This is a summary of the SANTFA Journals, to view the FULL content please click the 
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SANTFA 2008 Journal |
Summer Edition Month: January Vol: 1 No: 1 |
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 Seeder Modification | |||||||||
| Title: Conversion doing the no-till job and 'holding out pretty well' | Author: Mike Roberts CRC | ||||||||
| Two Upper South-East farmers who have taken the low-cost, machinery modification path into no-till have made quite different modifications to the same machine to access the multiple benefits of no-till on their properties For his ‘easy’ soil conditions at Pinnaroo, John Angel changed the spacing, increased the breakout strength, fitted poly trash guards and press wheels. At Coomandook, with a mix of stone reefs and deep sands, Clem Tynan left the breakout strength unchanged and mounted the sowing boots on the press wheel arm to control seeding depth. | |||||||||
| Part 1 | |||||||||
| John Angel sat at the kitchen table under a photo of his grandfather with a team of horses and piles of grain waiting to be winnowed and bagged. As tough as it gets on some days, in some years, this third-generation farmer from Pinnaroo acknowledged that things had come a long way since his family began farming there in 1926. “I farm pretty much by myself with the help of a casual emplo... | |||||||||
| Soil Ecology | |||||||||
| Title: Managing the soil habitat | Author: Dr Jill Clapperton | ||||||||
| A North American soil biologist gives tips to farmers on how to restore the soil environments on their farms so that microbes can thrive. | |||||||||
| Dr Jill Clapperton, Earthspirit Land Resource Consulting | |||||||||
| Creating a soil habitat is the first step to managing for enhanced soil biological fertility and long-term soil quality and productivity. This means severely reducing the amount of tillage (preferably moving to no-tillage) and increasing the amount and quality of the organic matter returning to the soil. Organic matter is the fuel for increased biological activity. Soil bio... | |||||||||
| Community FarmlinkX | |||||||||
| Title: Community FarmlinkX - pathways to urban-rural co-existence | Author: tony Craddock | ||||||||
| Community Farmlinkx is a National Landcare project supported by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. Target Milestones for this project is to lesson the divide between urban and rural communities and provide education to the growers situated closer to the townships of conservation agricultural practises. | |||||||||
| Overview | |||||||||
| Every autumn, former SANTFA Scientific Officer Rohan Rainbow, during his frequent trips to Adelaide from Clare, would look across the brown, cultivated paddocks on the outskirts of Gawler and ponder the potential for increasing the uptake of no-till and conservation farming practices in the district. This sparked a meeting in late 2005 between Rohan and Rural Directions Pty Ltd consu... | |||||||||
| Community FarmlinkX | |||||||||
| Title: Community survey - focussing project activities | Author: Tony Craddock | ||||||||
| As part of the project outcomes a community survey of rural and urban residents was conducted to undertand the barriers to no-till adoption and urban understanding. | |||||||||
| “Let’s get out there and get the job done!”, was the immediate reaction of the project team once the Community FarmlinkX project was funded. But what were the barriers to growers adopting no-till and conservation farming practices in the project area? What were the information gaps that needed to be filled before farmers were prepared to take on no-till? What were ... | |||||||||
| Community Farmlinkx | |||||||||
| Title: Engaging the urban community through schools | Author: Diona Heinjus & Graeme Jennings | ||||||||
| Part of the Community FarmlinkX Project involved engaging local rural and peri-urban schools in an education program which demonstrated the differences between older farming techniques and those now practised by progressive no-till farmers. The aim of the project is to produce young community members in the northern Adelaide fringe who are aware of the farming contribution and the benefits of modern practices. | |||||||||
| An important part of the Community FarmlinkX project is a communications program that incorporates visits to schools in the project area. In the schools program, senior primary school students are educated about farming, the roles farmers play in the community and the methods they use to look after the environment while producing healthy food. At the sessions, students disc... | |||||||||
| Community Farmlinkx | |||||||||
| Title: Syndication provides access to new technology | Author: Tony Craddock & Graeme Jennings | ||||||||
| Machinery syndication can minimise the capital investment in the equipment needed to get into no-till farming. | |||||||||
| Two Wells farmers Malcolm and Timothy Wilson and neighbour John Sharpe are enjoying the benefits of the latest auto-steer and spray boom technology thanks to a machinery syndication arrangement. The syndicate, an extension of a close working relationship between the two families over many years, had made it possible to keep up with developments in farm technology at a reasonable cost, M... | |||||||||
| Community Farmlinkx | |||||||||
| Title: Getting into no-till at minimal cost - machinery modification | Author: Patrick Redden, Rural Directions PL | ||||||||
| A focus of the Community FarmlinkX Project is to identify ways growers can take on no-till with minimal capital expenditure. Modification of existing seeding equipment was one strategy identified. As a consequence three growers who have modified seeding equipment were interviewed and the following case studies developed. | |||||||||
| Converted combine - Stuart Roennfeldt, Greenock | |||||||||
