Sunflowers have two new champions this season ­ New South Wales Department of Primary Industries (NSWDPI) district agronomists Stephanie Belfield, Moree East, and Loretta Serafin, Gunnedah.

The pair are just back from a study tour of the sunflower industry in the United States, where they attended the International Sunflower Conference in Fargo, North Dakota, and delivered a paper detailing their experiences with sunflower cropping in northern New South Wales.

They are co-researchers on a Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) supported project looking to identify best management of sunflower crops in northern New South Wales and southern Queensland.

The GRDC and the Australian Sunflower Association supported Loretta's travel to America and the Australian Oilseeds Federation Stephanie's participation.

After the conference Loretta and Stephanie spent 10 days studying sunflower production and research in North Dakota, California and Kansas.

In North Dakota they met researchers at the Pacific Seeds facility in Fargo and at the North Dakota State University, which has a dedicated sunflower team, focusing in one instance on grass weeds and the importance of their control in the early stages of the crop.

They found US sunflower growers have access to a wider range of herbicides than does the Australian industry, as well as Clearfield and sulfonylurea tolerant varieties.

Sunflowers had a higher profile than in Australia, fitting well into their rotations and being competitive with maize and soybeans. The crop was subject to much more research than in Australia ­ leading to short stature varieties and the use of subsurface drip irrigation, which they saw in Kansas.

On the other hand, sunflower growers in the US appeared to face more disease and insect problems than their Australian counterparts.

Loretta and Stephanie concede the sunflower industry in Australia is contracting, for a number of reasons including lack of registered herbicides and the crop¹s inability to provide ongoing stubble cover.

At the same time yields are increasing in Australia, and there are good contracts this year for early planted sunflowers. In northern New South Wales at least seasonal prospects also looked favourable.

Stephanie and Loretta will report to NSWDPI and the GRDC on their US studies.