Canterbury Farming, September 2012 by Integrity Community Media

28,850 copies distributed monthly – to every rural mailbox in Canterbury and the West Coast.

INSIDE Page 8–9

The ultimate traceability story

Page 10

Pleasant, green but… empty!

Page 21–24

Cultivation Feature Page 25–27

Seeds Feature

September 2012

Nutrient Cap A threat to arable flexibility by Hugh de Lacy

The imminent rise in grain returns might conceivably slow the tide of conversions of arable farms to dairying, but Environment Canterbury’s (Ecan’s) draft nutrient-cap rules will ensure it doesn’t That’s the view of Valetta, Mid-Canterbury, arable farmer David Clark, the vice-chairman of Federated Farmers Grain and Seeds section. The Proposed Canterbury Land and Water Regional Plan, for which submissions close on Friday, October 5, will, if adopted, “stop in its tracks any form of land-use change or intensification, including from sheep-farming to arable farming,” Clark told Canterbury Farming. The nutrient-capping part of the proposal would require a resource consent for any increase above 10% in the average nutrient losses of a farming system over the three-year rolling average. “If you’re in the red zone, which most of Canterbury is, that (degree of nutrient loss) is a non-complying activity,” Clark said. “Ecan are telling us that consent would only be granted

if you’re a true exception to the norm. “It’ll make any form of land-use intensification difficult,” and that might include irrigating a formerly dryland farm. “I don’t know how they could proceed an irrigation scheme on the basis of what’s proposed,” Clark said. The proposals have been tabled at a time when grain prices globally are taking off under the inﬂuence of drought throughout most of the Northern Hemisphere summer just passed, and an unusually cold winter in Australia thumping production there. As a result, New Zealand arable farmers are facing the immediate future with “cautious optimism,” Clark said. “The United States and Russian droughts caused a knock-on effect of lifting the (global) wheat price,

which now in turn has caused dairy commodities to stage a comeback, which is then giving the possibility of a lift to one of our major end-using industries here in New Zealand.” This spring is seeing “a bit of a swing to planting milling wheat, because it’s scarce internationally, and that potentially should see an upturn in price. “Also there’s going to have to be an upturn in price if there’s to be more wheat going to the mill.” Clark reckons the price for milling wheat should be around the mid-400s in dollars per tonne, but it’s got a way to go before it reaches that. There was increasing pressure also coming on feedgrain supplies, the world was “fundamentally short of food,” and that was a trend that was only going to continue, he said. The United States great mid-western cropping belt and Russia’s Black Sea area had born the brunt of the Northern Hemisphere droughts, but China and India had also been hit hard. This has been reﬂected in wheat futures prices on the US market which shot from

around 650c/bushel at the end of June to around 900c this month. The feeding out of wheat is expected to be ‘sharply higher’ in the US in the 2012-13 marketing year, according to Rabobank’s latest Agribusiness Review, resulting in lower global rowcrop production. Over the ditch, Australia’s high dollar is not expected to hinder a further 3-5% rise in price over the last quarter of this year. Aussie winter wheat production this year plunged 20%, because of the JulyAugust cold snap across eastern Australia and parts of Western Australia, to less

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than 23m tonnes, and China is further stirring tightening supply by importing up to 3m tonnes of that as feed-wheat. Meanwhile, New Zealand’s switch into cooler weather patterns over the past couple of years has left arable country in good heart, with aquifers recovered from the low levels of the previous decade. “The future’s got to be positive,” Clark said. “What’s essential for New Zealand though is that we retain ownership and control of our productive agricultural assets, and also retain the ability to farm effectively and sustainably.”

September 2012

Conservation – nice have, or must have?

by Kate Wilkinson

The Conservation portfolio is broad and encompasses many facets of Government including business, economic growth, tourism and biodiversity

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Given the current economic challenges we sometimes have to ask the difficult question, is conservation a ‘must have?’ or a ‘nice to have?’ From a tourism point of view the answer is easy. No one comes to New Zealand to visit a 500-yearold castle or see Roman ruins; they come to see our natural history. Our forests are the cathedrals of the South Pacific. Visitors want to swim and surf our beaches, take in our great walks and go ski on our mountains. Conservation is one of our largest, if not the largest, tourism provider in the country. Figures from Statistics New Zealand show that in the year ended March 2011 the total tourism expenditure was $23 billion, an increase of 2.1 per cent from the previous year. International tourism increased 1.5 per cent or $147 million to $9.7 billion, that’s a contribution of 16.8 per cent to New Zealand’s

total exports of goods and services. Domestic tourism generated $13.2 billion, an increase of 2.5 per cent from the previous year. That’s hardly surprising given that 25 per cent of New Zealanders visited a National Park last year. The indirect value added of industries supporting tourism generated an additional $8.8 billion. Tourism contributes almost 9 per cent of our Gross Domestic Product and directly or indirectly employ one in 10 New Zealanders, or 179,800 total full-time jobs. Studies completed by the Department of Conservation at local level show some staggering figures on the economic benefits of conservation. For example, the Fiordland National Park generates $196 million to the Southland and Queenstown Lakes Districts economy, creates approximately 1600 jobs

Kate Wilkinson Minister for Food Safety

and costs the taxpayer $9 million. These figures are good for the economy but they’re also good for our national pride. New Zealanders enjoy seeing their scenic landscape, whether they’ve got out amongst it or have seen it on the big screen in movies such as the Lord of the Rings trilogy. For these reasons it is imperative that conservation is maintained. In other

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words, it is a ‘must have’, not just a ‘nice to have’. Conservation is also a ‘must have’ in terms of biodiversity and protecting and preserving our fantastic natural heritage, ensuring we are all good stewards of our land and leaving it in a better state than when we got it. There are signs of our continued success in preserving our natural environment. For example, thanks to the success of the Natural Heritage Management System programme we now have a record of 1300 areas across the country where our ﬂora and fauna can be regularly monitored. This world leading long-term initiative will allow us for the first time to collect and compare data on the state of our biodiversity nationally, and plan for its long-term preservation. But this government initiative is only one of many ways we could be maintaining and preserving our great natural resources. Unlike Peter Jackson we can’t use special effects! We all need to think about how we can contribute more to ensure our beautiful and valuable asset of conservation is maintained for future generations.

