Weeds

Weeds pose a serious risk for primary producers as they can impact on market access and agricultural production.

In 2006/07, each Western Australian agricultural business spent an average of $29 376 ($341 million total) on weed control (Australian Bureau of Statistics).

Weed control is a shared responsibility between landholders, grower groups, biosecurity groups and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.

To protect WA’s agriculture, the department:

  • works with landholders, grower groups, community groups and biosecurity groups
  • regulates weeds under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007
  • provides a weed identification service
  • provides a predictive simulation tool called weed seed wizard
  • provides information on weed control, crop weeds, regulated/declared plants and herbicides
  • contributes to social science through weedwatcher.

For advice on weeds search our website, the Western Australian Organism List or contact our Pest and Disease Information Service (PaDIS).

For diagnostic services, please contact our Diagnostic Laboratory Services.

Articles

  • Three-horned bedstraw, bedstraw, rough bedstraw, rough fruit corn bedstraw, corn cleavers (Galium tricornutum) is a declared pest in Western Australia (WA).

  • Windmill grass (Chloris truncata) is a native species and is the tenth most common summer weed species in the Western Australian wheatbelt.

  • Annual ryegrass (Lolium rigidum) is one of the most serious and costly weeds of annual winter cropping systems in southern Australia.

  • Brome grasses (Bromus spp.) are highly competitive weeds, most problematic in wheat crops.

  • Lesser broomrape is the species Orobanche minor. It is an increasingly common weed of pasture and occasionally oat and hay crops. It is also a common garden weed.

  • Herbicides play a vital role in integrated weed management programs.

  • The Weed Seed Wizard is a computer simulation tool that uses paddock management information to predict weed emergence and crop losses.

  • The Pest and Disease Information Service (PaDIS) provides advisory and identification services on animal and plant pests, weeds and diseases that impact Western Australia's agriculture and food ind

  • Hyssop loosestrife (Lythrum hyssopifolia) is a widely distributed weed in the south west of Western Australia.

  • Summer weeds can rob subsequent crops of soil nitrogen and stored soil water. They can also reduce crop emergence by causing physical and/or chemical interference at seeding time.

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