The Rural Voice, 1996-11, Page 12• AWARD WINNING
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8 THE RURAL VOICE
Scrap Book
Australian researchers find
glyphosate -resistant weed
When all else fails in weed
control, farmers have for years
been able to turn to glyphosate -
based chemicals like Round -up®
and Touchdown® for the ultimate
control. Researchers in Australia,
however, say they've discovered a
weed there that is resistant to
control by glyphosate chemicals.
This summer, researchers at
southwestern Australia's Charles
Sturt University in Wagga
Wagga, announced they found
annual ryegrass in a farmer's field
that had survived applications of
the herbicide. The farmer used
glyphosate at least once a year in
the field since 1981. Using
minimum -till equipment, he
planted sunflowers, wheat,
chickpeas, faba beans, tomatoes
and dill in the field. Between
crops he stocked the field with
sheep or cattle.
In 1995, the farmer sprayed
with glyphosate in the spring, but
did not plant a crop. Patches of
annual ryegrass survived the
treatment. Researchers tested the
weed seed under controlled
conditions and discovered some
of the weeds resisted even high
amounts of the chemical.
Annual ryegrass does not grow
in Canada and Monsanto, maker
of Roundup, says it won't
recognize the results of the
Australian tests until it has some
of the seeds to conduct its own
tests.
Malcolm Devine, a weed
scientist with the University of
Saskatchewan, says even though
he thought it highly unlikely
weeds would develop resistance
to glyphosate, Canadian farmers
should pay attention to the Aust-
ralian research. If one weed could
develop resistance, he said, others
could too. Farmers should make
sure they rotate glyphosates the
same way they rotate other groups
of herbicides, he said.
Jim Pratley, lead researcher at
the Australian university, said it's
crucial for farmers to preserve
glyphosate's life because it is
widely used in zero -till and
minimum -till operations. "It's not
doom and gloom, but it does
suggest that we ought not take
anything for granted," he said.
Pratley said resistant ryegrass
could be an isolated case, but said
other resistant weeds may have
gone unnoticed because they are
killed when soil is disturbed
during seeding or a selective
herbicide may kill a glyphosate -
resistant plant during the growing
season.0
— Source: Western Producer
Vitamin B6increase sows' reproduction
Adding vitamin B6 to diets for sows can improve reproductive performance,
according to a two-year study carried out at Brandon's Research Centre.
Feeding supplemental vitamin B6 was found to reduce weaning -to -estrus
interval and increase litter size. Producers should use at least 15 mg of vitamin
B6 per kilogram of diet. Results of a co-operative study with the University of
Manitoba's Department of Animal Science should lead to changes in diet
formulations, which will further improve reproductive efficiency of sows.
Deficient levels of vitamin B6 can cause poor appetite and inefficient use of
dietary protein. Today's lean and fast-growing sows have a greater genetic
capacity for muscle development and milk production. They require high energy
and protein diets, which can increase vitamin B6 requirements.
Brandon research showed feeding the vitamin during post -weaning and
gestation periods reduced the weaning -to -estrus interval by one day and increased
litter size by 6.75 per cent in both Yorkshire and Hampshire second -litter sows.0
— Source: FarmWoman Magazine