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Snapshot and trends in the production and overseas trade of fruits from Western Australia
Manju Radhakrishnan and Rohan Prince
Western Australia produced 129 046 tonnes of fruit in 2015–16, worth $477 million. This was a 62% increase in the value of the industry in a five-year period, driven by strong growth in sales to eastern states and overseas markets. Production expansion in the fruit ... Read more
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Market opportunities for WA fruits
Manju Radhakrishnan
The purpose of this analysis was to identify potential high-value markets for selected WA fruits. The limited size of the domestic market, coupled with slowing population growth, makes a robust increase in export necessary to achieve the aspirational goal of ‘doubling the value of agriculture’ ... Read more
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Markets for Western Australian seed potatoes
Manju Radhakrishnan and Peter Dawson
Western Australia has a major share (70%) in seed potato exports from Australia. However, exports from WA have declined by 56% from 3703 tonnes in 2010 to 1302 tonnes in 2015. In addition, Australia experienced a fall in the consumption of potatoes during recent years ... Read more
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Market opportunities for Western Australian mandarins and oranges
Manju Radhakrishnan
Citrus growing in Western Australian (WA) is concentrated north and south of Perth and in the north around Kununurra and Carnarvon. WA currently produces about 18 000 tonnes (t) of citrus each year. Most production is sold on the local Perth market, with negligible exports. ... Read more
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Effect of smoke in grape and wine production
Kristen Brodison
Smoke exposure of grapevines and the development of smoke-related characteristics in the resulting wines is an increasing issue for the wine industry. As Australia faces a warming climate with more bushfires, smoke exposure in vineyards is becoming more regular.
Wines made from grapes exposed to ... Read more
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Audit of WA agricultural lime quality 2013
Chris Gazey
Applying agricultural lime is the most economical way of ameliorating low soil pH in broadscale agriculture in Western Australia (WA). In WA, agricultural lime is usually limesand from coastal sand dunes, crushed limestone from coastal deposits or crushed dolomitic lime (usually marketed as dolomite) from ... Read more
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Selections of the Houghton clones of Cabernet Sauvignon
Glynn Ward, Ian Cameron, and Richard Fennessy
Cabernet Sauvignon is the premium red wine grape variety grown in Western Australia. The high quality wines produced have won prestigious awards and accolades nationally and internationally. The first clonal selection of Cabernet Sauvignon in Western Australia was conducted by the Department of Agriculture at ... Read more
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Subsurface compaction a guide for WA farmers and consultants
Stephen Davies and Alison Lacey
For plants to grow in agricultural soils, roots and emerging shoots must be able to force their way through the soil. In soils of high strength, this growth is physically restricted. High strength soils may be due to natural soil characteristics and conditions or develop ... Read more
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Evaluation of alternative wine grape varieties in Manjimup, Western Australia
Kristen Kennison and Richard Fennessy
Since 1998 the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA) in conjunction with the Western Australian Vine Improvement Association (WAVIA) have imported over 60 new varieties and clones of wine grape material into Western Australia. These new varieties and clones were identified by the ... Read more
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Carbon capture project, final report. An evaluation of the opportunity and risks of carbon offset based enterprises in the Kimberley-Pilbara region of Western Australia
Mark Alchin, Elizabeth Tierney, and Chris Chilcott
Commercialisation of carbon in the Australian Rangelands could lead to the development of a multi-billion dollar industry, and Western Australia has the potential to capture a significant share of this revenue. A significant proportion of the WA Rangelands is degraded which is the legacy of ... Read more
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Adoption of sustainable farm management to improve tailwater quality - A plan for the Ord River irrigation area
Tara Slaven, Rebecca Heath, and Jamie Bowyer
The overall purpose of this plan is to provide a clear pathway to improve adoption of sustainable farming practices. The focus of the plan is to develop and encourage adoption of practices that minimise sediment, nutrient and chemical export from agricultural land within the Ord ... Read more
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Vegetable growing : a guide for home gardeners in Western Australia
Department of Agriculture, Western Australia
DAFWAs popular publication about vegetable growing for home gardeners.
