University of Tasmania

Interim report: covering period January to May 2009
A visit to the south central coast was held between February 9-26, 2009:
To visit field sites with potential for research
To attend the project inception meeting
Planning a visit to Australia of Vietnamese partners
To develop workplans for project activities
The following outcomes were developed at the inception meeting:
A project committee was established to review the directions, progress, gaps and overlaps and determine adjustments; comprising:
- Dr Gamini Keerisinghe ACIAR
- Australian Project Coordinator Rob Summers
- Australian Project Leaders, Richard Bell, Allan McKay, Peter Lane, Peter Slavich
- Vietnamese Project Leaders, Hoang Minh Tam, Nguyen Xuan Ba, Nguyen Duy Duc
- VAAS nominee
- Vietnamese partners, Phan Thi Giac Tam (plus IAS nominee, SOFRI nominee, RDCAH nominee,)
Project locations were identified through interaction with the Vietnamese partners after considering soil type, land use and the representative value of the site. The sites are:
- Ninh Thuan, Phuoc Dinh (Phuoc Nam Cashews)
- Phu Yen, An Chan
- Binh Dinh, Cat Hanh, Cat Hiep
An extension to the survey carried out by ACIAR Project SMCN-2003-035 "Improving the utilisation of water and soils resources for tree crop production in coastal areas of Vietnam and NSW" will include further information relevant to this project discussed below.
Workplans have been developed for the first 12 month showing the project activities and tasks, the responsible party, the timing of the activities and dependencies.
The contract was signed between the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia and ACIAR with the commencement date of January 2009 and the final MSA agreements were signed 20 May 2009. At the time of writing the project had not officially started as this finalised agreement has not been received from Vietnam and the initial payments have been delayed.
Although no milestones or outputs have fallen due by 31 May 2009 progress has been made during and since the inception meeting:
Discussions at the inception meeting identified an opportunity to collaborate with NSW DPI as part of the ACIAR project SMCN 2003/035. The Vietnamese partners will be at a training course and present information at the Biochar Conference, Coolangata in May. In the following week Dr Hoang Minh Tam and Mr Nguyen Thai Thinh will travel to W.A. to meet the Australian research staff who were not at the inception meeting, discuss details of the project and visit research sites. The visit was originally scheduled for September 2010 (attendance of Australian staff has delayed the May visit to Vietnam by Australian partners to June).
Initial marketing survey information collected in site visits after the inception meeting detailed in the travel report Feb 2009 has enabled an initial analysis of the information requirements and strategy of collecting the baseline information of Component 1.
An assessment of the survey by SMCN 2003/035 was completed and gaps in the survey for the purposes of this project were identified for a follow-up survey. A draft of the farm survey has been constructed by the Vietnamese partners with input from Australian researchers and will be finalised in June 2009 for implementation.
The detailed work plans were developed for the diagnosis of resources constraints using soil investigation and omission experimentation approach.
A conceptual model of nutrient flow in the local farming systems was developed.
The trial list of forage species was developed for integration into the local cropping systems in discussion with Dr Tam when in Perth.
Dr Tam and Mr Thinh visited Esperance, WA to see study sites on impact of land use on soil carbon.
A database of nutritive characteristics has been commenced including the commencement of collection of available feed information and commencement of literature reviews of cattle performance at HUAF and IAS.
The data needs for the CPCNS is being evaluated for a training course and a farming systems workshop for the specialist and provincial team is being planned. This will be finalised in Hue and Quy Nhon in June 2009.
Collection of available cattle nutrition information has commenced to assess gaps and develop an experimental plan.
Pham Hung Cuong at UQ has completed his literature review and planning is well under way for his experiment.
Future visits are scheduled in June 2009 to discuss the field trial program and survey initiation and in September 2009 for a workshop on monitoring and evaluation for impact assessment.
2009/2010 Progress Summary
Effort has focussed on a farm survey of 180 households from the three study sites to obtain the information on human resources, education level, land resources, cropping systems, socio-economic system, area and yield of major crops/livestock and fertiliser/manure use for crop production. This is critical for the project to better understand local farming systems; identify the characteristics of farming systems that could be used to plan R&D activities at each study site; provide benchmark data on the current crop production and practices for the proposed future project impact evaluation.
Preliminary market mapping and value chains of selected agricultural products, including beef cattle, cassava, cashew nut and mango has been completed. The gathering of data and information on grain legume (peanut) markets and value chain has started. The farm and household economic structure and systems have been identified and will be included in the market chain analysis.
Soil constraints were investigated through: a detailed SCAMP assessment at 16 sites on the major soils in the study area; a nutrient omission experiment on peanuts and tissue analysis of cashews. Deficiencies of a wide range of nutrients were the primary factors limiting crop production. Al toxicity appears to be limiting growth and deficiencies in K and Mo were quite clear. N and P also were limiting production and the impact of Zn and B limiting growth in peanuts needs to be further investigated.
Within the survey program 91 samples were collected to quantify the organic matter resources and potential nutrient supplies being used and traded.
In the low rainfall region (Ninh Thuan) a field experiment evaluated sowing windows and crop legume species for cashew/legume intercropping. Results suggested that early September was the optimum window to intercrop legumes with cashew, and peanut crop yield was consistently higher across the 4 sowing dates than cowpea and mungbean (although cowpea showed some potential for this region). In the high rainfall Binh Dinh province the use of rhizobium strains, Mo and biochar were investigated and preliminary results suggest that use of the commercial strain of inoculant, NC92, could improve peanut dry matter at flowering when coupled with low applications of N fertiliser.
Forage nurseries were established in Jan/Feb 2010 in Binh Dinh as a collaboration of Components 2 and 3. Twelve forage species were included in the nurseries: 4 perennial grasses, 4 perennial legumes, 3 annual legumes and 1 tree legume. The perennial grasses, Mulato II and Signal, the perennial legume, Siratro and the annual legumes, Lab lab and Cavalvade, showed good establishment and vigour. The forage nursery will be a useful resource for producing plant material for use in the 'best-bet' stage of the project where best bet strategies for cattle production are introduced in the extension program.
Detailed benchmarking of cattle management factors has focused on 5 households from two villages in each study commune, a total of 30 households. The monthly or bi-monthly survey includes a combination of biophysical monitoring and questions regarding economics and labour allocations. The benchmarking process involved group discussions and interviews, including farmers, DARD representatives and commune leaders.
More specific cattle nutrition experimental objectives will be developed once the baseline work had been completed, and will be a major activity for the next 12 months. Farmer interviews have helped clarify the issues relevant to farmer profitability and suitable to be addressed by the project team. Although the details are still being developed, cattle nutrition experimentation will focus on the most profitable use of locally available feed components for growing and finishing cattle.
Importantly, good relationships are developing with DARD and commune leaders and extension officers, which will help the project to have impact beyond the life of the project. We have presented the objectives and process of the project to these stakeholders on multiple occasions, and they have expressed their support and a desire to remain involved and informed. In each commune we also have the extension officer involved in the benchmarking process, including liaising with farmers and participating in data collection.
Research is being carried out in Western Australia by the Department of Agriculture and Food, WA, Murdoch University, University of Western Australia and CSIRO. A survey of 100 sites was completed in south-west Australia to understand the role of organic carbon management in nutrient retention. Field experiments were established at Esperance in the South East of Western Australia on sandy soil. Compost is being compared with biochar made from straw or manure to examine their impacts on soil biology and the efficient uptake of nutrients from fertiliser.

