Held over three days, WeedSmart Week is the annual showcase for a national stewardship campaign which focuses on minimising crop weeds and sustaining herbicide use.
Day one saw about 250 registered attendees gathered to listen to a range of thought-provoking speakers and industry and farmer panels.
Farmer experiences were shared and today will see visits to farms to inspect first-hand how some growers are using a range of tools to tackle weeds.
Hot topics yesterday were chemical resistance, especially for weeds like brome and barley grass in the Mallee, and harvest weed seed control.
Farmer and guest speaker Daniel Linklater, who farms just across the border from Mildura in New South Wales, said tackling weeds involved a multi-faceted approach.
"You must have a long-term plan and stick to your principles and systems," Linklater said.
"But no system stays static for long and the adoption of new ways beckon."
Linklater said over many years they had learnt to adapt, even after believing their systems were OK.
"In about 2011 we saw huge issues with brome grass so it was time to get strategic and get weed smart."
WeedSmart promotes a "Big 6" strategy to help growers fight herbicide resistance by using diverse tactics.
The WeedSmart Big 6 are:
- Rotate crops and pastures
- Increase crop competition
- Mix and rotate herbicides
- Double knock
- Stop weed set
- Implement harvest weed seed control
WeedSmart Week will conclude tomorrow. For more information, visit www.weedsmart.org.au
