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GRDC National Frost InitiativeBen Biddulph Management ProgramTim March Genetic ProgramFrancis Ogbonnaya (GRDC)Bob Belford (Coordinator)Sue Knights (Knowledge Manager)February 2015
Objective
Reduce the impact of frost in cereal crops
Intermediate outcome
Growers employing cereal varieties and management options that enable them to minimise the impact
of frost on crop yield and seasonal profit variability
“To provide the Australian grains industry with targeted R, D and E
solutions to manage the impact of frost and minimise seasonal profit
variability”.
GeneticsGrowers in frost prone
regions with access to
and using cereal
varieties with frost
tolerance superior to
current dominant
varieties
ManagementGrowers in frost prone
regions implementing
management practises
that minimise the
impact of frost events
EnvironmentGrowers
employing frost
risk management
tools to inform
varietal choice and
management
practises
GRDC NFI- Management• Leader: Ben Biddulph DAFWA• Current projects:
– Farming systems to improve crop tolerance to frost(Ben Biddulph: DAW00241) – national program, to June 2016
– Crop nutrient management (Richard Bell, MurdochUniversity: UMU00045) to June 2016
– Use of chemicals to increase frost tolerance in AustralianCrops (Steve Powles, Roberto Busi, University of WesternAustralia: UWA000169) to December 2014
– Determining yield under frost - one degree at a time(Ben Biddulph: DAW00234) to June 2019
GRDC NFI- Environment• Leader: TBA• Current projects:
– Frost Situation Analysis; modelling the impact of frost (Jack Christopher, University of Queensland: UQ00071) – to Jun 2015
• New projects:– Assessing forecast and management options for mitigating
extreme temperature impacts on grains (James Risbey, CSIRO: CMA00002) - to May 2017
– Spatial temperature measurement and mapping tools to assist growers, advisors and extension specialists manage frost risk at a farm scale (Steve Crimp, CSIRO: tbc) – to Jun 2019
GRDC NFI- Genetics• Leader: Tim March (University of Adelaide)• Current projects:
– Australian National Frost Program - coordination andphenotyping (Jason Eglinton, University of Adelaide) –UA00136 – to Jun 2016
– New strategies for phenotyping reproductive stage frostand chilling tolerance in wheat (Rudi Dolferus, CSIRO) –CSP00143 - to Jun 2015: potential for further investment
– Maintaining yield stability of wheat under spring frosts(Ben Trevaskis, CSIRO) – CSP00180 – to Jan 2017
– Screening for increased reproductive frost tolerance(Ken Street, ICARDA/UWA) – to Jan 2016
ANFP Frost Trials• Benchmark commercial wheat and barley varieties for sterility
under reproductive frost • 72 wheat and 48 barley varieties• Frost nurseries in WA (DAFWA), SA (UA), NSW (Kalyx)
Barley
Sterility
Wheat
Sterility
Stem frost
Between species
Average Wheat Vs Barley damage
Wheat and barley ratings• No varieties are tolerant• Preliminary rankings of susceptibility• Relationship between sterility and yield loss is not known
Wheat Events VS Wyalkatchem Ave
sterility
S
Category Ave sterility
75 19.6% 13.3%
Barley Events VS
Barque Ave sterility
S
Category Ave sterility
48 12.5% 7.1%
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Fro
st I
nd
uce
d S
teri
lity
(%
)
WA and SA Frost damage 2012-13
How will a variety be rated and how do I use the rating?
• Varieties essentially will be rated as very susceptible or susceptible.
• Ratings are not due to difference in phenology/flowering time, and refer to the relative susceptibility of varieties both flowering at the same time and do not take into account the frost risk associated with when a particular variety will flower given a certain sowing date.
• Continue to 1. select appropriate maturity for a particular sowing time2. select varieties based on the best yield, agronomic and disease
performance.3. Then use frost susceptibility ratings to fine tune the frost risk management
When will the ratings not work?
• Ratings – have not been linked to variation to frost damage during stem elongation
and grain filling.– are currently based on the variation in wheat varieties to maintain grain
number under minor reproductive frosts at flowering time.
• Under these reproductive/floret or head frosts grain number is the main yield component affected and hence normally corresponds to yield performance.
• However, this may not be the case if there is a long growing season or in early sown/flowering crops and varieties are able to compensate differently through late tillers.
When will the ratings not work?
• Ratings – have not been linked to variation to frost damage during stem elongation
and grain filling.– are currently based on the variation in wheat varieties to maintain grain
number under minor reproductive frosts at flowering time.
• Under these reproductive/floret or head frosts grain number is the main yield component affected and hence normally corresponds to yield performance.
• However, this may not be the case if there is a long growing season or in early sown/flowering crops and varieties are able to compensate differently through late tillers.
Key messages• Variation in commercial wheat and barley is significant;
– Preliminary ratings should be available on NVT website this year.
– Should be used to manage the frost risk of new varieties after they are
adopted, based on how known varieties of similar rating are currently
managed
• Under severe frost (for example -4.5°C) or multiple minor frosts (several
nights of -1º to -2ºC) all varieties tested to date are equally susceptible,
resulting in up to 100 percent sterility in flowering heads
• Ongoing work will validate relationship with yield (DAW00234 and
CSP00180)
How long will it be before we see frost tolerant
varieties?
1. James starts school 2015
2. James in high school 2020
3. James is 21 2030
Question 1.
Key messages• Barley is more tolerant than wheat
• Variation in suscetibility exists within current
varieties
• First select varieties based on yield in your
environment, then use frost ratings to fine tune risk
management
Francis Ogbonnaya
Sue Knights
Bob Belford
Brenton Leske
Nathan Height
Mike Baker
Tim March
Michael Laws
Paul Eckerman
Jason Eglinton
Acknowledgements
Kalyx Narrabri
Josh Barron
Denis Harvey
Living Farm
Richard Devlin
Rebecca Jenkinson
