Australia: No-till, better varieties spark pulse growth

Improved farming practices and tougher varieties with better tolerance to soil constraints such as acidity and boron have been key players in the big expansion in pulse plantings over recent years. Grains Australia pulse council chairman Peter Wilson said no-till had been the catalyst to unlocking the full potential of crops such as chickpeas and lentils, with Australia set to grow more than a million tonnes of both crops this season. "Our agronomic practices have also helped bolster production, the no-till story can't be undersold, it has allowed our farmers to plant with more confidence that they'll get a crop," Mr Wilson said. "This has been a real change in mindset, people are more confident in the crop, they plant more, they produce more and there is that critical mass, it creates its own momentum," he said. One area where pulses have taken off is in the Mallee regions of north-west Victoria, south-west NSW and eastern SA where lentils have become one of the region's best ...