AginED
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FOR E FUTURIA G R R S! U E N E R P
Volume 89 I January 24th, 2022 I email: agined@globalHQ.co.nz I www.farmersweekly.co.nz/agined
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Summer treasures
CARBON
Carbon sequestration, pine plantations, overseas investors and grazing land being sold to forestry conversions are all hot topics right now. So, we thought that we would take a look at what exactly “Carbon” is. Carbon is a chemical element, like hydrogen, oxygen, lead or any of the others in the periodic table. Carbon is a very abundant element. It exists in pure or nearly pure forms – such as diamonds and graphite – but can also join with other elements to form molecules. These carbon-based molecules are the basic building blocks of humans, animals, plants, trees and soils. Humans are 18% carbon and plants are 45% carbon. Some greenhouse gases, such as CO 2 and methane, also consist of carbon-based molecules, as do fossil fuels, which are largely made up of hydrocarbons (molecules consisting of hydrogen and carbon).
18% 45% CARBON PL ANTS
When we are talking about carbon in relation to climate change “carbon” is usually shorthand for carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas that works to trap heat close to Earth. In a simple form, CO 2 helps Earth retain some of the energy it gets from the sun by not allowing it to leak back into space. So up to a point CO 2 and other greenhouse gases are necessary and serve us well. However, even a small increase in CO 2 in the atmosphere can cause Earth to get even warmer. Historically when Earth’s CO 2 levels have increased so has the temperature of Earth and when Earth heats atmospheric CO 2 levels rise again.
Check out a niftyl “Climate Time Machine” at https://climatekids.nasa.gov/timemachine/ to see how carbon dioxide levels have changed from 2002-2016. Did you know that animals breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. Plants then take in the CO2 and keep the carbon but give away the oxygen. Meaning that plants and animals depend on each other and most of us are well aware of the need for this symbiotic relationship.
2 Can you find/name three different in season vegetables?
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3 What does “in season” mean?
How much CO 2 does the average human produce each year?
2 Is there a need to start thinking about how much CO2 we produce here on earth? 3 Why or why not? 4 What are some of the largest producers of CO 2 throughout the world? (Activities or industries rather than countries). 5 What are carbon credits? A great place to start for more climate information for all ages is Climate Kids https://climatekids.nasa.gov/carbon/. gov/carbon/ where there is lots of interesting climate based information. Make sure that you check out the Sea Ice, Sea Level and Global temperatures as well as the Carbon Dioxide links on The Climate Time Machine. We look forward to delving a little deeper into Carbon Sequestration next week.
The Stats NZ provisional sheep and beef numbers update estimate that the 2021 beef cattle numbers have increased 142,000 head or 4% compared to 2020, to 4 million head. Beef numbers have been increasing since the historical low of 3.5 million in 2016. 1
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Why do you think dairy-cow numbers are dropping?
2 What are ‘milk-solids’? Why do farmers want to increase their per cow milk solid production? 3 Who are LIC? What do they do? 4 Who is Dairy NZ? What is their purpose?
Can you find/name three different types of summer fruits?
Do some research and see if you can answer the following questions:
STRETCH YOURSELF:
The latest dairy institute statistics, produced by Dairy NZ and LIC, showed milking cow numbers fell from 4.92 to 4.9 million for the 2020-21 season, while average milk production per cow was 397kg of milksolids, a 3.1% increase from 385kg last season and the highest on record.
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One driver of the increase in beef numbers is good prices. Why does this encourage farmers to farm more stock?
2 What other drivers do you think can impact sheep and beef numbers? 3 Breeding ewe numbers have decreased in recent years. Can you think of any reasons behind this? Think about how land use changed in the last few years in particular. 4 How do you think sheep and beef numbers will track this year? Why?
Do you grow any of your own fruit and vegetables at home or maybe in a shared local garden? We would love to see photos of what you grow. Send them to us at: agined@globalhq.co.nz
PODCAST CORNER: BallanceEx Future Farming BallanceEx Future Farming takes a deep dive into the challenges and opportunities Kiwi farmers are experiencing today and into the future. Farmers are increasingly looking to change the way they use their land to improve both profitability and environmental impact. In this episode, host Tangaroa Walker is joined by Ballance Science Strategy Manager Warwick Catto and Agresearch sustainable production export Dr. Robyn Dynes to break down what you need to know about land use diversification. https://farmersweekly.co.nz/s/ podcasts/ballanceex-future-farming