Australia
February 29, 2012
Grain growers can now access a comprehensive internet-based wheat diagnostic system that combines paddock and crop symptoms in one easy-to-use tool.
Developed by the Department of Agriculture and Food, the tool MyCrop allows grain growers to understand yield potential, soil constraints and crop symptoms.
MyCrop details were outlined today at the department’s 2012 Agribusiness Crop Updates, supported by the Grains Research and Development Corporation.
Department Director General Rob Delane said new technologies and tools enabling growers to make more informed decisions to improve profits were vital to the future success of the grains industry.
“MyCrop is a clear example of the department providing value to growers by allowing better decision-making capabilities,” Mr Delane said.
“We recognise that every growing season is different with factors such as pests, plant diseases, soil deficiencies, environmental and weather factors on top of management issues playing an important role in affecting crop yields, growers’ time and of course profits.
“MyCrop allows crop diagnostics to move from the desk to the paddock through the use of a laptop or tablet.
“Being able to stand in the paddock gives growers and agronomists the opportunity to compare actual symptoms with photos that will not only accelerate the diagnosis process but also increase the accuracy.”
Department development officer and MyCrop manager Ben Curtis said MyCrop presented a simple process of elimination that prompted growers to select the stage of their crop and then work through a series of questions to identify the constraint affecting it.
“Alternatively, growers are able to search the likely cause of the problem by selecting paddock and soil clues such as ‘scattered poor plant growth’ or ‘variation between rows’,” Mr Curtis said.
“By continuing through the process the number of likely causes is reduced, placing growers in a position to better diagnose the limitations of yield in that area, paddock or cropping program.”
Accurate diagnosis using MyCrop is assisted by the provision of example photographs of both normal and affected crops and soils, for each potential cause.
“The simplicity and ease of wheat diagnosis using MyCrop is expected to result in growers adding it to their web favourites and regularly using this cost-free tool,” Mr Curtis said.
MyCrop will also be used in the training of future agronomists, agricultural consultants and growers at UWA and Curtin.
“It is an effective learning tool as it works through a logical diagnostic process and links users to comprehensive information which they can refer to as they go a long through the process,” Mr Curtis said.
“This enables knowledge and skills to be transferred from experienced agronomists, advisors and researchers to university students or people new to agronomy.”
The development of MyCrop for canola and barley is currently underway.
MyCrop is available on the Department of Agriculture and Food’s website at www.agric.wa.gov.au/mycrop
Topics
Species
