In a normal season, spray drift reports begin to filter through in December and January.
But Cotton Australia regional manager for northern NSW Bob Ford said farmers are already facing an uphill battle to control weeds following an excellent winter crop and the resulting weeds in fallow, while emerging cotton crops are also facing weed exposure because of the conditions.
“Thankfully the damage isn’t significant yet, however growers are reporting an unusually high weed issue in fields that are fallow after good winter crops and also in the emerging cotton crops.”
Mr Ford said best practice spraying may avoid many millions of dollars in damage.
“Responsible spraying strategies are part of a modern farming system, but everyone needs to follow instructions on the label, consider their neighbours, spray only when conditions are right and use best practice techniques.”
The 2022-23 season saw one of the worst years on record for spray drift, with some farmers suffering millions of dollars’ worth of lost production.
Cotton Australia general manager Michael Murray said while the 2023-24 season saw relatively few reports of spray drift damage, they remain “very concerned” about this season.
“Cotton is particularly sensitive to spray drift from Group 4 herbicides (phenoxy herbicides including 2,4-D) and any adverse incidents have a financial impact on our growers, which is why Cotton Australia continues to train, educate and communicate regularly on what is expected.
“We also ask all our farmers to map their activities on SataCrop, a mapping tool informing all stakeholders of the location of potentially sensitive crops and use WAND towers, a powerful tool that can quickly forecast and detect hazardous conditions and inversions, enabling growers and spray contractors to spray according to the best conditions and in compliance with label requirements.”
To sign up for WAND, visit https://www.goannaag.com/wand-network and for Satacrop go to https://satacrop.com.au/.
For advice from the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) - the body responsible for the spray drift regulatory approach - go to https://apvma.gov.au/node/10796.