Canterbury Farming prints material contributed by freelance journalists, contributing columnists and letters from readers. The information and opinions published are not necessarily those of Canterbury Farming or its staff. Canterbury Farming takes no responsibility for claims made by advertisers. Canterbury Farming is published by NorthSouth Multi Media Ltd

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September 2012

From the Minister

David Carter, Minister for Primary Industries This month marked a major milestone as Parliament passed the most significant piece of biosecurity legislation in 15 years. This overhaul of New Zealand’s biosecurity system was not before time because, while we have a world-leading system, the legislation hasn’t kept pace with meeting ever-growing challenges. The Biosecurity Law Reform Bill makes a wide range of amendments to the Act, along with related amendments to four other Acts. It’s a huge step forward and covers the areas of border biosecurity, joint decisionmaking with industry on newly detected harmful organisms and on-going management of established pests. Significant biosecurity incursions in this country are thankfully uncommon, and how we protect New Zealand’s borders from pests and diseases deserves all the attention it can get. A key plank of the reforms is the development of government-industry agreements on preparing for, and responding to, newly detected pests and diseases, and for sharing the costs of jointly-agreed activities. The fact is, protecting New Zealand from biosecurity risks can’t be the role of Government alone. We saw an example of this with the outbreak of Psa. Industry expertise needs to be brought to the decision-making table to help improve prioritisation and our preparedness to respond to incursions. It’s well known that biosecurity is the biggest risk to the New Zealand economy. As Minister, it is — and will always be — my greatest priority. The National-led Government has put its money where its mouth is and, since 2001 total taxpayer expenditure on biosecurity has doubled to $192 million.

A staggering 175,000 items come across our border each day. Over the past decade, the number of travellers crossing New Zealand’s borders has increased by 82 per cent and goods transactions have increased 50 per cent. This will only increase. We must get the balance right between facilitating tourism and trade to grow our economy, while protecting New Zealand from pests and diseases. The new Bill will certainly help us in achieving this goal. Before I wrap up this column, I want to report back on the primary sector boot camp I talked about last month. I spent five days at Stanford University in California — it was a truly inspirational event, with some truly inspirational New Zealanders. This industry-led boot camp brought together chief executives of around 20 of our leading businesses to explore and drive in-market collaboration within the primary industry. This was a first for New Zealand, and it was a great initiative. We discussed ways to increase the value of New Zealand’s brand and talked about the efforts that government and industry are making to try and boost productivity. We looked at the opportunities for New Zealand’s primary industries and we discussed ways of achieving greater alignment across the sectors, while learning from some of Stanford’s top lecturers. The boot camp reinforced the fact that the primary industries are well positioned to unlock the global potential of the sector through collaboration and stronger strategic alignment.

Grab the reins farmers Before the damn earthquakes, Federated Farmers were working on a campaign to get young blood into their ranks — well more to the point, young blood to take ownership of the movement.

You will remember many national chairmen were knighted.

I am not being rude when I say that as an outsider looking in, I can imagine why the ‘old guard’ are ready and willing to stand down.

And I would be very happy to be seen as a leader within the industry that we are all so proud of, but that sadly gets so much negative press.

So why would a young man or woman want to get into the management of Federated Farmers? In my view, for what it is worth, the list of why is a lot longer than the list of why not. Firstly if I were a farmer I would want to have an input into where the industry is going and share the excitement of getting it there. I would be motivated by knowing the inside information about the industry and the supporting industries that service farming. I would be very keen to end up on what is basically a Board of Directors for the industry. I would also be very keen to be able to fight for the rights of members and the rural communities. I would really enjoy intelligent conversation with like thinking men and women who have the same passion and drive as I have for farming and farmers. I would also feel proud to be following in the footsteps of so many wise and respected men and women who have gone before me.

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So if I were a farmer what would be on my why not list. I would be expected to go out to meetings. Well that falls over when you look at the television programming and I am sure not many meetings would clash with the screening of ‘Rob’s Country’. It would mean time away from the farm, but the information and networking I would experience would totally out way that. There would be a bit of travel. Yes, but with cell phones etc I would still be able to organise contractors, agents and even turn the irrigator on and off. So really, if I were a farmer, I would have no reason to not put my hand up and climb the rewarding ladder to the management of the industry. However as a non farmer and as someone who is older than others who are wanting to hand over to the young and enthusiastic future leaders, I will watch from the side lines and witness the young farming leaders blossom and the industry go from strength to strength.

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September 2012

O’Connor Comments With Damien O’Connor, Opposition Spokesman on Agriculture

Farmers’ pride and bankers’ profit It now seems clear that banks convinced and sold to farmers, loan packages that ended up costing a whole lot more than the farmers expected. The deal was supported by the two parties who signed the agreement but questions emerge over the understanding and expectations of either party. Looking at recently

There has been recent exposure of a banking issue that is emerging like a breached calf. We know something is obviously wrong but it still takes us a huge effort to extract the object. As with calving we are not sure if this will result in a live issue or a dead issue

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announced record profits of some banks we assume their expectations were met. They have made a heap of money by financing farmers, among others. However a small but growing number of farmers are now admitting that they signed contracts they didn’t fully understand and were strongly urged to take up. This is very believable given the admission to me by a number of former bankers that they too struggled to understand the complex financing called Swap Loans. The deals might have been good for universities but were unsuitable for farmers one said. Why then have we not heard about these costly mistakes by farmers before now? There have been individual farmers who have been forced to sell their farms and claims of bullying by banks but it is always difficult to make judgement given the variety of circumstances that lead to farm purchase.

the banks than they calculated for. They blame themselves but they should not. In Britain where the practice has been investigated banks have agreed to repay many small businesses that were forced to pay high interest through the Swap Loan arrangements.