| Farm consultant Stuart Roennfeldt runs his family farm at Greenock in the Barossa Valley in between providing consultancy services to broadacre farming clients throughout the Mid and Lower North. His property combines vineyards and cropping, with approximately 300 hectares of wheat, barley, canola, peas, and beans. Stuart was keen to adopt no-till on his farm, having seen the benefits... | |||||||||
| Community Farmlinkx | |||||||||
| Title: Putting theory into the paddocks | Author: Tony Craddock, Rural Solutions | ||||||||
| Demonstration trials are an important part of the grower communication activities of the Community FarmlinkX project. So far the trials have compared no-till and zero-till technologies with farmer practice and demonstrated best practice in areas such as pre-emergent herbicides, residue management and spray drift management. The trial sites are located adjacent to main roads near Daveyston, Templers and Angle Vale. After two years of hosting demonstrations on their paddocks, farmer co-operators were asked to reflect on the Community FarmlinkX program and what changes they’ve made to their farming systems. | |||||||||
| In the past 12 months, co-operator Phillip Winchester has modified his Case tool bar by widening the row spacing to 23 cm and fitting it with knife points. “We direct-drilled all our 2007 crops except for canola and a couple of bad caltrop paddocks, moving away from the minimum tillage system we’d been practicing for years”, said Phillip, who is the Farm Manager for LXL Pty Ltd, owned b... | |||||||||
| Community Farmlinkx | |||||||||
| Title: Innovative approach to community engagement | Author: Mike Roberts CRC | ||||||||
| The Community FarmlinkX Program is an initiative of SANTFA funded by Dept of Land, Water and Biodiversity Conservation as well as the National Landcare Program. The program aims to develop new approaches to engaging communities in the adoption of conservation farming in an area where uptake has been lower than in other parts of the state. This article discusses the views of Glenn Gale, Principal Technical Advisor (NRM) and Brian Hughes, SA NLP Coordinator on the aims of the program and achievements to date. | |||||||||
| “Hey honey, while you’re down at the Gawler shopping centre this morning, remember to pick up a loaf of bread, two litres of milk and a brochure on why we don’t have as many dust storms as we did years ago!” That may sound like an unlikely scenario, unless you are aware of how the Community FarmlinkX Program is bringing together urban and rural communities on Adelaide’s northern fringe ... | |||||||||
SANTFA 2008 Journal |
Autumn Edition Month: May Vol: 5 No: 5 |
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| Application Technology | |||||||||
| Title: Coarse droplets OK for herbicide application | Author: Graeme Jennings | ||||||||
| Growers using recommended pressures and adequate water volumes can expect to achieve good control of all weed targets, including small, fine-leafed weeds like annual ryegrass when using nozzles producing larger droplet sizes. | |||||||||
| Growers can use larger droplets to apply herbicides without reducing the level of weed control. And these larger droplets can be generated using many nozzles provided they are operated at the recommended pressure. These findings, from trials carried out over the past two years by Nufarm and Syngenta, clearly indicate growers can confidently move away from using fine droplet... | |||||||||
| Weed Control | |||||||||
| Title: Toasting Marchmallows | Author: Michael Bennet | ||||||||
| As Marshmallow (Malva parviflora) becomes a more troublesome weed in no-till situations, farmers are searching for reliable control methods. Trial results of various herbicides used at different timings to control Marshmallow at Minnipa are discussed. | |||||||||
| Why do the trial | |||||||||
| Marshmallow (Malva parviflora) is a weed that has grown in importance with the increased adoption of no-till. Marshmallow can grow into an extremely hardy weed that, if left unchecked, will develop a strong, deep taproot. Once it reaches this advanced stage it requires robust rates of herbicides or a reversion to cultivation for effective control. Marshmallow is extremely opportunistic and takes a... | |||||||||
| Sharing Employees | |||||||||
| Title: Sharing employees on-farm | Author: Leighton Pearce, SANTFA | ||||||||
| With careful planning and review, two farming families successfully share one farmhand between the two businesses on a rotating basis. | |||||||||
| The idea that Mallee farmers Mark Hampel and John Gladigau could share the one employee was born in February 2004. It was not until July of that year that the system was implemented, with the joint employment of Gaven Thorne. At a meeting with John, Mark and Gaven earlier this year it was clear they had developed a strong friendship over the years they had worked together. The gatherin... | |||||||||
| Row Spacing | |||||||||
| Title: Effect of row spacing on water use and yield of faba beans | Author: Sam Kleemann & Gurjeet Gill, University of Adelaide Roseworthy Campus | ||||||||
| Trials exploring the effect of wide row spacing on faba beans are discussed in relation to crop water use and yield. If farmers know how and when rows can be effectively widened it may provide opportunities to safely apply non-selective herbicides with shields to the inter-row to control some herbicide resistant ryegrass. | |||||||||
| Introduction | |||||||||
| Herbicide-resistant annual ryegrass is a major issue confronting growers of the southern Australian wheat-belt and is resulting in a re-evaluation of the way in which weeds are managed. One approach being explored with the arrival of GPS guidance farming is the cultivation of crops on wide-rows to allow shielded spraying of troublesome weeds between crop rows. Previous research has sho... | |||||||||
| Inter-row sowing | |||||||||
