AN increasing problem with hard-to-kill grasses and weeds meant Dubbo brothers Chris and Steve Taylor were looking into the future and seeing their farming system hitting the wall.
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A focus on weed seed control and the adoption of newer herbicides has since changed that picture.
Chris and his wife, Orla, and Steve and his partner, Rebecca, grow wheat, canola, barley and oats winter crops, including some wheat and canola seed production crops under pivot irrigation, while they also grow corn and adzuki beans under irrigation during summer.
They follow a predominantly wheat-canola rotation on the dryland country, with barley included as well before a return to pasture for several years. The rotation is more varied on the irrigated country, also due to plantback restrictions with seed production crops.
Chris said annual ryegrass and wild radish were the main problem weeds, while they were also concerned about wild turnip, fat hen and fleabane.
"We are now using superior products to back up the windrow burning, which also helps to keep the products effective for as long as possible.
"You need to have seed control with the new chemistry. We are not opposed to cutting hay crops if necessary.
"We have got to realise as farmers that cheap chemistry has gone. We have to use the most effective chemicals. We can look at the lessons learned from Western Australia and South Australia. They have lost control in South Australia and now have to use very expensive methods.''
Dave said previously in the region, when livestock were more dominant, farmers mainly relied on post-emergent grass control, but as the effectiveness of this reduced over recent years, the use of pre-emergent chemistry had become highly important.