ACIAR and the Vietnam Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) have agreed that an integrated research and development project on Sustainable and Profitable Crop and Livestock Systems should be developed for the South-central coastal region of Vietnam at a stakeholder workshop held in March 2008. This in turn led to the development of the current project which commencedoperation on 1 January, 2009.
The overall aim of this multi-disciplinary project is to identify and facilitate adoption of promising resource management practices for sustainable and profitable crop and livestock production systems best suited to local conditions that enable improved market engagement.
The project Baseline survey was concluded for the sandy coastal zone of the South Central region of Vietnam where people's livelihoods are largely dependent on crop and livestock farming in these inherently poor soils. The objective of this study was to gain better understanding of the local farming systems of the sandy areas in the focus communes of the three study provinces. Based on a diagnosis analysis and Participatory Rural Approach (PRA) works, villages from three communes were selected: Phu Kim and An Duc (Cat Trinh commune, Phu Cat district, Binh Dinh province); Phu Qui, Phu Thanh and Phu Phong (An Chan commune, Tuy An district, Phu Yen province) and; Son Hai 1, Son Hai 2, Bau Ngu and Tu Thien (Phuoc Dinh commune, Ninh Phuoc district, Ninh Thuan province). By a targeting sampling method, 180 households from the three study siteswere chosen.Dependence on agriculture is the typical feature of the economy in all study sites. Most agricultural activities depend on rainfall: lack of water or drought was recorded in most study sites. There is a trend occurring in cropping patterns to more diversification. In the cropping systems, food crops including rice, peanut and cassava are the most popular. In the animal production systems, pig, buffalo, cattle and sheep are raised by most households. Average cattle numbers range from 3.5 (Cat Trinh and An Chan), to 14 (Phuoc Dinh).
Most farms are small, with little possibility for expansion. The only unused land potential is in sandy land in the lowlands and coastal strip. The crop productivity is still low due to infertile land and shortage of water. For most households, therefore few options exist to improve incomes other than increasing production from their limited agricultural plots. In order to reach this goal, the improvement of soil fertility based on the locally available organic resources as well as the application of appropriate farming systems in the sandy zone are very important.
Farming systems in Cat Trinh and An Chan communes are similar. Here, rice is still the dominant crop. By contrast, Phuoc Dinh commune is characterized by high proportion of cash crops like watermelon, chillipepper, tomato, peanut and little rice.Livestock mainly includes pig, cattle and poultry in three communes and there are also goat and sheep in Phuoc Dinh commune. However, the numbers of households with cattle was still small in all 3 communes.
In a follow up surveyin the same three communes, 91 organic materials were collected in 2009 to examine the existing practices of using organic manures, the characteristics of local organic amendments and to assess their potential contribution in supplying nutrients to crops. The samples included: cattle manure, buffalo manure, pig manure, sheep manure, plant samples (peanut stem, cassava leaf, corn leaf, straw) and ash from crops.Farmers in the selected communes utilize organic materials for various purposes such as fuel, soil amendment or animal feed, or else they are burnt on the fields. The surveyed households apply farmyard manure (FYM) for crops; however, amounts of FYM used for crops are very low compared with crops' nutrient requirements. There were no significant differences in characteristics (C, total P) of organic samples used by farmers in the 3 surveyed communes. However, each kind of manure and organic material has different characteristics depending on the animal type and amount of added materials, method and time of storage. Among different kinds of FYM, pig manure has better quality than others, followed by cattle manure, while peanut residues have good characteristics as compared with other plant residues.
The market analysis work has focussed on conducting and reporting value chain analyses for key agricultural products within the focus provinces of Ninh Thuan, Phu Yen and Binh Dinh. Value chain analyses have been completed for cashew, cassava, beef cattle and peanuts and reports have been circulated seeking feedback to DARD's and to project partners at the Annual Review meeting in February 2011. The mango value chain report has now been completed and will be circulated for feedback from the DARD officers (Department of Agriculture and Rural Development).
Further work is still required to develop detailed value chain improvement strategies based on the findings of the value chain analyses and discussions with DARD and project staff.
A successful value chain training workshop was held for component 1 staff and key DARD staff in HCMC in August 2010 in order to consolidate and standardise the methodology used for the project value chain analyses.
In July 2010, following requests from DARD and ASISOV management, a value chain analysis of sesame was programmed into the project. Sesame is a high value product in strong market demand and can potentially complement grain legume cropping on sandy soils in Vietnam. ASISOV staff have responsibility for conducting the sesame research which is valuable in focusing the ASISOV contribution to component 1.
An Excel-based farm economic model is being developed to allow the simple economic comparison of farm enterprises and farming systems economic performance. Data collected in a detailed farm economic survey of a small number of smallholders in the 3 focus provinces has been used to frame the model. The beta-version of the model is expected to be completed in July 2011. This is intended a simple tool for reviewing potential financial outcomes from value chain improvements and changes to on-farm cropping/livestock activities.
Soil constraints were investigated through: a detailed SCAMP assessment at 37 sites on the major soils in the study areas (11 in Ninh Thuan; 10 in Phu Yen; 15 in Phu Cat); four nutrient omission experiments on peanuts and tissue analysis of peanut, mango and cashews. Deficiencies of a wide range of nutrients were the primary factors limiting crop production. Deficiencies in K, S, Cu, B and Mo were consistently found in peanut in Phu Cat district.Even though many profiles are strongly acid, Al toxicity does not appear to be limiting growth. Nitrogen was also limiting production and the impact of hardpan development (10-25 cm) on growth in peanuts needs to be further investigated. Rhizobium inocuation was not able to overcome the need for 30 kg N/ha as a basal N application. Biochar improved peanut production on sands, particularly in combination with manure and NPK fertiliser.
Nutrient-balance exercises are considered as instruments to provide indicators for the sustainability of agricultural systems. Studieswere undertaken at field plot and farm levels in farming systems of South Central provinces to quantify inputs and outputs of macronutrients (NPK) over one year duration. Our results indicate that the N balances at the 30 studied farms were positive showing that 50 to 70 % of imported N, mainly as fertilizer, was not exported from the farm. Phosphorus balance was also always positive at farm level, accounting for 40 to 75% of P input. Potassium balance was positive in most of the farms. More detailed N-P-K balances were established for field plots representing the following cropping patterns over two growing seasons: rice - rice, rice - fallow, peanut - fallow, peanut + cassava, hot pepper, eggplant, forage. Nitrogen balance was largely positive for rice-rice plots; N imports were less than exports in the other cropping patterns. P imports exceeded P exports in all studied plots, whereas K exports always exceeded K imports, more especially for rice-rice and hot pepper, eggplant and forage. These results suggest that macronutrient losses occur in farms, out of the fields, especially for K. These are likely to be in managing crop residues, in farmyard manures processing, in animal faeces recycling. The economic and environmental consequences of nutrient imbalances warrant further attention to optimize nutrient cycling, and utilisation of organic resources, in local farming systems. In the case of K, negative balances at field level raise the question of impact of this element in limiting crop yield, and the mechanism of K loss.
