rbicides. Weeds such as vetches, tares, bifora, medics and self-sown peas and beans are often more difficult to effectively control in lentil than in other break crops.
Pay special attention to stopping seed set of broadleaf weeds in the years prior to a lentil crop, or choose paddocks with low broadleaf weed burdens.
Avoid planting lentil into paddocks with high levels of herbicide resistant ryegrass. In low weed density situations, weed (or ‘wick’) wiping can be used to prevent the weeds that are taller than the crop from setting seed. Croptopping to prevent weed seed set can also be effective, but be aware of its limitations and the need for correct timing. Croptopping lentil too early can cause grain quality problems through premature ripening. Some lentil varieties are later maturing and can be indeterminate in a late season, hence the weeds may need topping before the crop is ready. Lentil paddocks can also be variable in their ripening across soil types in the paddock, and in wheel tracks. Early maturing varieties like PBA Blitz or PBA Flash suit croptopping better than later maturing varieties.
Because lentil plants are short (15 to 80 cm) and must be harvested near ground level, choose flat paddocks free of surface stones or sticks that might damage harvesting machinery and contaminate the seed sample. Soil surface rolling is often essential to aid efficient harvesting however this will flatten standing cereal stubble that would otherwise be very beneficial to the lentil crop.
Lentil is suited to flat paddocks with well drained loam and clay loam soils of good fertility. They prefer the better, deeper wheat growing soils with higher water holding capacity. Avoid soils with extreme pH, preferring neutral to alkaline soils with a pH range of 5–8 (CaCl2). Lentil performs poorly on sandy, acidic soils.
Lentil can grow on heavy clays to loamy sand and cope with low fertility, but they are very susceptible to waterlogging, salinity and high boron levels, which cause major growth and yield variation within a paddock. Excessive boron or sodic subsoil within the crop root zone can cause plant death and severely limit lentil yields. Soil acidity delays and limits nodulation and hence, reduces yield.
Lentil is well suited to alkaline, self-mulching grey clays (e.g. the Wimmera) and also grows successfully on loamy sands (e.g. in the Mallee).
Lentil is extremely sensitive to some residual herbicides from Groups B and I. Observe maximum plant-back periods on the label and when planning crop rotations, take herbicide residues and plant-back requirements into consideration.
Plant-back on herbicide labels will not change with the new herbicide tolerant lentil varieties, PBA Herald XT and PBA Hurricane XT, but crop safety is greatly improved with these varieties where residual herbicide impacts would otherwise be expected.
See also ‘Herbicide residues and weed control’.
Stubble retention systems
Lentil fits well into stubble retention systems, serving their wider role in crop rotations and farming systems.
Stubble retention implies the stubble of previous crops is left standing, on the soil surface or incorporated (buried) into the soil. Lentil fits well in minimum tillage, direct drilling, no-tillage or zero-tillage farming systems provided the physical seeding process is not affected. Using GPS-guidance and auto-steer systems lentil can be sown inter-row, between standing stubble rows. This aids in stubble clearance during sowing, often reduces herbicide throw and damage, and the lentil crops grow taller and are more erect, achieving greater harvest efficiency.
Stubble that grazing animals have trampled, is lodged or brittle from summer rainfall can present difficulties at sowing, even when sowing inter-row. Lentil crops that follow a drought-affected cereal or a hay cut may not benefit from the limited amount of stubble retained, particularly if the sowing is aggressive, causing a high level of soil disturbance and incorporation of the remaining stubble.
Many pulse crops require a level soil surface for effective application 