myBMP site has been developed and is parked on the FarmPlus server as a staging site until activated in myBMP.

The Australian Cotton Industry has always been held in high regard by the

Australian and World Agricultural sectors due to its innate ability to focus on and

overcome the challenges it faces. This has continually been achieved due to the

industry’s commitment to researchers and the ability to effectively and efficiently

disseminate this information to growers and their consultants via the current

extension method. This has been demonstrated in the Lower Balonne with the CRC

implementation of this project.

The information contained in this project provides many positive examples of the

need for such a method to deliver and extend research outcomes and best farming

practices to the industry. Most importantly feedback from growers indicates that the

project has the support of the greater majority of the farmers in the St George,

Dirranbandi and Thallon region. Their continual support, participation and

attendance at the activities such as workshops, field walks, meetings and grower

tours only further substantiates this.

This project has shown that there is an opportunity to exploit the existing network of

private consultants so as to deliver tangible outcomes for the whole of industry.

Reductions in both insecticide usage for whitefly and mirids and a dramatic

decrease in the incidence of 2,4‐D damage is further justification of the successful

nature of this partnership between the Cotton CRC and cotton consultants.

I believe the Extension Team provides an invaluable service to the whole of industry

and have seen first hand the exchange of ideas and knowledge that occurs when

growers, consultants, researchers and industry staff are bought together, thus

ensuring that we as an industry are progressing towards a sustainable future.

The objectives of the project were to (i) develop techniques for evaluating insecticide efficacy against solenopsis mealybug, and (ii) evaluate the efficacy of a range of insecticides that have potential to provide effective control of solenopsis mealybug in cotton and (iii) consider the place of potential insecticide options in the context of existing IPM and IRMS strategies.Nine insecticides were evaluated. Whilst all the products have registration in cotton, none currently have registration for mealybug. In addition, some of the products were provided by the companies on a commercial-in-confidence basis. Hence this summary provides an overview of the outcomes without Glasshouse bioassays have been completed and a range of insecticides for control of solenopsis mealybug successfully evaluated. The results show that there is value in pursuing a number of options that will cause minimal disruption to key natural enemy species, particularly the ladybird Cryptolaemus montrouzieri and lacewings. The addition of organosilicone adjuvents increased the efficacy of some products significantly. the products directly.

Field evaluation of the promising options now need to be undertaken to determine whether the levels of control that they can achieve is, in practice, sufficient to manage a mealybug outbreak. Importantly, this work must be conducted in the field where the contribution of natural enemies will be an important component of the outcome. Factoring in the contribution of natural enemies will be critical to developing sustainable management strategies for this pest.Techniques for maintaining mealybug colonies in the glasshouse were developed, methodology for establishing infestations on trial plants were refined and a bioassay protocol for assessing insecticide efficacy against solenopsis mealybug in controlled glasshouse conditions was successfully implemented. The experience we have gained in conducting these trials has equipped both scientists and technical staff in the DEEDI Field Crops Entomology group with the skills necessary to conduct similar evaluations in the field. The bioassay techniques are now available for the controlled screening of biopesticide or other candidate control options.Management of neonicotinoid resistance, particularly in cotton aphid, is a significant consideration in potentially introducing additional uses for this group of insecticides. Also worthy of consideration is the implication of pursuing more than one consecutive application of promising products.

Climatic variability, typified by erratic heavy-rainfall events can cause soil waterlogging and yield losses in irrigated cotton. This project investigated the physiological mechanisms of waterlogging damage to cotton crops and suggested strategies for increasing waterlogging tolerance. Field and glasshouse studies were conducted to study the interactive effects of waterlogging and shade on growth and yield of cotton crops. The data indicated that both waterlogging and shade can significantly damage cotton growth and yield. In addition, low incident light can exacerbate yield losses in moderately WL cotton crops but had limited effect on a severely WL crop. Cotton plants maintained growth and photosynthesis of the upper canopy leaves by re-mobilising nutrients from lower canopy leaves. Thus, yield reductions in WL crops were associated with the loss of young fruits from the lowest sympodial fruiting branches. To overcome this waterlogging-induced fruit abscission, an anti-ethylene agent aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG) was tested under glasshouse and field conditions. The data suggested that 125 g [ai] ha-1 of AVG applied at the early reproductive phase of cotton can significantly increase lint yield of WL and NWL cotton crops. The role of ethylene and AVG in regulating cotton yield was further explored in a series of glasshouse studies. These experiments indicated that accelerated ethylene production and photosynthetic inhibition as the major reasons for yield losses in WL cotton and the damage can be minimised by regulating ethylene and carbon metabolisms.

This project is to facilitate grower participation in CA Grower panels to provide research development and extension investment advice.The Cotton Australia grower RD&E Advisory Panels function in providing practical advice on research, development and extension (RD&E) needs and priorities within the industry. This advice forms important guidance to CRDC for strategic R&D planning, annual operation planning, development of Expressions of Interest and resultant CRDC decisions as to project investments. Cotton Australia facilitates 4 advisory panels that are aligned with the CRDC strategic plan priorities. The panels consist of up to 40 grower, consultant or ginning member representatives from every cotton growing region in Australia.