In the low rainfall region (Ninh Thuan) two field experiments evaluated sowing windows for crop legume species under cashew/legume intercropping on granite sands. Results for 2009 suggested that early September was the optimum window to intercrop legumes with cashew, and peanut crop yield was consistently higher across the 4 sowing dates than cowpea and mungbean (although cowpea showed good potential). In 2010, the early September sowing was also best for mung bean and cowpea, but not for peanut. Cowpea appears the most promising legumes for this cropping system, but at least another year's testing is needed to validate these findings.
In the high rainfall Binh Dinh province the use of rhizobium strains, Mo and biochar were investigated and results suggest that use of the commercial strain of inoculant, NC92, could improve peanut dry matter at flowering only when coupled with low applications of N fertiliser. However, overall, 30 kg N/ha was the best treatment, out yielding Mo and or Rhizobium inoculation. Nodule formation on peanut, even with inoculation by NC92 and Mo supply, was slow on these sandy soils.
Forage nurseries were established in Jan/Feb 2010 in Binh Dinh. Twelve forage species were included in the nurseries: 4 perennial grasses, 4 perennial legumes, 3 annual legumes and 1 tree legume. The perennial grasses, Mulato II and Signal, the perennial legume, Siratro and the annual legumes, Lab lab and Cavalvade, showed good establishment and initial vigour. After 15 months and 5 cuts, Mulato II and Paspalaum atratum were the most productive forages. None of the legumes forages produced harvestable dry matter after the 3 rd cut due to severe waterlogging effects in the wet season, and Leucanea being initially harvested too severely. The forage nursery will be useful as a resource for producing plant material for cattle best bet activities.
A forage experiment was established to assess the most promising forages and expose farmers to the species. The experiment was located on 15 farms across three provinces, with each farm as a replicate. In addition to the researcher controlled plots, an area of each forage was available for farmer use and experimentation. The experiment was planted mid-2010, however short cutting too close to the base of the plants before the rainy season severely affected many of the replicates, including some which became completely submerged in the peak of the wet season. These conditions provided an opportunity to show the beneficial characteristics of Paspalum atratum, and also to demonstrate the potential benefits of not cutting the plants too short during the rainy season. The experiment is ongoing and is being assessed by harvests for yield, leaf to stem ratio, forage quality, palatability, and farmer assessment.
In Western Australia,research being carried out by the Department of Agriculture and Food, WA and Murdoch University has focussed on soil organic carbon (SOC) accumulation, and on biochar and clay amendments of sands. A survey of 100 sites was completed in the south coastal region of West Australia to understand the effect of land use onSOC in sands. A comparison of SOC between perennial (> 10 years age) and annual pastures in the high rainfall zone of the south coast showed no difference in SOC. Modelling with Roth-C indicated that the perennial pasture system would need to be retained for 30 years or more before measureable increases in SOC were obtained. This suggests very slow accumulation of SOC on these sands.
Field experiments were established near Esperance in the south coastal region of West Australia on sandy soils. Compost was compared with biochar made from straw or manure to examine their impacts on soil biology and the uptake of nutrients from P fertiliser. Both P and biochar application increased wheat yield in 2010 but the effects were independent. Spading to mix clay into sandy soils was most effective in increasing serradella pasture yield when incorporated to 15 cm depth.
Cattle 'biophysical monitoring' activities were concluded in the three study provinces. Information was collected from 10 households per province, including cattle monitoring, feed monitoring, and household data, particularly information on income and labour for cattle production. In Cat Trinh and An Chan, cattle systems included cow-calf, growing and fattening, and was mainly undertaken by adults. In contrast, cattle production in Phuoc Dinh is predominantly the cow-calf system, and the children provide much of the labour for cattle husbandry. Cattle in Cat Trinh and An Chan typically lose weight in the dry season from April-June, when feed is scarce and of poor quality. There are many types of feeds for cattle. The roughages include rice straw, native grasses, sown grasses, peanut straw, water spinach, and maize stover. Supplements are also used, including cassava powder, rice bran, corn meal, rice grain, fishmeal, and urea. Cattle are often provided feed in their stalls after grazing. In Phuoc Dinh less crop residues are available, and even though some crop residues such as rice straw are transported into the commune, feed is often limiting, and cattle weight is seasonally dependent.
Approximately fifteen farmers in each province were chosen to be involved in the 'best-bet' research process. A plan was developed for each household, based on their resources, interests, and aspirations. All households receive regular visits to check on progress, help the farmers, provide encouragement, and answer questions. Best-bet activities include introduction of new forages, improved forage management and use, tree legume fences, forage preservation, controlled mating, preferential feeding, fattening techniques, and manure use. In addition to individual training workshops are being held to address these activities. For example, in March 2011 a workshop on forage planting and management was held.
A cattle feeding experiment was undertaken at IAS Ruminant Research and Training Centre (RRTC) in late 2010 and early 2011. The aim of the research was to assess the growth and nutrient digestibility responses of Brahman-cross cattle to concentrate supplementation. Twenty Brahman-cross cattle were fed a basal diet (rice straw and Guinea grass) and supplement at 0 - 2.4% of live weight. The supplement consisted of cassava chips, rice bran, crushed rice, fish meal, urea, and salt. Some chemical analyses are still being completed, and data analysis is being undertaken. Interim results suggest that live weight gain increased with supplementation up to 1.2% of live weight, and plateaued at greater levels of supplementation. Feed conversion ratio increased with the level of supplementation.
The data from five cattle feeding experiments undertaken at HUAF were compared with simulation results using the Large Ruminant Nutrition System (LRNS). The objective of this study was to evaluate the predictions of dry matter intake (DMI) andaverage daily gain (ADG) of Vietnamese Yellow (Vang) purebred and crossbred (Vang with Red Sindhior Brahman) bulls fed under Vietnamese conditions using two levels of solution (1 and 2) of the LargeRuminant Nutrition System (LRNS) model.The results showed that the model is able to sufficiently predict weight gain of such Vietnamese cattle.
Overall the project is running to the workplan and already generating preliminary results. Capacity building through scholarships, training researchers and extension officers has been ongoing. There has been strong participation from Vietnamese researchers, commune staff, farmers and importantly the officers of the regional DARDs. Assessment of the economic analysis of crops is highlighting potential improvements as are the investigations into plant nutrition which are already showing clear direction for research and extension. The farmer and regional participation in animal nutrition and husbandry extension and forage trials has seen adoption already beginning to spread.

