Safflower – a strategic ingredient in the grain mix T

1 The Jochinke farm traditionally had a three phase rotation medic, fallow followed by wheat. The medic was utilised for grazing by sheep, the fallow for weed control and wheat for cash return. Barley was introduced in the 1960 70s and chickpeas and canola in the 1980s. Over the wetter 1970 80s some sun-flower was produced while in the 1980s Safflower was introduced, followed later in the 1990s with current crop rotation is wheat, lentils, barley, chickpeas usually followed by oaten hay. Canola, Safflower and field peas are opportunity cropped. In 2009 David has sown 50 hectares of grow Safflower ?Generally Safflower is grown purely as a cash crop requiring adequate inputs and timely sowing.

2 But it is being included in the rotation this season as a strategic crop after missing the window to plant a barley crop in a paddock when it became too wet for timely access. David was also exercising caution in not producing too much feed grain this season due to the domestic dairy crisis and subse-quent drop in feed grain prices. He aims to spread his production and financial risk by including the past Safflower has been used on the property to open up clay soil and dry the profile but recent seasons have not been that wet to necessitate such a also keeps an eye on the price of Safflower and when the price is attrac-tive he may consider producing the crop. He also sees the opportunity this season to produce fresh planting seed for future Safflower aspects of safflowerSafflower generally does not have the gross margin of the other crops in the ro-tations and requires large amounts of wa-ter to achieve high also makes the point that you need to be mindful of paddocks with broadleaf weed problems as the lack of in-crop herbicides is a drawback in producing Safflower windowDavid aims to sow early in June to July to chase the maximum potential yield for Safflower crops.

3 If he is not able to sow 6 Australian grain September October, 2009 This case study is part of the Better Oilseeds project addressing the urgent need to lift the productivity of oilseed crops within Australia, specifically canola, sunflower and soybean, to ensure critical mass and consistency of production and to improve the quality of grain a strategic ingredient in the grain mixFarmerDavid JochinkeLocationmurra Warra approximately 26 km North of Horsham, per cent cropping, five per cent prime si Ze1700 hectares (owned and leased).average annuaL rainFaLL410 mm annually of which, on average, 210 mm generally falls within the Safflower growing L t Ypethe dominant soils are friable, alkaline, calcareous, self mulching clay L Home messageStrategic use of the crop is a stronger driver to produce Safflower than the gross margin of the cropkeYs to success witH saFFLowertarget early sowing;ensure good soil water availability;Obtain sound, viable seed from a reputable source;ensure good weed control in previous crops; and,be prepared to store the crop to enhance marketing options HistorY o F propertYIn 1950 Albert Victor Jochinke (known as Vic) purchased two 130 hectares allotments at murra Warra through a soldier settlement grant.

4 Grandson David currently operates the farm which he has doubled in size since taking over the Safflower case study has been compiled as part of the national better Oilseeds project, an exciting initiative funded by the Grains research and Development corporation and the Australian Oilseeds better Oilseeds project is addressing the urgent and critical need to lift the productivity of oilseed crops within Australia to ensure critical mass and consistency of production and to improve the quality of grain produced. the project began in 2006 and aims to increase the value of the Australian oilseeds industry through enhancing productivity and value. It initially covered canola, sunflower and soybeans and more recently for a booklet which will include technical information and case studies of Safflower growers from around Australia to be released this further information contact Sue Knights, E: Jochinke farms north of Horsham.

5 8searly due to wet conditions, he aims for maximum oil content with the later sow-ing. But the decision to sow late Safflower may compete with a choice of other sum-mer crops such as sunflower, depending on its market preparationPaddocks are usually prepared with a knock down up to one week prior to sow-ing or sprayed in front of the bar generally using a mix of glyphosate and oxyfluorfen to control weeds. The farm has adopted a no-till system and uses Primary Sale In-verted T points on a 820 flexi-coil bar with 30 cm row spacing and Agmaster press wheels. The press wheels are used to im-prove seed-soil contact which is critical for no till system and establishmentDavid sows his Safflower seed between 15 20 kg per hectare and generally uses 18 kg per hectare to aim for between 20 25 plants per m2.

