Pre-emergent herbicides and high density crop for barley grass control

Barley grass is becoming an increasingly problematic weed in Western Australia. A GRDC funded project sought to increase the adoption of integrated weed management tactics for barley grass, by working with grower groups to develop regionally appropriate rotations for optimal control.Barley grass at high density reduces crop yield. However, GRDC project UA00156 (Seed bank ecology of emerging weeds) has highlighted that barley grass ecotypes in Western Australia are often short, and are likely to be highly sensitive to crop competition. Initial control with pre-emergent herbicides combined with high seeding rates in cereal crops may be sufficient to control this species.This trial aimed to investigate pre-emergent herbicides and high-density crop seeding in barley crops. The trial was run in two separate fields in 2020 and 2021, on a single farm.