Fall armyworm shouldn't derail 'magnificent' corn crop

That's because, unlike last season, there's no sign of fall arrmyworm.

"We're just very lucky; very fortunate. That's as simple as it gets. It is a very big concern, but I think we've just dodged a bullet this year," he said.

Three years ago this month, FAW reached mainland Australia via Queensland.

By the 2021-22 summer, one of the world's worst plant pests had made its way into Mr Ziesemer's crop at Bongeen near Pittsworth and he was forced to apply pesticides to save it.

"They were getting nasty enough. I think they're a huge concern in the future, but as [scientists] do their jobs and as chemistry develops, hopefully we can do something with the damn thing," Mr Ziesemer said.

It's a stark turnaround, with his new crop looking a picture.

"The corn's looking magnificent. I don't know whether it was putting [the urea] on later, or [because] we've had pretty mild conditions up till last week," he said.

"This is probably the first season for a long time we've actually had a completely full profile, so the crop's managed to dig its heels in and we've managed to hold on."

Mr Ziesemer, who farms 1300ha at Bongeen with wife Leanne, planted 400ha of P1315IT and P1837 corn in September and November, in addition to 140ha of A88 sorghum in December.

Due to the wet weather impeding access to the paddocks in the lead up to sowing, he was forced to side dress the corn with 190kg/ha of urea after emergence.

Heavy falls continued into the year, with at least 370mm of rain falling on the early planted corn at the time of writing - a near 30pc increase on their average.

The good nutrition program combined with the rain and warm days and cool nights could lead to one of his best crops in years.

Mr Ziesemer wasn't the only one taking a punt, with Queensland growers set to plant 20,000 hectares of corn during the 2022-23 summer crop season, producing 110,000 tonnes, according to ABARES.

That's down on last season's 24,000ha and 129,000t, but up from 17,000ha and 66,000t in 2020-21.

Wade Bidstrup at Warra is another grower with a preference for corn, but he's decided to wait it out.

"With the fall armyworm, we haven't done it these last few years. [We've] been a bit scared to try it, but I think we'll probably go back and do it again and just be ready to spray it with Altacor [pesticide]," he told WeedSmart week Dalby recently.

FAW is considered one of the top 10 devastating plant pests affecting food and agriculture worldwide by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

It is estimated to cause up to US$9.4 billion in annual yield losses in Africa alone, where it took hold in 2016.

By the end of 2020, it had reached the NT, WA, NSW and Victoria.

While FAW has a very wide potential host range, it has so far shown a preference for grass species with whorls, including corn and sorghum.

Activities to monitor the spread of FAW within Australia are in place within WA, NT, Queensland and NSW, according to the Fall Armyworm Continuity Plan, produced by GRDC, Cesar, Plant Health Australia, Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International, and Queensland's Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.

However, DAF did not respond to a request for comment by deadline.

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