The hilly country of Kuloo Station, at Cassilis, in the Hunter region of New South Wales has meant controlling weeds has been a challenge.
Kuloo Station Manager, Jamie Bauer, said most of the country could not be reached with a ground sprayer, so they needed to use aerial methods to spray weeds, including St John’s Wort.
“St John’s Wort is our major challenge,” Mr Bauer said. “It’s a perennial that sits underground and germinates from root and seed. It’s quite hard to kill, and stay on top of, as it slowly takes over.”
He said two years ago they started a concerted campaign to clean up the weed and sprayed 300 hectares in each year with plans for another 800 hectares in 2025.
“We try to kill as much as we can when we’re spraying and look to come back every five years.”
The systematic program over years is designed to reduce the amount of St John’s Wort weeds in the hills and, ultimately, improve carrying capacity with better pastures.
Grazon® Extra, from Corteva, has been used effectively in the last two years. It is applied by helicopter at a rate of four litres per hectare, with a double pass to improve coverage and weed control.
The application rate provides solid control of the weeds while maintaining beneficial species such as trees and grasses.
“Grazon Extra has traditionally been the best chemical for the job,” Mr Bauer said. “We’ve been applying it when the plant is in flower, from late October through to December. It’s a visual thing, so they can see the areas they are spraying, and St John’s Wort can germinate through the summer.”
He said Grazon Extra also provides good residual control in areas where the chemical reached the ground so would prevent weeds from germinating in the weeks following.
The plan is to remove as many St John’s Wort plants as possible to increase pasture production and reduce health issues.
“It is toxic to livestock so there is certainly a health benefit to getting rid of it,” Mr Bauer said.
Being quite hilly and steep, Kuloo Station is dedicated to livestock, with a few flatter paddocks rotated between oats and pasture. Mr Bauer said the enterprise backgrounded Angus steers and heifers across the year and was committed to reducing weeds in the pastures.
Grazon Extra was also used to control blackberry on the property through helicopter and via ground rig in the flatter areas.
The key to economic weed control is treating the infestations before they grow into a larger problem.
Maintaining a competitive pasture also reduces the opportunity for weeds to take root.
We have over 50 years’ worth of weed control knowledge and experience to ensure you are using the right treatment at the right time, to get the best results and maximise the value of your inputs.
Visit our Woody Weed Specialists Page
Northern Australia – for the black soils of the Northern NSW and Qld cropping zones.
View now
