Bill Gordon Consulting Pty Ltd(BCG) has provided training on application and drift management to the cotton industry for over a decade. During this time BGC has sort to raise awareness of drift reduction techniques and to put in place a training program that is well accepted by the industry. BGC believes it had achieved those goals.

The aim of this project was to develop a path to transition the existing workshop program to an industry based (fee for service) accreditation/endorsement that meets the needs and expectations of cotton growers.

Attendance to present an invited paper in the symposium "Evolution of Insecticide Resistance" on genetics of resistance in Helicoverpa at the XXI International Congress of Entomology. Also presenting a poster of my work on transgenic cotton.

The conference had an outstanding couple of sessions on ecological impacts of go plants, including pests and beneficials.

The 4th Pacific Rim Conference on the Biotechnology of Bacillus thuringiensis and Its Environmental Impact was held in the Manning Clark Centre, Australian National University, from 11''' to 15'" November 2001. The conference attracted 111 registrants from 17 countries, 49 of whom were from Australia. In the seven symposia of the program, 26 invited speakers reviewed major issues for the use of Bt technology (public perceptions, safety, regulatory issues, environmental impact of Bt crops, mode of action of Bt toxins, resistance, and novel Bt toxins). There were also 19 contributed papers and 18 posters presented. The conference was supported by sponsorship from 11 corporations and government agencies.

The project was established in response to grower support to promote the adoption of new technologies into sound management practices in the Border rivers irrigation area from Goodiwindi to Mungindi. As part of the Cotton CRC extension program, it involved the development of a framework of regional trials/demonstrations (in liaison with researchers) as part of a group adoption process to facilitate better communication between farmers, advisers and researchers from government and agribusiness.

The Industry Development Extension Officer would co-ordinate demonstration trials, take a role in information transfer with the region's growers associations and

assist grower direct and respond to gaps in the current research base as we as adapt existing technology to local needs.

The adoption of new technologies, AWM, IPM and BMP play a large role in meeting

the cotton industry's objectives of maintaining and promoting the most sustainable

and profitable practices, for benefit of the industry as a whole and the communities/areas where cotton is grown.

In earlier times much research was left on the shelf by growers because of the

perception that it was not applicable in their situation or locality. Many growers

carry out on-farm trials and demonstrations to help them fine tune management An extension officer takes a role as an intermediary enabling this on farm trial and

demonstration work to continue on a coordinated basis as well as ensuring the latest research is incorporated into these trials.

SOlLpak represents the primary decision support system for the promotion of sustainable soil management.Production of version three of SOlLpak was recently completed and will form the basis of BMP guidelines for soil management for the cotton industry.

The objective of the CRDC project DAN 135C was to produce a ten to fifteen minute video to promote adoption of the decision support system SOILpak, demonstrating how SOlLpak can be used to improve overall soil management and economic returns.

lmplementation of SOlLpak has involved district soil workshops targeting mainly consultants.However to assist its promotion and implementation, a SOlLpak video was produced for distribution to farmers to assist in the on-farm adoption and implementation of the SOlLpak manual and for use by the Cotton Extension Team.

The project commenced in March 1999 and the video was to be completed and ready for distribution in August of that year. Delays resulted in a completion date of

early August 2000.

By supporting and promoting the decision support system SOILPAK, third edition, the video assists in forming the basis of BMP guidelines for soil management in cotton production and thus the sustainability of this natural resource, which in turn enhances the profitability and competiveness of the Australian cotton farmer internationally.

Key factors in managing transgenic Bt cottons for the future are to have an effective resistance management strategy. An essential component of any such strategy is to establish a resistance monitoring program. The core components of this project address resistance monitoring as well as examine the performance of transgenic cotton (two genes) in relation to resistance management.

NSW Agriculture initiated the industries Bt resistance monitoring program in 1993. Intensive monitoring of Australian field populations of Helicoverpa armigera and Helicoverpa punctigera began in 1997 following the commercial release of the Bt transgenic crop, Ingard®. This report summarises results of the Bt resistance monitoring program between 1999 and 2002 and discusses possible directions for future research. In conducting the resistance monitoring program eggs are collected from all cotton growing districts throughout the season.

