The University of Western Australia’s Shenton Park Field Station recently opened its gates to the public for its first community open day in almost 10 years
The UWA Shenton Park Field Station has served the science and agriculture industries of WA for more than 60 years and is home to dozens of active research projects.
Eight research projects ranging from aquaculture to breeding canola for heat tolerance were discussed on the day.
Members of the public were invited to get up close and personal with black soldier flies and their larvae – with Future Green Solutions managing director Luke Wheat explaining how the organisation uses the critters to upcycle low-value organic waste into high-value products, and UWA PhD candidate Isobel Sewell explored their use in aquaculture diets.
UWA Adjunct Associate Professor Craig Lawrence presented on The Palmer Group’s Living Streams project, which is a green energy aquaculture system designed to increase yields, reduce water use and use waste nutrients to grow vegetables.
The open day was also one of the first opportunities for the public to visit Dr Andrew Guzzomi’s new Centre for Engineering Innovation: Agriculture & Ecological Restoration.
UWA Associate Professor Phillip Nichols presented on the Annual Legume Breeding Australia (ALBA) project with Senior Research Officer Brad Wintle, which is a joint venture between UWA and the company DLF Seeds.
“The project aims to breed more productive, persistent and innovative annual grazing and fodder legumes to benefit the livestock and grains industries of southern Australia,” Associate Professor Nichols said.
Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative Research Fellow Roberto Busi presented on herbicide resistance in ryegrass.
Dr Busi, Dr Danica Goggin and Professor Hugh Beckie last year established a four-year-trial looking at chemical management options for multiple resistant ryegrass.
On the day the trial was open for inspection to highlight the most effective treatments including new herbicides and crop-safe herbicide mixtures.
Dr Busi’s national project is funded through the Grains Research and Development Corporation, which also funds the canola heat tolerance project at UWA Shenton Park Field Station.
The UWA Institute of Agriculture Research Fellow Sheng Chen and Professor Wallace Cowling jointly presented on their canola research projects.
Dr Chen said his 2022 heat tolerance trial was re-assessing 100 genotypes (selected from more than 300 tested in the past two years) to breed heat-tolerant canola.
Dr Cowling and his team are developing new traits and breeding methods for canola to accelerate genetic gain.
“These new methods have been adopted in other research projects at UWA, including breeding of field peas and common bean,” he said.
