There was a strong interest in the Northern CGA visiting the Emerald region in Queensland to look at farming systems with a focus on understanding the principles of grow non cotton, the potential opportunities it may enable across the north and the requirements and challenges this would present for our northern farming systems. The expectation isn't that the Emerald system can be copy and paste into the north, but that this trip will provide foundations for Northern farming systems discussions. 

The key outcomes of the Emerald trip were:

·       Growers visited a 5 regional farms with a focus on “Grown On” cotton

·       A number of farms were visited; each had a slightly different management approached to grown on cotton. Growers, their consultants & other industry members were very generous in sharing their knowledge on grown on cotton

·       Different approaches to grown on cotton included planned, growing on as a result of early season fruit loss and skip row configurations

·       It was very evident that there is still a lot to learn about this approach, particularly in terms of nutrient mining and canopy management, and there is no one method fits all

·       The trip was extremely valuable and a lot of interest in grown on cotton was generated. It is expected that some growers will trial the approach in the 2024-25 season

·       Grown on has the potential to benefit cotton production in the NT however research needs to be done to determine whether it is a viable option and will work in with our complex climate