AWORLD-first facility at Horsham, researching the impact of extreme hot and cold weather on crops, is expanding.
Victorian Agriculture Minister for Agriculture Ros Spence last week announced the completion of the $1.18m Free Air Temperature Extreme (FATE) facility expansion at the Horsham SmartFarm, doubling the size to cover about 2.5 hectares.
The FATE facility measures the impact of heat waves, drought and frost on cereal, pulse and oilseed crops, testing conditions on them at various stages to understand the impact on grain quality.
The upgraded facility is jointly funded with $386,000 from the Labor Government and $800,000 from Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC).
This expansion will enable more crop rotations and experiments, accelerating the development of new heat tolerant crop varieties for farmers. The equipment can be used for future research on other crops, including different grazing pasture species.
For more information about the FATE facility, visit www.agriculture.vic.gov.au/research/HorshamSmartFarm.