The reason I believe everything has been so quiet is not the low number of Swap Loan arrangements but the high number of farmers who feel embarrassed to admit that they got caught. I have spoken to a range of farmers who admit they have paid extra to

I can’t make judgement on what has happened. This requires highly skilled financial experts. We have regulators for that purpose and it is about time they got off their behinds and looked into these banking loan arrangements. The cost

to farmers may very well have exceeded all the rates and levies paid by them to councils for a number of years. We hear plenty of noise on this but so far hardly a whisper on misunderstood and very expensive Swap Loan banking finance. It is now up to farmers to deliver a live or dead issue by providing some examples of how these loans were so widely taken up in the rural sectors. There is no doubt future farming costs will be determined by the conclusions.

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Dear Prime Minister John Key — we need some straight answers Having been elected by a majority of us voters and countrymen to lead this nation to ‘growth and posterity’, and getting this country out of hoc, many of us cannot figure out which way you are going. Or even where you are coming from. As a one-time forex money trader we assume your agenda is that the market rules, leaning heavily towards the right wing of the political spectrum, at the same time targeting the middle ground with a slight list towards sustainable blue green development. It must be difficult to keep an even keel. Firstly — you and your party want to water down the Emission Trading Scheme even more than it is at the moment. Forest owners are telling you that this could have a disastrous effect on new plantings, and that the guts had dropped out of the carbon trading market. As one forestry spokesman has put it: ‘All I can see is unconstrained emissions and constrained forestry’ (David Rhodes, president of the Forest Owners Association). It basically gets down to the fact that someone in the end has to pay for the emitters. Yes, us taxpayers in the longer term. Carbon prices are just about zilch and are mostly being bought from offshore. What’s wrong with a simple carbon tax? Are you being inﬂuenced by the skeptics and deniers of man induced climate change? To encourage new plantings carbon credits had been touted as a major incentive. You must realise that forestry is a growing industry with multiple products. The sequestered carbon remains

in most of these products such as construction timber, furniture, particle board, MDF and a variety of other by-products. Yet foresters are still having to pay off most of those earned credits at harvest. This country will benefit by some $4-5 billion in exports this financial year, somewhat hindered by the high NZ$. Similarly with livestock farming. Vegetation is grown to feed stock. This absorbs the offending green house gases during growth. Livestock eat the vegetation which goes back into pasture regrowth. Does that not equate to being carbon neutral? THIS COUNTRY HAD BEEN PRAISED AS A WORLD LEADER IN ITS EFFORTS FOR SUSTAINABILITY AND CUTTING GREEN HOUSE GASES. It was our trade mark — clean and green, remember. John, I think we could be slipping off the radar, and our products losing out on premium prices at the top end of world markets. Secondly — as a money trader, is there no way the administration can inﬂuence the market to lower the dollar to a more realistic rate? Thirdly — your party’s policies have run into some

major stumbling blocks lately. Apart from asset sales we appear to be running into employment problems. On the one hand you wax on about increasing employment. Yet Kiwi Rail owned by us citizens, with the buck stopping at the door of your administration, some 180 employers are on the firing line, preceded by the sacking of qualified tradesmen at two engineering plants after going offshore to get some rolling stock built and subsequent problems. And just recently around 260 coal miners over at Runanga near Greymouth are facing the prospect to have to head to Aussie due to Solid Energy’s move to close the Spring Creek coal mine. This does not include the numbers losing jobs due to outsourcing of manufacturing and servicing industries. This was followed by your government’s refusal to move the minimum wage to a basic living level. What has your Government got up its sleeve to halt this migration of qualified workers? That is apart from the so-called trickle down theory due to tax cuts to the high-ﬂyers, company executives, directors, corporate heads, and a variety of tax dodging millionaires — mostly in the finance sector. Surely the SOEs remain the

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responsibility of the current government to take over the control of these industries when the going gets tough. And one thing that is pretty obvious, even to the uninitiated, is that on one hand your colleagues in the finance sector want us to pay back debt, save for retirement and on the other hand spend any available cash buying things. That is maintain consumerist growth. It goes without saying that the average householder has precious little left over having put aside the little bit for Kiwi Saver left over from mortgage repayments. Thus the big drop in retail sales, low growth and diminishing GDP, a constant moan by media fiscal commentators and service clubs. And talking about ‘growth’, the mantra of most politicians, financiers and billionaire multinational corporate owners — at what point do we reach saturation level? It is generally accepted that to maintain continuous growth businesses have to rely on increasing populations — more people crowding planet Earth involving diminishing resources. What, I would like to ask you John as the leader of your

party, do you have at the back of your mind would be the ideal population numbers of this country by (say) 2050 — 20, 30 or 40 million inhabitants? Or at what stage consumerism matches demand thus eliminating further ‘growth’ as we know it? Is there an alternative system for measuring quality of life, when ‘needs’ are fulfilled and ‘wants’ are maintained? That is defining ‘needs’ as food on the table, a roof over our heads and a reasonable degree of warmth and wellbeing generated by sustainable industries without completely wrecking the environment. Finally John, when are you and your crowd going to sort out this business of resource ownership? That is the water we drink and the air we breath. The problems of ownership and the conniptions the government is going through with possible Maori Waitangi Tribunal claims has mainly arisen through your pig headed drive to partially sell our mainly energy generating corporations — assets already owned and paid for by generations of New Zealanders. Why not can this divisive move and perhaps resource ownership be sorted out over a period of time. Anyway it appears a vast

