AN online resource, the Soybean Production Manual: A complete guide to growing soybean in Australia, has been developed by the Grains Research and Development Corporation, Soy Australia, the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, and the NSW Department of Primary Industries.
The online manual, adapted from the ‘Better Soybean Training Manual’, is part of the joint initiative aimed at supporting the expansion of the Australian soybean industry by providing updated soybean training and technical resources to Australian growers and agronomists.
Chief executive officer of Pulse Australia, Nick Goddard, said the Australian soybean industry is a small and complex yet valuable industry that would benefit significantly from the initiative.
“While the Australian soybean industry is relatively small by global standards, it plays an important role in many farming systems as a rotation crop across eastern Australia through improving soil fertility and as a disease break,” he said. “It is also increasingly providing a higher value crop option for growers.”
GRDC senior regional manager – North, Gillian Meppem, said that strategic RD&E investment is playing a vital role in building growers’ confidence in trialling new or non-traditional crops such as soybean.
“GRDC has been supportive of increasing grain production in non-traditional areas by ground-truthing or testing known research at local levels, so growers and advisers understand how outcomes can be applied on-farm in different regions,” Ms Meppem says.
“This resource is another opportunity to assist growers to make informed decisions into new cropping rotations from the beginning of their venture.
NSW Department of Primary Industries research agronomist at the Grafton Primary Industries Institute, Dr Natalie Moore, and Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries senior development extension officer, Carla Atkinson, said that the modules will include a variety of information.
“The manual is quite unique in that it contains 10 interactive online modules,” Dr Moore said. “In each module there is material including diagnostic photographs, pop out printable checklists and factsheets, videos, and links to other cropping resources such as GRDC updates, published trial reports, and cropping guides.”
Dr Moore added that although the manual is primarily aimed at agronomists, all the information will be available to growers.
“Lack of training for agronomists in soybean production has been an industry-wide issue that we’ve been very keen to address,” Dr Moore said. “But we’re also making the resources publicly available online so that anyone can access and benefit from the information, including growers.”
Ms Atkinson said that the manual’s information has been curated by leading industry experts under 10 primary modules.
“Currently, we only have a print version of the ‘Better Soybean Training Manual’,” she said. “This new online manual has been completely reviewed and updated by industry experts and packaged into an easy-to-access web format.
“We have an excellent variety of information curated in 10 modules: 1) marketing, 2) rotation and variety choice, 3) crop nutrition, 4) plant growth and development, 5) agronomy, 6) weed management, 7) disease management, 8) pest management, 9) harvesting, and 10) safe storage,” she said.
Ms Atkinson added that the project will also encompass several workshops starting in August and September this year to support and expand on these modules.
“The first round of workshops will provide an opportunity for agronomists from different areas to come together and share knowledge, exchange ideas, and network with industry peers,” Ms Atkinson said.
Workshop dates will be communicated later in the year via the GRDC website.