Project advances are presented in line with the project's four objectives. Please note that this project did not formally commence (final sign-off) until 1st November 2008. However the parties agreed to go ahead with the Inception Workshop in October 2008. FSIV agreed to fund this activity from their existing resources.

Pathogen biology and dispersal: The primary fungal species associated with red root-rot is Ganoderma philippii as determined by DNA analysis of isolates from diseased roots and from the association of fruiting bodies of this species with expanding patches of dead trees in Indonesian plantations.
Monitoring the manner of spread of the fungus has begun with the establishment of 15 semi-permanent survey plots at 4 sites and collection of fungal fruiting bodies from more than 16 additional sites. The first 6-monthly survey plot monitoring has also been completed.
Isolations have been made from fruiting bodies and infected root material to allow verification of their pathogenicity, to assess their clonality and pathogen dispersal and also to gauge the potential of non-pathogenic fungi collected to act as biological control agents against Ganoderma. Preliminary results support the pathogenicity of G. philippii against Acacia mangium and infrastructure is in place to carry out more rigorous tests.

Risk assessment: The same survey plots used to assess pathogen dispersal also form the backbone of the project's assessment of the role of environmental factors in determining root-rot incidence and severity.

Management options: Work has already begun on seeking out a suitable biological control from among the native fungi of Indonesia and a number of candidate organisms have already been trialled in the laboratory. One particularly promising organism with activity against two major pathogens of Acacia mangium is currently being formally identified.
In investigating alternative management solutions, observations made in Indonesia by RAPP, a project partner at a trial established by the Centre for International Forest Research (CIFOR), that removal of harvest residues reduces root rot incidence, are to be tested by imposition of an experimental burning treatment on selected survey sites.

Training and Travel: Indonesian scientists from project partner, the Indonesian Forestry Research and Development Agency (FORDA), have received training in Hobart in fungal DNA diagnostic methods and the FORDA laboratory in Jogjakarta now has the capacity to molecularly identify fungal isolates eliminating the necessity to send cultures to Australia. Training in morphological fungal identification has also been given to Indonesian project staff in Indonesia and infrastructure items have been identified without which the development of morphological diagnostic skills in project partners will be hampered.
Travel for the project has included fieldwork in Indonesia in September 2006 (Inception meeting / workshop), November 2006 (plot establishment and monitoring), February 2007 (plot establishment and monitoring) and May 2007 (first 6-monthly monitoring). Geoff Pegg and Michelle Grose from the Queensland Department of Primary industries (Forests) spent time in Hobart for project meetings and fieldwork comparing decay in urban systems with hoop pine and Acacia plantations. Hobart staff have also travelled to Queensland to assist Pegg and Gross in establishing plots in hoop pine plantations based on the survey system established in Indonesia. Indonesian staff have also travelled to Hobart for a period of training in fungal molecular biology.

Extension and adoption: The project has also enhanced the degree of communication between Research and Development arms of the partner forestry companies by fostering cooperation on a shared challenge that will benefit the village, out-grower, mill and associated communities in which they operate, as well as potentially enhancing the sustainability of their tree-growing.