majority are against asset sales of any type or form. These corporates are paying reasonable dividends over time to keep financing the health and education sectors. Many of your colleagues had already let the cat out of the bag warning that this kerfufﬂe will have an effect on international investors buying into these shares. Let’s face it, the so called mum and dad investors are a bit of a joke. Certainly not many middle class families would be able to afford the capital while paying off mortgages and trying to meet ever increasing costs of just about everything. Just call the whole thing off John. The biggest danger of private ownership of our resources is who finally gets their hands on it. Whether it’s the indigenous population, local organisations, big business, it could end up in the hands of billionaire owners of the aforementioned multinational corporations. Don’t forget John, water ownership will be the big issue for future generations. Yours truly Jim Childerstone, retired forester, writer and Jack of all-trades

rUrAL ProFeSSIoNALS

September 2012

Money Talk

W ith Andrew W yllie

Spring reminders With the arrival of spring it is a suitable time to think about a few legal issues which can arise in everyone’s lives. For some the end of a relationship especially where the parties own property and/ or have a family it is almost certain that both will need to seek legal assistance with the division of property, care of children and all of the dozens of related issues. After making an appointment to see a lawyer you should gather together all information relevant to a property division and the children to negotiate a mutually satisfactory agreement. It is not the time to score points off each other or poison the children against the other parent. The children always suffer when their parents separate and it is essential that their needs are protected. Always aim to negotiate a settlement of relationship

property and matters relating to the children as it is almost impossible to predict with total accuracy the outcome of court proceedings. Very often the parties end up with an order which suits neither of them. In-laws should also be kept at a distance as they tend to create problems rather than solving them. Making a new will on separation is important to reﬂect the change in circumstances and some considered thought needs to be put into a new will. The better prepared you are, the better your outcome should be. Recently there has been some publicity about banks having recommended to farmers and other borrowers to take out long-term fixed interest loans. This happened some years ago when interest rates were quite volatile and many borrowers felt that certainty was preferable to the

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regular changes in interest rates. Unfortunately for many borrowers interest rates fell sharply and it meant that many people were tied in to fixed rate loans for years to come. There has been a tendency to point the finger at the banks for recommending these loans to their customers as some have found that their interest payments have almost rendered them insolvent. It should always be remembered that bankers are there to make profits for the bank and do not always have the customer’s long term interests in mind when they are approached for advice. Taking advice from an accountant on financing matters is preferable as the accountant is working in his client’s best interests. On the subject of trusts I noted recently that a compliant trustee under a trust was made personally liable for a debt which arose through no fault of that trustee. So if you are asked to act as a trustee always consider the proposal and seek advice as the courts are becoming more and more active in sheeting home personal fault to trustees. It is better to decline the role of trustee than become embroiled in arguments and maybe liability for debt further down the track.

Thinking rural finance?

Just when you think winter has finally gone, we get another lot of snow! Great news for the ski field operators, but obviously tough for many of you in the midst of lambing Globally financial markets were buoyant over the June quarter, despite Chinese growth concerns being added to the list of economic issues. The measure of Chinese manufacturing activity fell to its lowest level since March 2009. This needs to be put in context however because even at that point, industrial production was still growing at a very respectable 3.8%. Industrial production should therefore still be positive and with retail sales growth still a healthy 13%, it is more correct to say Chinese growth has slowed, rather than China is in recession. Stimulus plans have already been announced which should aid growth in the December quarter, but a change in leadership is also taking place. The new Chinese leadership is set to be announced in October, but it does not change until March next year, which means additional packages to stimulate the economy are unlikely to be put in place until after this date. Accordingly those relying on the poor data to result in further stimulatory fiscal packages in the near-term, are likely to be disappointed. In Europe and the United States, stimulatory activity does appear closer to hand.

Personalised investment advice

Ross Pyle

Snr Agribusiness Manager Upper South Island

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The recovery in the United States economy continues but is not making any inroads into unemployment. The Federal Reserve Governor highlighted this as a ‘grave concern’ in his address at the end of August. Further stimulus is therefore on the cards should employment data remain weak. Meanwhile in Europe, now that German economic data is beginning to weaken, the likelihood is that there will be greater support of plans to stabilise European banks. Looking at equities over the last quarter, despite global economic uncertainty, markets have delivered strong returns over the last quarter, and 12 months. This is because, in the past, equities have reacted positively to monetary stimulus and it appears European and United States policymakers are close to implementing another round of fiscal stimulus. Accordingly, United States and European equity markets provided the best returns both in local currency and in New Zealand dollar terms. Asian markets struggled, given slower growth in China and this has also impacted returns from Australian equities, with weaker growth in

0800

Forsyth Barr’s portfolio management services ensure you receive personalised, confidential, investment advice backed up by quality research from our highly regarded research team. To find out more, call Forsyth Barr Investment Advisor Andrew Wyllie on 03 365 4244 or 0800 367 227, or email him at 502 442 andrew.wyllie@forsythbarr.co.nz. Disclosure Statements are available on request and free of charge.

