Weed Science
Few people in this world escape the deleterious effects of weeds. Whether you are a grazier who has a problem with shrub weeds competing with pastures over vast areas of inland Australia or you are an inner-city apartment dweller who has weed control costs passed onto them in higher food prices, all people are affected. Consider the time spent pulling out weeds in gardens alone around the world and you will soon realise why it is said that more energy is expended in the weeding of crops than in any other single human task.
Weeds are estimated to cost Australia approximately $4 billion annually. This estimate includes the financial costs of weed control for agricultural land managers (for example chemicals, vehicles and fuel, hired and contract labour), as well as yield losses in agriculture. Approximately $100 million is spent on weed control in natural and public lands (e.g. National Parks and National Heritage Trust land). Weeds continue to invade new areas and many are becoming resistant to the herbicides used to control them. So the challenges are great and it is imperative for us to continue to devise new ways to manage weeds in Australia effectively.
Why Study Weed Science at UNE?
UNE is one of Australia's leading university providers of undergraduate and postgraduate agricultural education, consistently receiving an enviable 5 star rating for student satisfaction and being uniquely located with ready access to cropping, horticulture and pasture field sites for teaching and research.
Our lecturers have expertise in a range of weed science topics, including pasture weed ecology and management, broadacre and horticulture crop weed ecology and management, weed seed banks, weed surveys, crop competition and herbicide tolerance, and organic weed management techniques.
Relevant units cover topics such as: agricultural weed identification, ecology and adaptation; ecological, physical, biological and chemical control techniques; the main groups of weeds and their impact; chemical resistance in weeds; and plant biosecurity. Specific units on grains and cotton crop protection include topics on weed management.
Our unit on integrated weed management (AGRO422/522), developed by the Cooperative Research Centre for Weed Management Systems, aims to give students an understanding of how weeds function so as to be able to exploit their weaknesses. The unit includes information on the latest techniques and ideas on weed management as applied to Australian ecosystems, whether they be crops, pastures or the natural environment. Topics covered include weed identification, weed ecology, weed management (including biological, cultural and chemical techniques) and integrated weed management, which combines all appropriate weed management methods. Students have the option to specialise in cropping systems, pastures, vegetables, orchards and vineyards, lawns and turf, plantation forests, conservation reserves and national parks, rangelands or aquatic systems. Bachelor of Agriculture Bachelor of Science with Honours Graduate Certificate in Agriculture Graduates with training in weed science may find a variety of career paths available to them, including: UNE has a new state-of-the-art glasshouse complex and several properties on which research and teaching are undertaken, the closest of which are adjacent to the campus, with farming equipment suitable for small and large scale agronomic trials. There are excellent laboratories for plant nutrition and crop protection research. Analytical facilities include ICP-OES, ion chromatograph, Carlo-Erba-MS CNS analyser, NIRS, GC-MS and HPLC. We have a range of field and laboratory equipment for measuring soil structure, soil mechanical properties, and soil water (neutron probes, TDR, capacitance probes, pressure plates). For information on our research activities, please visit the pages of the Weed Science group at UNE.Undergraduate
Bachelor of Agriculture/Bachelor of Business
Bachelor of Agriculture/Bachelor of Laws
Bachelor of Rural ScienceBachelor Honours
Postgraduate Coursework
Master of Science in AgriculturePostgraduate Research
Weed Research and Management
Weed Information
Contacts
For general and administrative enquiries, AskUNE.
For information and advice about studying Weed Science at UNE:
Professor Brian Sindel
Phone: +61 2 6773 3747
Email: bsindel@une.edu.au