| Title: Multiple benefits from inter-row sowing and CTF | Author: Mike Roberts CRC | ||||||||
| Cutting edge Wimmera farmer Rob Ruwoldt discusses why he inter-row sows and how he set up his machinery to achieve best results with a controlled traffic approach. | |||||||||
| According to Wimmera farmer Rob Ruwoldt, the best part of inter-row sowing is that ‘it looks really, really cool - nobody knows you’ve planted your crop!’ Rob’s sense of humour is obvious, and his long experience in no-till and more recently acquired expertise in inter-row sowing and controlled traffic farming (CTF) stand out as well. Based at Horsham, Rob farms with his son... | |||||||||
| Soil sampling | |||||||||
| Title: The art of soil sampling in modern farming systems | Author: Wayne Pluske, Nutrient Managment Systems | ||||||||
| Soil sampling techniques have historically been based on the assumption that soil nutrients and other soil characteristics are evenly distributed across the paddock and through the top 10 centimetres of the soil and can therefore be measured in randomly collected samples. This assumption is now questioned for minimal tillage or zero-till systems where soil mixing is reduced. The lack of mixing can be accentuated by wider row spacings and controlled traffic systems, especially when nutrients are banded nutrients in concentrated lines on top of previous years’ workings. Some of the key points from the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) funded project ‘Review of nutrient management issues in the Western Australian grain industry’ by Wen Chen, Richard Bell, Bill Bowden, Ross Brennan and Bill Porter are discussed below. | |||||||||
| Nutrients with limited mobility in soils, such as phosphorus, can remain for some time in the band of soil where the fertiliser was applied. Nutrients in such bands are either absorbed by succeeding crops, converted into less soluble forms or recycled into the soil organic fractions. Despite these transitions, the nutrient concentration of the band is likely to remain high for some ti... | |||||||||
SANTFA 2008 Journal |
Winter Edition Month: July Vol: 7 No: 7 |
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| The K-Hart experience | |||||||||
| Title: Few reservations on K-Hart discs, but still room for improvement | Author: Graeme Jennings | ||||||||
| A recent survey of growers using disc seeders identified the K-Hart triple disc as the most widely adopted in SA. Three K-Hart users recount their experiences with the machine and what they think of it. | |||||||||
| Part 1 | |||||||||
| K-Hart disc seeders are simple to operate and perform well once they are correctly set up for the local conditions and operated at the right speed, according to three growers who have several years’ experience with the machines. However, that is about where the common ground ends. John Kennett and Anthony Verner, who have encountered problems with penetration and depth cont... | |||||||||
| Application Technology | |||||||||
| Title: Night Spraying increases opportunities | Author: John Both, Nufarm Australia | ||||||||
| Night spraying can enable farmers to cover more hectares in a day or avoid daytime windy conditions often abating at night. Nufarm’s John Both reports on trials of various herbicides at different rates applied at night compared to daytime application. | |||||||||
| About five years ago there was a big increase in enquiries from farmers about what plant protection products they could apply at night without reducing efficacy. Reasons for this interest in night spraying ranged from the need to cover more hectares each year because of increasing land holdings or a need for more frequent spraying to a desire to spray when there was less wind. | |||||||||
| The K-Hart experience | |||||||||
| Title: K-Hart a learning experience for John | Author: Graeme Jennings | ||||||||
| Kadina farmer John Kennett talks about overcoming initial set up difficulties with his K-Hart 12.2 metre K-Hart disc seeder. | |||||||||
| Part 2 | |||||||||
| John Kennett is pleased with the performance of his 12.2 metre K-Hart machine but considers it ‘a bit under-designed’ and would like it to weigh more. John, who farms with his wife Anthea about 15 kilometres north of Kadina, would also like to see the K-Hart company provide more information about how to set up their machines for best results in different conditions, particularly since h... | |||||||||
| The K-Hart experience | |||||||||
| Title: K-Hart 'simpler' for Verner family | Author: Graeme Jennings | ||||||||
| Experienced in disc seeding, Mallala farmer Anthony Verner talks about why he found his new K-Hart machine easier to set up and operate than other disc machines used on their farm. | |||||||||
| part 3 | |||||||||
| Anthony Verner, who farms with his father John and brother Richard at Red Banks, near Mallala, has few reservations about the K-Hart on any level. The Verners sow about 2,500 ha a season with their 40’ (12.2 m) K-Hart unit, which they had set up as a 12-metre machine when they bought it. Their ‘standard’ rotation is wheat/barley/legume, usually beans or lentils; all sown on 3... | |||||||||
| Native budworm | |||||||||
| Title: 'Guerrilla' tactics pose managment challenge | Author: Graeme Jennings | ||||||||
| Do you suffer losses in your pulse and canola crops? Are you killing beneficial insects due to a perceived helicoverpa or native budworm infestation? Take the best approach towards managing budworm infestations with sampling, identification, spray thresholds and knowing the enemy. | |||||||||
| Native Budworm, Helicoverpa punctigera, is a sporadic pest that can cause serious losses in pulses and canola crops. This ‘guerrilla’ combination of potentially high damage from unpredictable attacks highlights the need for close and effective monitoring of crops that might be subject to attack. If the pest is not present there is no point spraying, which costs money and can... | |||||||||