It is known that expression of the Bt protein, that produces the toxin Cry1Ac, declines throughout the crop cycle. The highest levels of protein expression occur during the early squaring (pre-flowering) period of growth. It is expected that this period also corresponds to maximum selection pressure against the toxin Cry1Ac. Although the decline in the Bt expression during the last half of the crop cycle reduces field efficacy against Helicoverpa spp selection for resistance is still expected to occur, thus Cry1Ac is under constant selection pressure.

One of the aims of this project is to assess the N fertiliser requirements of cotton under more enlightened tillage systems currently being adopted. The application method for nitrogen fertiliser may change as the tillage system changes. For example, true minimum tillage is inconsistent with an anhydrous ammonia application shank working down the centre of each hill at 20 to 30 cm depth, particularly in wet soil. The alternatives are often less convenient than the traditional method and to date there has been little research in comparing methods of application. Results for the first two seasons of this experiment are summarised in this article.

Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) and H. punctigera (Wallengren) are serious pests of cotton in Australia. These pests constitute a continually increasing production cost for most field crops,

particularly cotton. At the end of the 1996-97 cotton season, cotton growers in the Emerald, Biloela and Theodore areas of CQ agreed to adopt a trap-cropping program as a first step in

the development of an area-wide strategy for management of Helicoverpa.

The principal research objectives of this project were (i) To review the strategic framework and test the validity of ecological assumptions underlying the CQ trap-cropping program, (ii) To develop indicators for assessing the efficacy and impact of trap crops, and (iii) To determine field parameters for optimising trap crop deployment and trapping efficiency under local field conditions. These objectives have all been achieved to varying degrees,

The research outputs of the project show that the CQ trap-cropping strategy is based on sound ecological principles. The strategy seeks to exploit weaknesses in the regional population dynamics of Helicoverpa. The fundamental assumptions underlying the strategy are valid.

The Helicoverpa problem in CQ is to a great extent locally generated within the cropping system. This explains the measurable rise in the level of insecticide resistance in the pest. Host plant bottlenecks are clearly important factors in the population dynamics and pest status of Helicoverpa. This project has shown a relationship between spring rainfall and the incidence of resource bottlenecks in spring, namely, the correlation between spring rainfall and the incidence of Helicoverpa on cotton crops. Within cropping systems, spring resource bottlenecks, if and when they occur, are important determinants of Helicoverpa pest status early in the spring/summer cropping season.

The silverleaf whitefly (Bemisia tabaci B type) is a world-wide pest on many crops, with a particular appetite for cotton.

Although the SLW has reached pest status in the horticultural industries of the Northern Territory and Queensland, the cotton industry in Australia is not affected by the silverleaf whitefly. However, the presence of this pest in Australia's cotton growing areas and the current worldwide problems associated with SLW management, has presented the industry with a potential disaster.

Is it a matter of time as for other countries? Is Australia's climate suitable? Is cotton

a good host? Are competition and predation our saving grace? These and more detailed questions need to be addressed. Australian cotton growers and researchers may then play a role in either; keeping the present situation as it is (if the SLW has simply not been able to establish). Or, by not providing the pest with a chance of a foothold if the opportunity still awaits.

Outbreaks of SLW in other countries have been studied, and theories have been presented as to the development of its major pest status. Major theories include the effect of climate, reduction in beneficials, poor insecticide management, and changes in fanning practices including the increase in suitable hosts.

Most of these factors we can examine to enable us to identify the risks that would elevate the SLW to a major pest in Australian cotton.

In recent times cotton growers have seen the need to adopt new land preparation practices. In the Macquarie Valley alone, only 35% of the 1987/88 cotton crop was prepared using conventional techniques. The swing away from conventional land preparation practices has largely been in response to economic factors. However, a further factor is the greater awareness growers have in relation to maintaining and improving their soils structure. Much of this awareness has been as a result of excellent research and extension programmes. In this paper l will be dealing with the research and technical inputs which have led to innovative land preparation practices.