the resource and mining servicing sectors. New Zealand equities outperformed other regional markets despite being closely tied to both Chinese and Australian demand, with food commodity prices also weak. Many local listed companies recently reported very strong annual results, which is encouraging, and coupled with attractive dividend yields, New Zealand equities are proving enticing for many investors. On the fixed interest front, interest rates remain steady at present and at continued very low levels. Over the quarter, interest rates are slightly higher in both New Zealand and Australia, but most of this represents recovery from the negative sentiment caused by Spanish sovereign and bank debt downgrades in May. New Zealand and Australian securities also continue to benefit from international investment inﬂows, while large maturity profiles and limited new issuance continues to cap increases. Changes to monetary policy are unlikely until well into 2013, so no material changes to interest rates are expected in the near-term. Recent new bond issues have been heavily over-subscribed. The new TrustPower bond issue, for example, had demand for over three times the size of the total issue. If you are interested in confidentially discussing your investment position and options available please give me a call. Andrew Wyllie is an Authorised Financial Adviser with Forsyth Barr in Christchurch. He can be contacted on 0800 367 227 or andrew. wyllie@forsythbarr.co.nz. This column is general in nature and should not be regarded as personalised investment advice. Disclosure Statements are available on request and free of charge.

September 2012

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Deer velvet market update 2012 Being of the age that puts me closer to my bus-pass than when I had my first beer, the ‘Frampton Comes Alive’ album from 1977 is a key component of my record collection. On there is a track with the classic line ‘the sweetest fragrance — comes with the winds of change’. And so it is in the deer velvet industry, not exactly a howling nor’ wester but definitely more than a gentle zephyr. While New Zealand’s production volumes are steady around the 450/460mt p.a. mark the style of buying is changing significantly. We have seen the rise (and rise) of the Chinese buyers. They are well funded, have excellent facilities and a growing market to tap into. Their natural inclination is to seek out a bargain and will be a force on the road this year either directly or in-directly. They are also more and more entwined with Korean customers year-on-year which is not a bad thing and with the expansion of processing plants in China it was inevitable that they would become a major force. The application of expertise and commitment to the development of products utilising New Zealand deer velvet antler is what we want. From Provelco’s perspective

the most important development this year is the initiative of a major health food manufacturer in Korea to source their requirements directly from New Zealand. This has required real courage and commitment when they are committing to a single supplier, to fixed prices, to processing in New Zealand and to importing in a manner that challenges the established practises head on. If that wasn’t exciting enough, the fact that a Korean company is investing heavily in a range of products and marketing/distribution that is based on the supply of New Zealand deer velvet antler is, in it’s own way, mind-blowing. Fantastic. Generally September is still early in terms of knowing where prices for velvet traded as a commodity will sit as the major period of consumption, ie the northern autumn, hasn’t kicked in yet. We will see aggressive buying from the Chinese importers and this will extend beyond the grades that traditionally catch their interest and we will also see more interest from Korean importers as they realise they will need to compete with their cashpositive Chinese counterparts. It is worth remembering that Korea remains an important market, they are our buyers of

the super grades and have been reasonably tolerant of the variations within these grades. Having said that, the mantra of ‘cut it short and keep it tidy’ should be engraved into the walls of every deer shed in the country. It is also important to remember that we actually need a balance between the two major markets. It has been mentioned many times that we need more money for our velvet and noone in NZ would disagree. By general consensus international production is not increasing and New Zealand holds a key position as a supplier of high quality der velvet. While we will see competition for the most sought after grades that will push these prices up we need increases to be sustainable.

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concept of working together but there are opportunities and as above there are some very positive signs that demand is growing. Ross M Chambers Provelco Cooperative Ltd

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A price bubble based on speculation does more harm than good. What we need to gain sustainable price increases that will reward the deer velvet producer who has ‘hung in there’ through the tough times is demand creation and growth. Our markets are relatively few and acknowledged as tough which is why we like the

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September 2012

The ultimate traceability story by rob Cope Williams

You would expect three small boys whose father was a butcher to take an interest in meat, but you may not expect the three to aspire to creating an organisation that would surpass their father’s operation However the three Harris boys, Bryan, Nick and Richard have done just that. The family butchery is at Cheviot, not a massive local catchment, but a business that supported the Harris family for many years. Richard headed off to become one of the world’s top hospitality people, and has since come back to run the shop.

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The other two boys have set up what has to be referred to as the ultimate in guaranteed supply and quality control. They have accumulated 1300 acres of land just south of Cheviot, and have built a processing plant on it. It isn’t big, but it is ideal for the numbers they want to put through. Stock from the farm is processed in the plant and then either sold through their retail shop or a select number of handpicked butcher shops within Canterbury and Marlborough. People who can’t get to an outlet or are outside their catchment area have the luxury of buying on line. But it is not just the high quality stock that causes the popularity of the Harris Meats produce, it is also the way they are processed. The stock is totally relaxed when they arrive at the plant because they literally walk across the road and wander into the holding pens. No trucks and no pressure. If on the odd occasion there is a need to bring in extra stock, there’s a one and a half hour time limit on any truck journey, and be assured any extra stock are handpicked to ensure they will be tender. However they don’t just rely on the stock being relaxed, beef is ‘tender hung’ — a process that means the carcass is hung from the pelvic cavity rather than the hocks, so no muscle stimulation is needed or used.

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They admit that the hanging of beef in this way takes time, care and space, but feedback from their customers more than compensates for that. Being a very small family business means that Harris Meats can be, and is, a lot more streamlined than a large corporate organisation, the owners and staff being a close knit group with the customer being number one. Several of the staff have

been working there for about 20 years which speaks volumes. In this age of traceability and accountability what better system than breeding the stock, grazing it on the green hills of North Canterbury and processing them when they are totally relaxed. Harris Meats is unique and proof that small and specialised can work — just ask anyone who buys their meat.