No report available

The 2019/20 irrigation season saw another low allocation year for general security irrigators in the Murrumbidgee Valley, with only 5% entitlement for much of the season. This resulted in a dramatic decrease in the area of cotton grown in the region.

The IREC executive made a strategic decision to purchase 75ML of water and grow 14ha of irrigated cotton at the IREC Field Station to enable cotton focussed research to continue in a low allocation year. While this was not a financially beneficial decision to IREC, it was thought the benefits to IREC members, the cotton industry and our research partners of maintaining research projects at the Field Station far outweighed the possible financial negatives of this decision.

Research and demonstrations taking place at the IREC Field Station this season included: Long term benefits of using Animal Manure (Dr Wendy Quayle- Deakin University), Herbicide Demonstrations (Eric Koetz- NSWDPI), Roundup Ready X-Tend (Bayer), Zytek (Kim Russell), Sensors for Smart Bankless Automation (Dr John Hornbuckle -Deakin University), Foliar Fertiliser (Omnia), My Digital Farm, and long term cotton rotation project. A number of these projects have been at the site for the past 3 years. Of particular importance is the long term rotation project allowing this block to have the 3 years of cotton to monitor the build-up soil disease and assess the potential impact on yield in southern soils.

Approximately 90 people attended the annual IREC field day in January, where the researchers spoke about their projects.

For sustainable cotton production, Australian cotton farming systems need to promote and optimize soil biological functions to by improving nutrient use efficiency, increasing biological nitrogen inputs, reducing disease impacts and maintaining environmental health. Currently cotton farming systems involve management practices such as reduced tillage, crop rotation, residue retention, compost and fertilizer addition and reduced insecticide use all of which can potentially alter key soil microbial functions. This project addressed three key areas of soil microbial community and biological processes with an aim to improve current knowledge and evaluate the impact of management, soil and environmental factors affecting them. They include:

1. Determined the effect of management practices including rotation, stubble retention and organic manure application on microbial communities involved in C and N cycling, free-living (FL) N fixation and carbon turnover.

2. Characterized the genetic diversity of soil fungal communities as influenced by management practices and linked it with disease incidence and suppression.

3. Quantified the effect of compost addition materials on soil biological fertility.

This project utilized on-going field experiments at ACRI and in Queensland which demonstrated significant effects of management practices on N cycling and uptake, disease incidence and crop yields. These studies were completed with targeted glass-house and laboratory incubation experiments. Therefore, new knowledge of key biological processes from long-term experiments can be effectively linked with management systems under field conditions.

Briefly, the advancement of knowledge provided in this project includes:

• In cotton soils, crop rotation and fertilizer management have a significant influence on the microbial community and biological processes involved in N and C cycling processes. Populations of FL N-fixing bacteria were significantly higher in the D1 experiment compared to that in the F6E experiment indicating the effect of stubble management type and timing of fertilizer application. In both the experiments, grain legume rotation crops (e.g. vetch and fababean) significantly improved microbial activity, catabolic diversity and N mineralization potential in surface soils, however the magnitude of effect varied significantly. Microbial activity and microbial biomass levels were lowest in the Continuous Cotton rotation suggesting rotation based management of N availability and fertilizer efficiency is possible.

• Soil type and environment (location) and cropping history have a significant influence on the diversity, genetic composition and fungal community in the surface 0-10 cm cotton soils. A total of 370 genera were found in the 5 cotton experimental sites, however, a few groups (20 families) were dominant. Fungal community composition varied significantly between the cotton growing regions and was also influenced by crop rotation. Lower diversity and abundance of total fungi were associated with higher disease incidence in intensively managed cotton systems e.g. rotations including brassica crops and Continuous Cotton rotation.

• Composts vary in their chemical composition significantly in terms of major nutrients and trace elements and biologically available carbon (BDOC). In a long-term field experiment, four years of compost addition on a Vertosol had no significant effect on microbial and nutrient properties. In controlled environment experiments, addition of composts increased microbial activity for two week only. The magnitude of the effect on biological functions and microbial diversity varied between different composts both in the laboratory and field experiments. Thus long-term effects of repeated compost application would depend upon amount and frequency of application esp. for a change in microbial diversity and plant beneficial functions. Therefore, chemical analysis of the compost material before application is recommended to more fully consider its’ potential benefits. These effects need to be evaluated in different soil types and environments.

Overall, the new knowledge on the dynamics of microbial community and biological processes suggest that some of the key microbial groups and functions in cotton soils are regionally specific and can influenced by management. Thus a designer management may need to be applied to better harness specific biological benefits and is the foundation for building and managing more resilient cotton production systems.

This travel scholarship funding enabled the attendance at the 3rd International Whitefly Symposium, held in Fremantle in September 2018 was a good opportunity to present Australian researchers whitefly research from the past 5 years, which was part of the projects CSP140, CSP1303, CSP 1401 and CSP 1703, to an international audience.

The researcher presented a paper titled “Indirect whitefly/plant interactions: honeydew related factors affecting cotton lint quality and options for mitigation” and Smith presented a paper on “Silver leaf whitefly predation: a DNA approach to its evaluation”. The conference enabled the researcher to gauge the extent of international whitefly research, interact with other whitefly researchers to exchange experiences, become aware of new developments and ideas, and recognise opportunities for communication and collaboration.