Growers, researchers and agronomists will gather to collaborate and get the latest updates on recent research, development and extension (RD&E) outcomes at GRDC Grains Research Updates in New South Wales and southern Queensland in February and March.

Registrations are open for the two-day events in Wagga Wagga (11–12 February), Dubbo (27–28 February) and Goondiwindi (4–5 March), as well as the one-day local issues-focused Updates in Corowa (13 February), Nyngan (26 February) and Pallamallawa (6 March).

The series will feature a diverse range of presentations, with speakers covering topics related to soils, disease, farming systems, nutrition, insects and much more.

GRDC Northern Panel Chair Arthur Gearon, a Chinchilla Queensland-based grain and cotton producer, urged anyone involved in the industry to register to come along, noting its dual value in gaining information from GRDC as well as discussing those findings with other attendees.

GRDC Northern Panel chair Arthur Gearon. Photo: Anvil Media

“For growers, it often feels like things are always on the move, but sometimes the best course of action is to pause and check in with what’s happening with your peers or in industry – we have much to gain from our different experiences and perspectives,” he said.

GRDC Senior Regional Manager – North Rebecca Raymond said Updates are key events in the grains industry calendar, offering a critical opportunity to share the latest information to help drive enduring profitability for growers.

“Grains Research Updates have been set up specifically to help create early awareness among growers and their advisers of the latest regionally applicable research outcomes so that our investment can translate to better and more informed decision-making sooner,” she said.

“To ensure the topics presented are regionally relevant, every Update has its own bespoke planning committee comprising local advisers and growers to select the most timely topics to discuss.”

In Wagga Wagga, the inaugural Update for the northern growing region, key presentations will include:

• Mike Bell (Uni of Qld) – N cycling and loss pathways – what don't we know and insights and questions from preliminary data sets in a major new national project
• Victor Sadras (SARDI) – Interactions between water and plant nutrition
• Brad Baxter (NSW DPIRD) – Regional fungicide resistance and disease management update
• Mitch Allen (Nufarm), Greg Condon (Grassroots Agronomy) & Eric Koetz (NSW DPIRD) – Glufosinate and
• Group 14 herbicides in double knocks – where do they fit in the farming system and how do we optimise performance?
• Tony Swan (CSIRO) – Scaling up 10 years of farming systems research: The profit and practicality of increasing pulse crops at the whole farm level.

In addition to these, concurrent sessions will be held throughout the event. For example, the GRDC investment on Grain Automate will be on show in concurrent sessions at northern region two–day Updates. Of particular interest will be a session led by Tim Neale (Data Farming) on automating data collection for advice provision to growers, Tom Andrews (CEO Connected Farms) on data connectivity and Lara Vallejo-Roosdorp (Syngenta) on site specific applications of pre-emergent herbicides.

A highlight of the 2025 round of Updates is a visit from Canadian spray application specialist Tom Wolf, who will be speaking at Perth, Bendigo, Dubbo, Goondiwindi and Pallamallawa.

Topics covered by Dr Wolf will vary between Updates but include: nozzle selection with pulse width modulation (PWM); experiences with spot sprayers in North America; drones and their canopy deposition uniformity, roles, water volumes, droplet sizes, drift, operator and airspace safety with reference to label requirements; and more.

GRDC Grains Research Updates in New South Wales and Queensland are organised by ICAN with the support and involvement of many research and industry organisations and individuals.

Information and registrations

• Grains Research Update – Wagga Wagga (11–12 February 2025)
• Grains Research Update – Corowa (13 February 2025)
• Grains Research Update – Nyngan (26 February 2025)
• Grains Research Update – Dubbo (27–28 February 2025)
• Grains Research Update – Goondiwindi (4–5 March 2025)
• Grains Research Update – Pallamallawa (6 March 2025)