Title: Managing GM Canola on the Farm
1Managing GM Canola on the Farm
Dr. Christopher Preston CRC for Australian Weed
Management and University of Adelaide
2GM Canola What Might it Do For You?
- In Canada
- Easier and better weed control
- Used in weedy fields to clean up
- Manage herbicide resistant weeds
- Increased profit due to
- Increased yield
- Lower costs
- Reduced fuel consumption
- Assisted move to no-till
3TT Canola has a Yield Penalty
From Robertson et al. 2002 Australian Journal of
Agricultural Research 53 643-651
4Hybrids
- 70 of canola grown in Canada is hybrid
- In Canada, hybrids yield up to 30 higher than
open-pollinated varieties - Cytoplasmic male sterility and the triazine
resistance trait are both maternally inherited.
This is why we currently have no TT hybrids
5Hybrids Improve Weed Control in Canada
Open pollinated
In Vigor Hybrid
Photos John ODonovan
6Potential Negative Impacts of GM Canola
- Adventitious presence
- Seed dispersal
- Pollen movement
- Management of volunteers
- Herbicide resistant weeds
7Gene Flow Between Canola Crops
Resistance in sink fields
8Honeybee Behaviour in Canola Crops
- Sprayed flowering canola fields with fluorescent
dye - Collected bees from the treated field and the
adjacent field separated by a road 24 h later - At full flowering 2 - 4 of bees marked with the
dye were in the adjacent field - When flowers were sparse, 19 of bees marked with
a dye were in the adjacent field - Model simulations suggest canola out crossing
between fields will be low and will be influenced
by hive number and when hives are placed
9Worst Case Scenario Predicted Spread by
Honeybees
Effect of field size
10Out Crossing to Weeds
- Out crossing between canola and wild radish
- Planted herbicide resistant wild radish in
susceptible canola and vice versa - Tested seed of susceptible species for resistance
- Tested 52 million seedlings
- Found 2 hybrids, 1 in 26 million frequency
- Hybrids are self pollinated and have low seed
dormancy
11Herbicide Resistant Canola Volunteers
- A problem in Canada in the early days of GM
canola use - Examined canola seed banks in South Australia
across 3 years. - No germination of seed from 2.5 years after
harvest
12Selection for Herbicide Resistance
- Glufosinate is a low risk herbicide not used
anywhere else in the rotation - Glyphosate is also a low risk herbicide, but is
already used extensively in the rotation
13Glyphosate Resistance Risk Factors
- Intensive use of glyphosate
- No other effective herbicides
- Little or no tillage
A. Storrie
R. May C. Preston
- Assess glyphosate risk before growing Roundup
Ready Canola - Take action to reduce risk
14Glyphosate Resistance in Australia
15Stewardship and Crop Management Plans
- A requirement as part of the license
- Access to the technology will require an
accredited agronomist - Requirements regarding
- Where the crop can be grown
- Management of seed
- Management of herbicides
- Management of volunteers
- Adverse effect reporting
- Audits of areas sown and CMP implementation
16Managing GM Canola on the Farm
- Decide whether Roundup Ready or InVigor canola
suits your farming system - Use the canola to maximise weed control potential
- Dont plant Roundup Ready canola in high risk
paddocks - Manage canola volunteers
- Use a herbicide other than glyphosate for
knockdown weed control in the year after Roundup
Ready canola - Monitor crops for potential glyphosate resistant
weeds and stop seed set