Grass seed yields increased with plant growth regulators and fungicides

Abstract

Seed yields of ryegrass and tall fescue have increased rapidly over the last seven years; the best farm yields are now reaching 3000 kg/ha, up from 2000 kg/ha. These increases are largely due to the adoption of technologies developed from research funded from grower crop levies and effective technology transfer programmes. The key technologies are (1) the adoption of trinexapac ethyl (TE), a plant growth regulator that blocks gibberellic acid biosynthesis and reduces lodging; and (2) new generation triazole and strobilurin fungicides that give improved disease control and extend the period that green leaf area is maintained on crops. Seed yield data from 10 ryegrass and 6 tall fescue trials with TE, and from 13 fungicide trials are presented. The average seed yield increase in tall fescue treated with 200 g TE/ha and ryegrass with 400 g TE/ha was 67% and 50% respectively. In fungicide trials, seed yields in forage perennial ryegrass were increased by 20% and in turf ryegrass by 42%. A survey of growers indicated 95% of ryegrass growers and 100% of tall fescue growers had adopted the use of TE three years after the commercial release of the product. Keywords: fungicides, plant growth regulators, ryegrass, seed yield, strobilurin, tall fescue, triazole, trinexapac