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Exporting vegetables in bulk : reducing supply chain costs without compromising quality
Helen Ramsey and Dennis Phillips
Increased competition, a strong Australian dollar and increased production costs have seen Australian grown vegetables steadily lose their share in traditional export markets.
As competition increases, we need to investigate production and handling techniques that improve our price and quality competitiveness.
Improving the effi ciency ... Read more
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Diagnosing crop and pasture problems with Detective Doug
Doug Sawkins
There are numerous publications for diagnosing crop and pasture growth problems. Although they are excellent for experienced people, they can be time consuming and possibly misleading for the less experienced.
Many guidebooks assume that the user has already decided that their problem falls into the ... Read more
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Compost production and use in horticulture
Bob Paulin and Peter O'Malley
Maintaining and improving soil organic carbon levels is becoming an increasingly important aspect of modern farming. Compost provides potentially one of the most effective ways of applying organic matter to soils and improving organic carbon levels.
Improving soil organic carbon is directly related to soil ... Read more
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Greenhouse roses for cutflower production
Aileen Reid
Roses can be one of the more profitable flower crops to grow, but also one of the most difficult. Intensive, on-going management is necessary to obtain quality flowers.
The number of rose growers in Western Australia has declined. Many older growers have retired and are ... Read more
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Returns to research and development investment of the Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia : benefit cost analysis, 2006-2007
Peter Coyle, Editor; Roslyn Blanchard; Francis Bright; Paul Mattingley; and Manju Radhakrishnan
Strategic decision making is enhanced by the consideration of benefit cost analyses of many projects. Each year a selection of projects is evaluated to assist in the determination of the most appropriate allocation of funds. This is only one of the methods that are employed ... Read more
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The Banksia production manual
Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia
There has long been a need for a Banksia Production Manual. The benefit of such a manual is the ability to bring together the material written and published in a range of other publications and reports.
As far as possible the latest information has been ... Read more
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Downy mildew in vineyards
Diana Fisher, Andrew Taylor, Colin Gordon, and Peter Magarey
Downy mildew, caused by Plasmopara viticola, is a major fungal disease of grapevines that originates from North America. This disease was first detected in a commercial Western Australian vineyard in October 1998 and has since been found in most grape growing areas within the State. ... Read more
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Returns to R&D investment of DAFWA: benefit cost analysis, 2005-2006
Nazrul Islam
The primary outcome or objective of the projects that are assessed, is to increase the market competitiveness and profitability of agri-industry.
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Returns to research and development investment of Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia : benefit cost analysis 2005-2006
Nazrul Islam, Francis Bright, Peter Coyle, Peter Eckersley, Louise Evans, Joseph Gaffy, Allan Herbert, Ross Kingwell, Emma Kopke, and Peter Tozer
Programs of the Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia apply benefit-cost analysis to assist in the allocation of funds to those areas likely to make the largest contribution to the rural economy and thus to achieve the Department outcome of increased market competitiveness and ... Read more
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Organic apples a production guide
Steven McCoy
The belief among some conventional apple growers that it is not possible to reliably produce profitable yields of good quality apples under an organic system in Western Australia is being reconsidered. There are now very good examples of successful commercial organic apple orchards in many ... Read more
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Organic mangoes a production guide
Steven McCoy
Mangoes have been identified as a prospective crop for conversion to organic production, particularly at Kununurra in the Ord River Irrigation Area.
Mangoes can also perform well under organic systems in other regions of WA, however variations in pest and disease pressures may require additional ... Read more
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Growing olives in Western Australia
Richard Taylor and John Burt
There are about 9 million hectares of olives in the world, with the largest areas in Spain, Italy, Greece and Tunisia. Olives are grown between the latitudes of 30° and 45° from the equator. In Australia, the main producing areas are between latitudes 31° and ... Read more
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