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September 2012

leasant and

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On an August summer drive from Somerset through to Devon in the south-west, the hills rolled away with only the very occasional glimpse of grazing animals to be seen. My host commented that ever since mad cow disease and foot and mouth outbreaks, the English countryside has been a little bare of four-footed inhabitants. But in conversations in a couple of rural pubs, where they have been contemplating farming over their ale for centuries, it emerged that it's an economic foe our UK counterparts are facing. Up front in the scenario are the nations' dairy farmers. Falling milk prices and rising feed prices — grain, not grass — are at the heart of the problem as dairy farmers assert the money they receive for their milk at the gate has plunged to about NZ$0.50c per

litre, but it costs 60 cents to produce.

European farmers can undercut the Brits.

It's not rocket science to conclude the industry is on a hiding to nowhere.

Add to that — shades of the New Zealand retail milk

price row — the UK the food retail market is controlled by just a few big supermarket cabals, which means strong purchasing power. So farm produce prices are forced down, and so agriculture as an economic sector declines. Agriculture accounts for just 1% of GDP, and Britain produces only half the amount of food it consumes. By contrast, New Zealand's

A glance at the news reports saw that dairy farmers were moving to try and force supermarkets to pay more for their milk, to the extent of blockading re-sellers and even opening the farm tanks to send their milk down the drain, instead of selling at a loss. The threat, when I left UK, had seen some progress with major supermarkets 'looking' at a rise in their payments to farmers. But the problem of these empty UK paddocks goes a lot further. Farmers in Europe, just across the channel, do it better, not to mention New Zealand of course. The open borders of Europe mean more efficient

our editor-at-Large, Paul Campbell, took a mid-winter break in europe, and the opportunity to survey something of the farming scene. In this article, he concludes that difficulties in the United Kingdom dairy industry translate into dairy farmers down-under actually being on top of the world

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September 2012 agricultural GDP contribution is three times that, and of course, we export. Last year, dairying alone saw us reap $13.2 billion in export revenue, a 25 percent increase on the year before. But what about home market support for the UK farmers? High street shoppers might express sympathy, but Danish butter looks better to most. Protectionism is illegal in the European Economic Community so it’s hard to

see what chance UK farmers really have.

moves would seem to be doomed to the same fate.

There is talk among their associations about the creation of a regulating office, a sort of government-appointed ombudsman to try and balance production costs with what the big conglomerates are prepared to pay farmers. But when the new government came in a couple of years ago, supermarkets waved the collective big stick at that idea and the now embattled Conservative-Liberal Democrat rulers turned belly up. New

But all seem to agree in the UK that if the paddocks are to be filled once again, something needs to be done, and sooner rather than later, if the vestiges of the UK's battered rural sector is ever to rise again.

“

Agriculture accounts for just 1% of GDP, and Britain produces only half the amount of food it consumes. By contrast, New Zealand's agricultural GDP contribution is three times that, and of course, we export

”

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And let’s face it — it is all about food supply. After six weeks in Europe, this writer returned to New Zealand pastures much of the opinion that we are a lucky country indeed. We can turn grass into a food surplus that assures us of a thriving rural sector and excellent export earnings. It is a future that we must strive to guard. With the utmost vigour. Recent Chinese interest in Kiwi soil has also been echoed in the UK, where a prominent investment advisor, Detlef Schon, CEO at Aquila Capital Green Assets, commenting on the state of the dairy industry there, said New Zealand was a far more appealing country to invest in dairy farming. "This

not

the green and empty fields of england

New Zealand dairy farmers are more intelligent, or their cows are prettier, it's because there's a totally different production system based on conversion of grass to milk, a benign climate, and an abundance of water supply. "By that, you’ll find in New Zealand you can graze your cows all year round, which results in much lower costs per litre of milk produced than in the UK."

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September 2012

Where are we at for the 2012-13 irrigation season

Irrigation Issues Dr Tony Daveron

With two weeks (less when this goes to press) until the equinox, it is timely to put one’s mind to ‘wonder what the irrigation season might have in store’. August was a very wet month — no argument there. So the perennial questions get raised — how are we placed for the upcoming irrigation season,

when will we need to start, how much irrigation will be needed and is there enough (ground) water? While it is crystal ball stuff, there are some useful patterns emerging. What we do know is that the irrigation season is not far away. The equinox is bearing down and we have reached the time of year when growth and water use will begin to increase. That means soil moisture will begin to decline and irrigation will be needed. Instead of using a crystal ball, mainly because I don’t possess any crystal ball gazing skills, I have turned to the experts. The global climate measurements suggest we are heading into an El Niño phase, the negative Southern Oscillation Index for the last five months. It is not strong (yet) and our recent weather is testimony to El Niño — greater southwesterly and westerly airﬂow over the east coast. Since September 4 our weather has been dominated by westerly and north-westerly

Providing WatEr SuPPLy SoLutionS to thE CantErbury rEgion for ovEr 25 yEarS

weather systems — very wet on the West Coast and dry and warm on the east with a west to north west wind. NIWA in their August climate update predicted: ‘August-October rainfall is likely to be below normal for the eastern South Island, and early spring temperatures are likely to be near average or above average’. While the temperature predictions are in contrast to a typical El Niño spring and early summer, and to what we have experienced in the last week or two, the weather has had an El Niño feel about it. Therefore, the irrigation season is closer than being further away, rainfall is likely to be below normal in Canterbury and it could be warmer than normal. Irrigation could have to start shortly because of the warmer temperatures and below average rainfall — although as I write I am conscious of the COLD wet snap forecast for 11-12th.

enough water? For consistency I have chosen to look at the water levels in a favourite observation bore — M36/1926 in the midplains area of the SelwynWaimakariri groundwater zone. The last water level reading was taken in mid-August after the heaviest of the rainfall. While the water level dipped a little in May (like most bores) the snow fall in June and the rainfall has resulted in a small water level rise. It takes time for the excess rainfall to reach the depth of this bore and we could expect to see a greater rise when the bore is measured again in September. It looks then like there is or will be, enough water in the system to meet expected demand in 2012-13. Combining what we know and applying a little crystal ball gazing we know: •

Equinox is all but upon us, a time when day length is favourable for growth;

•

Rainfall might be below average;

•

Temperatures might be above average; but

•

There should be enough water for the 2012-13 irrigation season so that no one has their reliability compromised.