Project advances are presented in line with the project's four overarching objectives:
Pathogen identity, biology and dispersal
A number of other species have been identified fruiting or associated with root rot disease in Acacia mangium including three Phellinus / Inonotus species and five Ganoderma species. Thus there is a diversity of potentially pathogenic species present on all areas surveyed. This has enabled us to alert industry to the need to test proposed management solutions against as wide a range of potential pathogens as possible.
Somatic incompatibility testing has been commenced in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. These tests show if fungal isolates collected from different trees or sites belong to the same individual allowing us to draw conclusions about the dispersal mechanism and management of the fungi in question. The project culture collection to be used for these experiments is now in excess of 2800 databased, spatially referenced isolates.
Pathogen spread is being monitored on a system of 24 semi-permanent plots on six sites across Indonesia and Northern Australia representing a broad range of site conditions and vegetation histories. All Indonesian sites have now been monitored at least twice and 4 of the 5 Indonesian sites have now been monitored three times. This is providing information on disease progression in Acacia mangium at an unprecedented level of detail which will underpin disease modelling for the remainder of the project.
Risk assessment
The value of various above-ground variables for detecting the below-ground presence of root rot on a tree has been assessed.
For individual trees, though there is a tendency for living trees with root rot to show poorer crown condition, if an individual tree has good crown condition this does not mean that root rot is not present on its roots. In fact, most living trees with root rot have healthy crowns.
Our ability to predict the disease status of a tree is markedly improved by the use of a new index developed to integrate not only the health of the individual tree but also the health of its nearest neighbours
Preliminary models have been developed (using the index mentioned above) to link the number of dead trees in root rot infected areas to the total, underlying level of infection / inoculum potential on a range of sites.
Collaboration with the ACIAR project (FST/2004/058: Realising genetic gains in Indonesian and Australian plantations through water and nutrient management) will underpin the parameterisation, validation and delivery of the model developed.
Management options
Experiments have been set up on one of the 5 Indonesian sites mapped for root rot disease to examine effectiveness of inter-rotation stump removal and remediation burns.on the spatial and temporal development of root rot disease in the subsequent crop.
Biological controls are being investigated:
The putative biological control targeted by one of our industry partners has been identified molecularly to genus and morphological identification to species is now underway.
Indigenous Indonesian fungi with antifungal and wood decomposing activity have been discovered through the project and are currently being laboratory tested to discern if these abilities could allow them to inhibit or out-compete the pathogens on dead wood.
Training, cooperation, extension and adoption
Preparations are underway for two Indonesian collaborating scientists to visit Australia to develop their skills in risk assessment and biological control.
Collaboration and cooperation in data management has been enhanced through the development of a project website including members only online-access to project data and planning tools.
Molecular training in Hobart and Yogyakarta has meant that routine molecular identification of fungal isolates can be undertaken in the Yogyakarta FORDA laboratory.
We have recommended that Industry partners integrate mechanised planting-hole preparation and biological control application and higher cost management solutions including stem injection of systemic fungicides or plant growth promoters (such as phosphite or Biosil) on high value assets such as seed orchards.
We are also investigating the relationship between root rot in Acacia mangium and the performance of Eucalyptus pellita planted on ex A. mangium lands, as the use of E. pellita as an alternative crop has been proposed as one possible management solution to the root rot problems in A. mangium. Our research into pathogens and pathogenicity is helping to assess the feasibility of this.

Project advances are presented in line with the project's four overarching objectives:
Pathogen identity, biology and dispersal
We have uncovered some of the diversity of fungi associated with root rot in Eucalyptus pellita (and clones of E. pellita hybrids) planted as an alternative species on ex Acacia mangium land. Ganoderma philippii and Ganoderma mastoporum have both been recovered from areas where both the previous acacia and the current eucalypt crop suffered high losses from root rot. The project's work in developing diagnostic capacity is also now being utilised by industry partners for the conclusive identification of isolates used in pathogenicity testing or as potential biological controls.
Pathogenicity tests are underway at the FORDA laboratories in Yogyakarta to provide definitive assessments of the pathogenicity of Ganoderma philippii against Acacia mangium, Eucalyptus pellita and Alstonia solaris. Because of the molecular identification work, isolates with a confirmed identity have been offered to industry partners to enable them to test new genetic material against the range of possibly pathogenic fungi encountered on their concessions rather than only a limited range of pathogens.
We are preparing to make the final monitoring of our 24 semi-permanent plots and have carried out somatic incompatibility tests on isolates from these plots. The data suggests that root to root contact is the predominant form of pathogen spread within disease gaps while different gaps appear to be the result of spore dispersal at some stage rather than the fragmentation of a very large clone. Observations have also been made in Queensland indicating the importance of cryptic resupinate fruiting bodies in spore production leading to the spread of Phellinus noxius.
Risk assessment
A risk assessment tool has been developed using data on disease incidence on the concessions of our project partners. This tool currently provides a low, medium or high risk rating to sites based on age, rotation, soil type, slope and GPS coordinates. Refinement and validation is to be supported by additional data from project partners. The relationship between risk, incidence and rate of spread is still being investigated. Work is continuing to provide effective root rot control solutions for those sites determined to have high risk because merely identifying risk does not constitute management of risk.
Ground penetrating radar has been used for the first time in the Indonesian pulpwood industry to assess root structure and the implications of this for disease spread. Assessments were made to assess root structure in areas with differing silvicultural treatments and different tree species. Analysis of this data is continuing.
Management options
Field trials have been carried out and monitoring of their effectiveness is continuing. Options for biological control scale-up and application have been discussed between Australian commercial producers and Indonesian project partners - these would reduce the logistical problems of this method of control. Additional potential biological control agents have been isolated from areas of low root rot incidence including a species of Phlebiopsis an effective stump treatment biological control used against the Northern Hemisphere root rot caused by Heterobasidion annosum. Tests for antagonism to major pathogen species are underway for this and other species isolated by the project.
Training, cooperation, extension and adoption
A collaborative research / training visit to Australia was made by Indonesian scientists Dr. A. Gafur & Mr. H. Indrayadi. This facilitated training and discussion on risk and distribution modelling, remote sensing, development, application and industrial scale-up of biological control production, disease monitoring and mapping, Integration of GIS and site data with disease mapping and enabled the development of the project's risk assessment tool.
Postgraduate training of three John Allwright Postgraduates, Luci Agustini, Purnamila Sulistyawati (MSc) and Istiana Prihatini (PhD) continuing and making good progress. The students projects cover areas including molecular and field diagnostics, morphological mycology, host physiological responses, forest health surveillance and possibilities for early disease detection.
The project team assisted in organising and participated in a PSLP AusAID Workshop in Yogyakarta "Disease Management Strategies in Plantations", running practical sessions in: Disease monitoring techniques and strategies, morphological mycology and molecular diagnostics.