6 Seed is placed at a depth of approximately three to five cm. The rate must be kept low as excessive plant numbers can lead to water moisture stress later in the season. The seed is cleaned and generally treated with a fungicide to control fungal diseases such as alternaria, fusarium, py-thium and rhizoctonia as well as an insec-ticide to control blue oat mite, redlegged earth mite and the past S555 has been grown to tar-get the oil seed market while this year he will grow Sironaria, mainly because he had seed of that variety in nutritionDavid s Safflower nutrition program de-pends upon the paddock history. In gen-eral all paddocks on the property are soil 8 Australian grain September October, 2009 TABLE.

7 Cost and expenditure details for 50 hectares off t/ha@$600 per tonne$/ha $540$/tonne $600 Paddock $27,000 ExPENDITUREM achineImplementActivityHaInputJohn DeereGoldacresKnockdown5060 per hour$ $ $25050 Water per litre$ $ $1750 Glyphosate1 per litre$ $ $ per litre$ $ $ per litre$ $ $17 John DeereGoldacresPre-sowing5060 per hour$ $ $25050 Trifluralin (480g/L) per litre$ $ $476 VersatileFlexicoilSowing5010 per hour$ $ $1750 Seed50 Safflower18 per tonne$ $ $648 Seed per kg$ $ $11 Seed per kg$ $ $27 Fertiliser50 MAP50 per tonne$ $ $1375 John DeereGoldacresPost-emerge5060 per hour$ $ $25050 Metsulfuron5 per gram$ $ $1 50 Grass per litre$ $ $30050 Spray per litre$ $ $125 CaseHarvesting5010 per hour$ $ $1750 Storage506 per month$ $ $ $ $ $324 Total variable costs$ $ $8373 NET MARGIN$ $ $18, OILSEEDS Safflower .

8 10sD P 1 3 3 4 - A G _ 2 7 5 x 2 1 0 . p d f P a g e 1 2 0 / 8 / 0 8 , 4 : 1 2 P Mtested before they are sown to a cereal which is around every two years. Safflower is treated similar to wheat requiring around 50 kg per hectare MAP at sowing to target average yields. David says adequate nutrition is essen-tial to set up Safflower for its best possible controlSafflower is tolerant to a very limited number of in-crop broad leaf herbicides. Trifluralin is applied pre-sowing and met-sulfuron with a grass selective are com-monly used post emergence. Generally Safflower is grown in paddocks with ryegrass and brome grass problems or a strategic delaying of sowing is used to maximise the knockdown herbicide treat-ment before resistanceDavid suspects he has two areas of herbicide resistant annual ryegrass on his property which he manages through an appropriate crop rotation including oaten hay and grazing with managementRed legged earthmites are controlled with a combination of using a broad spec-trum insecticide at establishment and an insecticide seed dressing.

9 Other insects are controlled on a threshold basis which re-quires regular crop monitoring. There has been only one case of heliothis and few instances of Rutherglen bug infestations which required managementSafflower seed is treated with a fungi-cide which prevents most diseases except leaf rust which has been rarely managementSafflower is harvested anywhere from Christmas to March, depending on the time of sowing. David uses his Case 2388 with a 30ft 1020 front fixed. A rotary header is preferred to a walker type as Safflower stems tend to get caught in the walkers which is difficult to remove and causes grain loss. He ensures he harvests the crop as soon as it is ready to reduce any weather damage to the seed although the plant is very resistant to lodging and shattering.

10 Harvesting only begins once the mois-ture is well below 12 per cent and often during harvest it will drop to eight to nine per cent which is ideal for successfull stor-age. Safflower is harvested more gently than other crops to reduce the number of buttons in the sample and to prevent seed cracking. David is always mindful to avoid any blockages. A wheat setting is used with a slower fan and rotor speed but slightly wider concave setting. It is recommended that the engine bay and especially the exhaust manifold is blown down at least two to three times a day to stop potential hazardous caking. David also uses an air compressor each morning to blow the pappus out of the radiator and as a precautionary meas-ure he also uses two chains to earth the header in an attempt to prevent a buildup of static of Safflower residueDuring harvest they try to take as much of the Safflower plant as possible through the harvester which is chopped and spread to avoid having to slash the stubble.