IT may have been two or three days earlier than ideal, but planting is finally underway at Yandilla on the Darling Downs.
Tim Sauverain and Josh Miller were planting 400 hectares for DA Hall and Co after weeks of frequent wet weather, which had delayed parts of this year’s southern Queensland’s cotton plant.
“We would have liked to have started weeks ago,” Mr Sauverain said. “But it’s just been too wet to get on the country. Really, it’s probably still two or three days too wet, but there’s a fair bit of country we have to get across, so we needed to make a start.”
Mr Sauverain and Mr Miller had pulled up to check seed depth and placement of a refuge area for the Bollgard III crop on the highly productive Condamine floodplain.
Dalby-based agronomist John Fuelling, Fuelling Ag, said about 70 per cent of the Downs crop had now been planted, generally about a week ahead of schedule.
“We had beautiful heat for the first five days and the young plants jumped out of the ground, but the return of cooler weather and wind has certainly slowed the crop,” Mr Fuelling said. “Even with all the rain, unless there is another shower or two almost immediately, significant areas will likely be replanted. The strong wind will dry out the soil surface and play havoc with the seedlings.”
Up to 80,000ha is expected to be planted across the Downs, well up on last year’s 32,000ha crop. In large part the increase is in response to low feed grain prices. Although cotton is currently only trading on the spot market in the $480-$500 range, returns for cotton are significantly more attractive than sorghum at $190/tonne or barley at $165/t. Growers will be hoping for a repeat of least year’s excellent yields when irrigated country produced 11-12.5 bale/ha crops and dryland country 7-7.5 bale/ha crops.
“There’s certainly been plenty of new participants because of the comparative returns,” Mr Fueling said. “That’s seen cotton push further west, particularly into Moonie and Tara districts.”
The 120-170mm which fell in September also resulted in a good run in the Condamine River, allowing irrgiation water to be captured. Planting across the Darling Downs is expected to be completed by about November 20.