A: Seed from 15 elite A. mangium trees from Dong Ha Vietnamese seed orchard was supplied by RCFTI in July 2004. This was the starting material for polyploid induction experiments at UTAS. A further 100g bulk seed from 36 parent trees also from Dong Ha was supplied by CSIRO ATSC in May 2005. CSIR in RSA will have access to improved A. mearnsii seed supplied by ICFR. This has taken considerable negotiation to obtain and at the time of writing has yet to be received.

Optimisation of colchicine induction protocols is taking place at UTAS on seed of A. mangium and optimised protocols will be repeated in RSA on temperate species. A new approach for Acacia, treating germinated seedlings in seedling trays, has been successful in producing tetraploid plants. This technique will be optimised and success benchmarked against traditional seed soaking approaches.
A literature study reviewing technical options for producing sterile Acacia species has been completed by CSIR.

B: Due to delay in signing of the sub-contract by the South African Government, CSIR joined the project in July 2005, 12 months after the start of the project by UTAS. Laboratory work in CSIR will begin after CSIR personnel have completed a training course in Australia scheduled for August 2005, which will provide experience in lab and field practices related to the project.

C: Shell Forestry LTD sent 45 polyploid A. mangium lines in December 2000 to RCFTI. 33 were captured by RCFTI and 32 lines hardened off into hedgerows. 14 lines were forwarded in culture to UTAS in July 2004. Verification of ploidy status has been undertaken by UTAS using flow cytometry and by RCFTI using leaf morphology; stomata size, and flow cytometry. A further 29 lines were forwarded to UTAS as cuttings in September 2004 (9 lines were received both in culture and as cuttings). Multiple ramets of each were rooted by UTAS and the ploidy of every ramet will be assessed using flow cytometry. Results will be examined in conjunction with results from RCFTI to monitor stability and / or reversions to diploids of polyploids and quality control. An easy to use stomatal assay has been established by UTAS and will be assessed for accuracy against flow cytometry results for determining tetraploids. A root squash technique for direct assessment of chromosome numbers in root tips has also been established.

A 4-week training course for 2 members of RCFTI staff and one from CSIR was designed by staff of UNE and UTAS to be undertaken in Australia in August/September 2005.

32 polyploid lines have been genotyped by 4 microsatellite markers by RCFTI. Markers position for quality control of clonal polyploid trials, confirmation of parentage of controlled pollinations, and evaluation of pollen flow in polyploid trials.

D: RCFTI has established 3 trials in three typical locations: Ba Vi (Ha Tay province) in 8/2003, Dong Ha (Quang Tri province) in 12/2003 and Bau Bang (Binh Duong province) in 8/2002. The design was in consultation with staff of CSIRO. Tetraploid A. mangium clones produced by Shell were interplanted with diploid A. mangium and diploid A. auriculiformis. Results from Part C on confirmation of tetraploid status of Shell clones has indicated that, although all Shell clones that were sent to Vietnam were identified as 4N, results so far indicate that 2/3 may have reverted to diploid or have been misidentified as 4N when sent. RCFTI have recognised this and labelled Am clones as 4N or 'not sure' 4N in field trials. Controlled pollinations for production of triploids will only take place on positively identified tetraploids. Phenology assessments are being undertaken by RCFTI to monitor flowering to assist in scheduling of controlled pollinations in addition to understanding the effectiveness of the open pollination production of triploids.

Objectives E and F were not applicable in the first year of the project.

Progress Objectives (objectives relate to Tables of Activities and Objectives in the Project Document)
A: Two approaches using colchicine have been successful in producing tetraploid A. mangium plants from elite seed supplied by RCFTI, Vietnam. Each approach has produced 2N, 4N, mixoploids (plants with both 2N and 4N cells) and mosaics (plants consisting of 2N, 4N and/or mixoploid parts). These plants are being monitored for stability and or reversion to diploid to determine if method of polyploid induction affects plant stability. The preferred methods will be scaled up for production of more polyploid lines for transfer to RCFTI. Due to the complex nature of the expression of ploidy after induction it has been necessary to devise a suite of protocols to efficiently (time and cost) and correctly identify the ploidy of an induced plant. This includes flow cytometry, stomata size and density measurements, and most recently the use of Near Infra Red Spectrometry.

B: CSIR has identified suitable germplasm to begin induction on both clonal and improved seed material. Material was selected on the basis of field performance as well as potential commercial value. Four hybrid clones with E. grandis and two pure E. grandis clones will be used plus a number of pure and hybrid seedlots. A single tetraploid line of CSIR germplasm was sent back to CSIR by Shell Forestry and successfully propagated. This can now be planted out and treated with paclobutrazol to promote flowering and therefore triploid production. It will also enable study of 2N and 4N lines to help with later identification of induced polyploids.

C: RCFTI forwarded 34 polyploid lines of Shell Forestry Ltd A. mangium clones as cuttings or as tissue culture to UTAS and 22 were captured with a range of 1 to 23 ramets per clone captured. A total of 115 ramets were screened for their ploidy using flow cytometry and stomatal assays. All lines were originally sent to RCFTI as tetraploids. Results show that 8 lines have reverted to pure diploid, 7 clones have ramets of different ploidy levels, 1 clone is mixoploid and 5 clones are tetraploid. Of these five 4N clones only one ramet was captured. This highlights another restraint in production, which is the greater difficultly in rooting tetraploid over diploid clones. These results reflect the findings in current UTAS experiments where there has been incomplete transformation to 4N and reversions to 2N of experimental plants. Practical management of these biological complexities is a major focus for the project.