Next question — is there

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September 2012

The ‘Know to make it Flow’ Andrew Curtis, Irrigation New Zealand Ceo

Welcome to Irrigation New Zealand’s first column for Canterbury Farming. We look forward to updating you regularly on what we are doing and how we can help irrigators in Canterbury Irrigation New Zealand is the national body representing irrigators and the irrigation industry. We are not just a Canterburybased organisation as we have members throughout the country. But inevitably much of our work focuses on this region, as the largest land area under irrigation in New Zealand. Throughout the year —

along with policy advice, Government liaison and technical research — our team offers workshops and training sessions to address the practical concerns that irrigators hold. Our mission is to promote excellence in irrigation and later this month into October, Canterbury irrigators have the opportunity to hear the latest on irrigation best management practice.

The ‘Making Irrigation Pay’ workshops follow last year’s successful run which saw more than 700 irrigators up and down New Zealand attend interactive half-day sessions with key speakers. This year’s theme is ‘Managing Within Limits’ and these free sessions aim to help irrigators understand the new environmental regimes about to happen to us all, and how best to work with them. The workshops also contain practical sessions on ‘Irrigation Essentials’ and ‘Technologies for Managing Within Limits’. Water quantity limits and allocations have been in place for a number of years, but water quality limits and associated nutrient discharge allowances will soon become part of day to day farm management. The 2011 National Policy Statement (NPS) for Freshwater Management has mandated freshwater objective and limit setting,

along with the phasing out of over allocation. Irrigators are increasingly familiar with the practical implications of water allocation limits and the use of water meters for compliance monitoring. Now water quality is about to join water allocation as another bottom-line. The ‘Making Irrigation Pay’ workshops will put ‘Managing within Limits’ into context, looking at what it means for irrigators in a practical sense. The technology session ‘Irrigation Essentials’ will address GPS application for irrigation pod placement, Variable Rate Irrigation (VRI) and the challenges and opportunities around Drip Micro irrigation. Audited Self Management (ASM) will also feature this year. Much of the technology session will be taken from regional case studies.

Chertsey on September 28 followed by Leeston October 3, Waimate October 5, Hinds October 10, Amberley October 11, Hororata October 11 and Pleasant Point October 17. Times and locations can be found on the Irrigation New Zealand website http:// irrigationnz.co.nz/events/ making-irrigation-pay Supporting the Canterbury workshops are FAR, DairyNZ, Environment Canterbury and Fonterra. Regional sponsors

include Aoraki Development, Quantum Advantage, Waimate District Council, Grow Mid Canterbury, Selwyn District Council and Enterprise North Canterbury. We look forward to seeing as many irrigators as possible joining us at the workshops. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain from being part of this successful Irrigation New Zealand programme.

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The Maintenance Master Photo: Irrigation NZ News

tony McCormick, Ceo of opuha Water, Ian McIndoe of Aqualinc and Irrigation NZ board member and projects manager Paul reese at a previous workshop in Pleasant Point

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454 West Melton Rd, West Melton RD6 CHCH A/H 03 347 8446 Fax 03 347 8426 ecdrill@xtra.co.nz

MASTER RUTS Workplace safety, stock health, happy contractors... everything is covered with the Rutmaster. The Rutmaster provides a simple and cost-effective solution. Shingle, clay or lime chip is dropped into the ruts, filling them in no time. The Rutmaster fills 400/500mm wide ruts and material can be sourced either from the farm or can be supplied. Rutmaster blade - Returns shoulder soil into the rut, reducing the amount of material required. Great end results.

Contact Barry for your maintenance solution today. LET US SOLVE YOUR POND EROSION AND TROUGH GRAVEL PROBLEMS ALSO OPERATING A 20 TONNE DIGGER TREE TOPPING & HEDGE CUTTING RUTMASTER • INSTIGATOR P: 03 302 3888 M: 0274 803 380 F: 03 302 3887 E: b.jwhittaker@xtra.co.nz

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September 2012

WAter

Airflow in August was dominated by increased northeasterly quarter winds in the first half of the month, with low pressure systems near the North Island and anticyclones across the far south. However, later in the month and through the first half of September westerly and northwesterly airflows have become more frequent, signalling the arrival of our usual spring westerlies, but perhaps a little earlier than normal August was a wetter and cloudier month than usual for Canterbury. In South Canterbury rainfall totals were 200-300% of normal, due to several significant easterly storms. In Mid Canterbury totals were around 200%, as was Banks Peninsula. Around Christchurch and in North Canterbury monthly totals were 150-200% of normal. Sunshine hours were generally 15-25% below average. There were very few frosts in the month, with

computer models appear to us to be a little confused, with a general consensus of maintaining near El Nino like conditions through to the end of the year and into the summer, but without any clear predictions of a definite El Nino event. Our overall expectation is that this El Nino event will be relatively weak and possibly short-lived, with less westerly-thannormal spring conditions

mean temperatures generally +1.0 to +1.5deg warmer than usual, but this was due mainly to very much warmer night time minima, generally +3.0 or more above normal, while day time maximum temperatures were near normal for the time of year. Like July, the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) remained volatile through August, initially falling towards more El Nino like values, but later in the month returning to more neutral numbers. Current

September 2012

in Canterbury followed by a brief dry period in mid summer as the El Nino event matures and begins to decay. It is too early yet to make solid predictions for later in the summer, but early indications are that the weak El Nino may decay rather rapidly and may therefore be unlikely to bring a sustained summer drought to the region. However, we need to wait a few another month or so yet to firm up on that.

