Know your soil moisture
Soil coring a great way of testing accurately
MOVING along on the common-sense approach to choosing a crop option for this coming winter.
Last week we looked at chickpea seed and the quality, or rather lack of quality, that could be around from 2016 seed crops.
I also mentioned how very important it is for the chickpea planting seed to be completely covered with Thiram or P Pickel T fungicide.
It would also be important to check your wheat or barley seed for germination and vigour.
I know that you plant somewhere from 80 to 150 odd seeds per square metre with your cereal crops and you could argue that even if the germ or vigour is down a bit, you can just plant more kg per hectare of seed.
Not the best reasoning, I believe, and a known seed source quality and purity would be extremely helpful.
So my next consideration is soil moisture levels.
Now I am not just talking about the top six inches your fingers can scratch down to.
No, I am talking about down to two or three feet and knowing how much useful moisture you have in the profile after an extremely hot summer fallow time.
Just adding up the rainfall received on your calendar is not good enough in my book, especially with narrow storms you have most likely been getting through summer.
You know the ones where you receive over three inches at the shed and down the back you get 80 points?
So do not just assume your paddock moisture levels are full, as off the rainfall chart, and yes, my favourite assessment process is still soil coring.
These soil cores can even be used as samples for soil
❝Just adding up the rainfall received on your calendar is not good enough...
— Paul McIntosh
nutrient testing.
The actual sub-soil moisture levels may well influence where you plant your tap-rooted chickpea crop or your wheat/barley option.
I would suggest that with blocks of low sub-soil moisture levels, you would be less inclined to plant expensive chickpea seed and then apply post-plant residual herbicides that will lock you in to a season persisting with a
chickpea crop, no matter how good or bad it was.
We really have limited options for a post-emergent herbicide in chickpeas for broadleaf weeds, so most folk use the post-plant residual options in chickpeas.
So be warned of failed chickpea crops, for whatever reason, after these long-acting residual herbicides have been applied.
With grass weeds, we have
successful post-emergent options, if group A herbicide resistance is not a factor.
Soil moisture levels will also influence some of your fertiliser choices and rates, I would suggest.
Mind you, I am still a firm believer in deep P testing and application if needed, for all our winter crops, while keeping in mind that potassium is also a key non mobile element as well.
The hot dry summer did us no favours by not enabling us to plant summer crops in our desired cropping rotation and also did us no favours for sub-soil moisture build-up.
Let us not compound a dreadful summer time with poor winter crop decisions.
So assess your moisture levels now as a preliminary act, as we continue on with this common-sense approach to 2017 winter crop plantings.