Q3 2005 was dedicated to organising and then conducting an intensive four-week training course for two scientists from RCFTI and one from CSIR. This was conducted by staff at UNE, Armidale and UTAS staff , Hobart in August/September 2005. Topics covered included, lecture series on acacia floral development, reproductive biology, hybridisation, polyploidy, sterility, pollen storage, guest lectures on 'Drought tolerance in Acacia', 'Use of polyploidy in hop breeding', and 'Timelines for operational deployment of polyploid acacia clones and potential genetic gain'.

Practical work covered pollen viability testing, UV microscopy and flower preparation, micro techniques for thin sections, chromosome counts, stomata preparations and measurements, colchicine experiments, flow cytometry preparations, herbarium visit. Field trips to Smithton, NW Tasmania for management of native blackwood (Acacia melanoxylon) forests and to Washpool National Park, NSW.

D: Three field trials of polyploids interplanted with diploid A. mangium and A. auriculiformis were established in 2002/2003 by RCFTI. The southern most trial had limited flowering in December 2005 and open pollinated seedlots from 13 trees were harvested in May 2006 for testing for triploid status. Flowering in December 2006 will be closely monitored and a scientist from UTAS will visit to help implement control pollinations and collect 4N flowers and pollen for monitoring of polyploid pollen viability and flower/pollen size variations.

A visit by ENSIS staff established the set up of a mini-cutting propagation system at FSIV, Hanoi. This will be essential when propagating 4N lines and may be the quickest path to optimise number of converted plants by taking cuttings and rooting parts of the plant that has been identified as 4N. Advice was also supplied on optimising nutrition of the mobile polyploid seed orchard. Following Field inspections in August 2005 the Project Leader provided notes on the work program and recommendations for thinning and nutrition of field trials and priorities for DNA fingerprinting. These recommendations were confirmed in a follow-up visit by ENSIS staff, suggestions/comments were also recorded on the set up of the hydroponic min-cuttings system.

Objectives E and F were not applicable in the second year of the project.

Progress Objectives (objectives relate to Tables of Activities and Objectives in the Project Document)
A: Due to the complex nature of the expression of ploidy after induction it has been necessary to devise a suite of protocols to efficiently (time and cost) and correctly identify the ploidy of an induced plant. This includes flow cytometry and stomatal size and density measurements. Near Infra Red Spectrometry has now been added to these suite of tools. NIR is essential in identifying an induced plant as stable tetraploid, mixoploid or chimeric. Once identified if the plant is coppiced then all coppice material must subsequently be retested and ploidy established. Using NIR we will scale up induction experiments in 2007/2008 as ploidy identification is now cheaper and quicker. Stem material from 4N and 2N glasshouse plants were pulped with 4N fibres 15% longer than 2N. Fibre measurements will be repeated on Ba Vi field material in 2007/2008.

B: Project scientists from CSIR visited UTAS for discussions on experimental procedures for CSIR. Visit report attached in Appendix 2. CSIR has applied colchicine induction treatments to both clonal and improved seed material. Growth after both seed treatment and treatment of buds on potted clonal material has been poor. This is not unexpected or unusual and is an observed response in many plant species. A single tetraploid line of CSIR germplasm was sent back to CSIR by Shell Forestry to be propagated. This was undertaken by commercial nurseries but was unsuccessful. The mother plants at each nursery were tested for ploidy using both flow cytometry and stomatal analysis. Only one plant was verified as possible 4N with the remainder either reverted to 2N or mislabelled in the nursery. It will be used to investigate other tools for polyploid screening.

C: Verification of both ploidy and fingerprinting of Shell 4N clones in Vietnam has continued into 2007. Stomatal assays were prepared by RCFTI in Vietnam and assessed at UTAS on selected trees at two field sites. Trees were selected for testing if they had been used as CP mothers, sources of OP seed or selected for wood sampling. Fingerprinting at RCFTI to confirm clone identity has been unsuccessful possibly due to type of equipment used. A project scientist from Vietnam, awarded a John Allwright Fellowship for study at UTAS, will continue this work as part of his Masters research beginning in July 2008.

D: Three field trials of polyploids interplanted with diploid A. mangium and A. auriculiformis were established in 2002/2003 by RCFTI. The southern most trial had limited flowering in December 2005 and open pollinated seedlots from 13 trees were harvested. Ploidy of progeny was assessed using flow cytometry at UTAS, 2 clones had 4N progeny and 9 clones had 2N progeny, 2 clones had few seed that did not germinate. No open pollinated triploids were found, but in this instance flowering was limited in the orchard and selfing is probable. 4N progeny are stable and will be planted out as soon as possible in Vietnam for selection. Flowering in December 2006 was accompanied by a scientist from UTAS to implement controlled pollinations and collect 4N flowers and pollen for monitoring of polyploid pollen viability and flower/pollen size variations. Detailed microscopic examination of flower morphology will be essential to establish whether biological barriers to inter-ploidy crossing exist. Field visits by the Project Leader in March 2007 also identified management/thinning regimes to be implemented.

E: No OP triploid seed has yet been identified from the polyploid field trials but testing will continue into 2007 following the harvest from December 2006 flowering. Additional work is planned to investigate the apparent reproductive barriers to production of triploids.

F: A final workshop is not required for this project but all research will be submitted for publishing.

A: Three protocols for polyploid induction in seedling material were compared for conversion rates, health and safety issues and ploidy stability. Final confirmatory experiments will be completed in Year 5.

Evaluation of the potentially important variation in fibre length between 2N and 4N trees has progressed. Correlations exist between fibre length in phyllodes, branch wood and stems, but not at a high enough level to be of predictive value. Future work will concentrate on direct assessment of stem wood. A new collaboration with SAPPI in South Africa will explore implications for pulp and papermaking properties.

B: Colchicine induction rates for seedling eucalypts are similar to acacias, with similar stability problems. Results presented at IUFRO Conference. Chimeric 4N clones will be purified by cuttings propagation and used for further study. A single stable 4N clone is being managed for flower induction and further breeding.

