Syngenta demonstrated Simodis insecticide on brassica crops at the Elders sponsored Victorian Vegetable Innovation Days (VicVID) in April.
This was in effect the southern launch of Simodis insecticide, following the grand unveiling at Syngenta GrowMore in November 2022. The Lockyer Valley event included applications on fruiting vegetables (tomatoes) and cucurbits (rockmelon), as well as brassicas (broccoli) and bulb vegetables (spring onions).
Elders Pakenham agronomist Connor Steel worked closely with Butler Market Gardens, this year’s hosts for VicVID, liaising with industry and the various seed and crop protection companies in establishing the Catani site.
Mr Steel said Simodis insecticide had proven to be an impressive product from an efficacy and a residual perspective. He felt comfortable that growers understood that scouting for insect pests was vital to make the most of the product and its numerous strengths.
“My growers who have used it have been really impressed with it and the length of control, [while] understanding it’s not systemic,” he said. “Not only does it have the residual activity, the range of pests it has been able to control has been really good too... it’s found a massive fit already, and I can see it having a large summer ahead.”
Mr Steel said the benefit of an event of this breadth was giving growers access to all things new in horticulture, relevant to their patch, from seed varieties to insecticides, fungicides and more.
“Visitors to the site were able to see what a Syngenta spray program looks like, and the level of control, not only with pests, but diseases too, from white blister control to downy mildew control.
“It's also the products from other suppliers, as well with biostimulants and different seed varieties, which was really good because it doesn't happen very often.”
Also in attendance was Syngenta technical services lead Len Ibbotson. Mr Ibbotson said Simodis insecticide offers reliable, robust and extended residual efficacy in key horticultural crops, helping growers tackle resistant and traditionally hard-to-control pests with the novel Group 30 insecticide.
He said key registrations for Simodis include diamondback moth, two-spotted mite and western flower thrips.
“As Platinum sponsors of VicVID23 we were pleased to see so many people make the most of this opportunity to connect with the industry and see the benefits of Simodis insecticide on brassicas and Miravis Prime fungicide,” he said.
“For the 2023 event, we chose to demonstrate Miravis Prime fungicide on leafy vegetables and Simodis insecticide on brassicas as part of commercial spray programs, adjusting timings and product choices in response to seasonal growing conditions and included untreated control plots for comparison.
“The Miravis Prime program, applied to lettuce and leafy vegetable crops, displayed excellent control of Sclerotinia, even under conditions of considerable disease pressure in a high-density planting of baby-leaf lettuce.
“Similarly, Simodis performed well protecting three different brassica varieties from the Lepidoptera chewing damage observed in the neighbouring untreated control plots”.
Chris Manning, Syngenta ANZ’s leafy veg portfolio manager said the Catani trial site was also a fantastic opportunity for growers to discover what’s new in the industry, with vegetable seed varieties being demonstrated.
“Fairbanks Seeds, Syngenta’s distribution partner for all leafy veg and brassica seed, did a fantastic job showcasing our latest innovations,” he said.
“The field day was a huge success. We had quite a few people come through from New Zealand, Australia and our invited guests, Yohan Barrier and Leszek Klimczak, regional EAME and APAC portfolio managers on site as well.
“Having our regional portfolio managers at the field days with their experience was invaluable! They could readily share the breeding history and talk to our pipeline with so much experience and offer solutions within our existing portfolio to suit our growers,” Mr Manning said.