C: Molecular techniques (use of polymorphic SSRs) have now been mastered by John Allwright fellow Mr Tran Duc Vuong and are being applied to fingerprinting of clones and selfing/outcrossing rates in the 2N/4N orchard at Bau Bang. This represents very significant progress after earlier attempts to carry out the work in Vietnam had encountered difficulties.

D: Three years of open pollinated seed have been harvested from trees in Bau Bang. Eight 4N clones have been shown to produce viable 4N progeny, most probably by self pollination. Samples of these seedlings are retained for future breeding in both Vietnam and Australia. No open pollinated triploid seedlings have yet been identified, suggesting there is a strong barrier to crossing of 2N and 4N trees which will be investigated by John Allwright fellow Ms Nghiem Quynh Chi. Controlled cross seed has however been produced from reciprocal 2N x 4N combinations and this is currently being germinated to confirm that we have 3N progeny which are the ultimate goal of the project.

E: Although it has not yet been possible to field trial 3N trees we have proceeded with the planned field establishment of induced and open pollinated 4N seedlings together with the original 4N Shell clones at a site near Tully, Queensland. This secures accessibility of the material for future research. Open pollinated 2N and 4N progenies from 2008 harvest have also been planted in Vietnam.

F: Strategy options for incorporation into the mainstream breeding program need to accommodate the constraints of propagation and reproductive biology discovered during the project. Plans have been made for crossing of stable, unrelated, second generation 4N lines produced in Bau Bang orchard in order to restore fertility (for triploid breeding) and enhance vigour. A meeting of project scientists from Vietnam and Australia in Hobart in May 2008 reviewed the project and identified priorities for follow-up work.

This project is progressing well with no problems and there are no expected variations to future activities. NARI and BRA/UTas/TIAR are progressing well with the agronomic studies and these studies are expected to be satisfactorily completed during this project. The results to date are very useful and it is quite likely that some of these studies will be suitable for publication in refereed scientific journals. The factory is now operating relatively efficiently and the laboratory is refurbished and equipped with the NIR and basic equipment. The NIR is working well and assays have been done on flowers collected by NARI as a part of the clone improvement study as well as commercially harvested flowers and the extracted oleoresin.
This project is having good impact on developing the capacity of the PNG partners. NARI researchers are benefiting from interaction with BRA and UTas/TIAR researchers on aspects of experimental design and conduct, data analysis and reporting. The Kagamuga extraction factory operators are gaining experience in the use of laboratory equipment and in particular, the NIR as well as the safe and effective operation of the extraction plant. The extension staff are benefiting from the study tour to BRA in Tasmania as well as exposure to BRA senior staff during the regular visits to PNG by BRA senior staff. Of particular and unforseen benefits are the experiences and growth with Janet Yando, the female extension officer appointed by EPC as a part of this project.
The project is having very good impact in generating interest by smallholders to grow pyrethrum as a useful source of cash income and the funds already injected into the local community to date has been significant. There is a good opportunity to develop the PNG pyrethrum industry to the production levels of the 1970-1980's by the end of 2010. However, there is a need for the injection of some capital funds for the purchase of a tractor as well as seed money to assist growers to expand their production levels at a faster rate. The project team is currently working with the PNG National government to obtain more support and resources for the pyrethrum industry.

This project is progressing well with no problems and there are no expected variations to future activities. NARI and BRA/UTas/TIAR are progressing well with the agronomic studies and these studies are expected to be completed satisfactorily during this project. The results to date are very useful and it is quite likely that the density study will be suitable for publication in a refereed scientific journal. The factory is now operating relatively efficiently and the laboratory is refurbished and equipped with the NIR and basic equipment. The NIR is working well and assays have been done on flowers collected by NARI as a part of the clone improvement study as well as commercially harvested flowers and the extracted oleoresin.
This project is having good impact on developing the capacity of the PNG partners. NARI researchers are benefiting from interaction with BRA and UTas/TIAR researchers on aspects of experimental design and conduct, data analysis and reporting. The Kagamuga extraction factory operators are gaining experience in the use of laboratory equipment and in particular, the NIR as well as the safe and effective operation of the extraction plant. The extension staff are benefiting from the study tour to BRA in Tasmania as well as exposure to BRA senior staff during the regular visits to PNG by BRA senior staff.
The project is having very good impact in generating interest by smallholders to grow pyrethrum as a useful source of cash income and the funds already injected into the local community to date has been significant. There is a good opportunity to develop the PNG pyrethrum industry to the production levels of the 1970-1980's by the end of 2010.

This project is progressing well but achieving the specific milestones has been delayed by local issues such as tribal fighting and landslides/road closures. The results to date are very useful and the successful completion of the project to collate all PNG publications on pyrethrum is a good outcome. The genetic variability of the existing pyrethrum material in PNG has been measured using the NIR and there appears to be sufficient plants with high pyrethrins assay to allow the production to re-commercialise into a sustainable industry. The factory is now operating relatively efficiently and an increasing amount of extracted product has been produced.
This project is having good impact on developing the capacity of the PNG partners. NARI researchers are benefiting from interaction with BRA and UTas/TIAR researchers on aspects of experimental design and conduct, data analysis and especially report preparation. The Kagamuga extraction factory operators are gaining experience and confidence in the use of laboratory equipment and in particular, the NIR as well as the safe and effective operation of the extraction plant. The extension officers are gaining more knowledge, skills and confidence and the high visibility of the female extension officers are providing a very positive role model and example of what high standards and careers can be achieved by gender equality.
The project is having very good impact in generating interest by smallholders to grow pyrethrum and the production of pyrethrum flowers have increased each year since the start of this project in 2007. During the 2009 season, the quantity of flowers produced was an increase of 36% compared with 2008. Similar quantum increase in flower production is expected during 2010 and the target of 300 tons of flowers per year appears within reach, but perhaps taking a few of years longer then expected. The number of smallholders actively growing pyrethrum has increased from 800 in 2007 to 2,000 by the end of 2009.