So far the first half of September has brought continued westerly airﬂow, but at the time of writing in the middle of the month we seem to have reversed to a broken pattern of anticyclones, low pressure systems, and some easterly airﬂow again. This pattern of reversal between 2-3 week spells of westerly and 2-3 week spells of ‘nonwesterly’ may be a recurring theme for the rest of spring and into summer. Extrapolating out changes in the SOI and combining with other similar periods in the past, we expect to see the rest of September cloudier than usual, with few if any significant periods of northwesterly

airﬂow. October is expected to see low pressure systems again forming in the eastern Tasman Sea and moving over the North Island, bringing further periods of easterly or northeasterly airﬂow to Canterbury. Although this may make October a little milder than usual with fewer late frosts, sunshine hours are likely to be reduced, with rainfall at least normal, or wetter than normal. November and December look likely to be more settled months, but still with reduced frequency and intensity of westerly and northwesterly airstreams. There are some indications that January may be warmer and drier than usual.

Forecast — Canterbury Rainfall

Temperature

Sunshine

Airflow

October

A little wetter than normal

A little milder than normal

Cloudier than normal

Lows near the North Island

November

Near normal

Less westerly airflow

December

Near normal

Less westerly airflow

Drier than normal

Milder than normal

Sunnier than normal

More anticyclones

January

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Forestry

September 2012

Forestry Market Report The wilding pine saga To my mind there is no coincidence that the spread of wilding pine came into prominence after the virus was released to kill the bunny plague It's obvious to me that the bunnies once controlled the spread of wilding pine by simply eating the soft germinating seedlings. Regardless whether this is the case or not, what we are certain of is that the wilding pine spread has got out of hand. Like many others I have been trialling various formulations over the past decade, and with each improved brew better kills are being achieved. But the spread of wilding pine keeps getting worst. Ten years ago we were trialling brews

where wilding pine only covered 20ha of farmland. That same site now has 200ha of wilding pine. We can't blame the virus anymore for the spread but we can blame procrastination. It is time funding was made available to contain this problem or we could simply wait and call the McKenzie the new 'Ponderosa'. Anyway if you are driving down the shores of lake Pukaki have a look at our most recent trial which was sprayed back in April. As the photo suggests results are looking quite pleasing.

TREE HUGGER TREE TOPPING SERVICES LTD • Grabs, cuts trunks up to 500mm diameter, and lowers them in a controlled way • Can top to 8m high • Minimise damage to buildings fences, garden etc • Tree & hedge removal • Free quotes Canterbury wide

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Joke time: A guy stuck his head into a barber shop and asked when can he get a haircut. The barber looked around his remaining customers and said “in a couple of hours”. With that the man disappears and doesn't return. About a week later he arrives back and asked the same question. Again after the barber looks around his remaining customers he says about an hour and a half. Again the man disappears and doesn't return. The man

arrives back the following week and again asked when he can get a haircut. Again the barber looks around his remaining customers and says three hours. With that the man disappears. This was starting to get on the barber's nerves so he asked one of his mates to follow the man to find out where he was going. After about ten minutes his mate comes back with tears running down his face from laughter. The barber looked puzzled and had to wait until his mate could control his laughter. In the end the barber grabbed him by the shirt collar and demanded, “Where is the man going?" In between laughs his mate said "To your house!"

Allan Laurie MNZIF Laurie Forestry Ltd

Despite other commodities softening in price and demand in recent months, log and lumber prices have continued to hold or firm slightly with demand also holding at reasonable levels in our key markets The key player continues to be China. Consumption levels for Pacific Rim softwoods are continuing at a reasonable pace. One good example is Lanshan Port in Shandong province north of Shanghai where Laurie Forestry exports logs to amongst other places. Current inventory levels are around 450,000 cubic metres with consumption running at 12,000 cubic metres per day. At 38 days’ inventory and holding at just under two month’s supply of logs, a good comfort level is maintained and should ensure prices remain stable to very slight firming which is exactly what is needed at the moment. Across the total China market for September and October, we are expecting a small lift of US$2 – 3 per JAS. This should see the steady supply situation continue. Production at the forest level in NZ has been impacted somewhat by a very wet period more or less throughout the country. Some commentators have suggested the monthly production numbers nationally will be 20% back on normal. This will impact equally on NZ domestic sawmills and export destinations with the current supply levels being very approximately 50/50 to each. In terms of pricing at the wharf gate, shipping is the

big unknown. All indicators are suggesting shipping costs should be softening but if anything we are seeing a small firming (US$1 – 2 per JAS). Shipping companies are preferring to hang closer to the more lucrative northern hemisphere routes thus sending a ‘sorry, not today’ message to their southern customers. This then helps to maintain a better price position. The current term used to describe this practice is call ‘shorting’ the market. Domestically, sales of S grade logs targeted for the house frame market are continuing at good pace. The market continues to hold in this seemingly endless limbo state waiting some sort of sales impetus from the Christchurch rebuild. Some are trying to build stock at present which will not be making the bank managers happy but will ensure sawmills have the product when the phone starts to ring. One sawmilling commentator described the likely effect of a rapid change in demand versus supply as being something akin to a nuclear explosion suggesting it will be chaotic, out of control and leave a trail of price blood behind it when it finally happens. One can only hope it will be much more controlled and civilised than that.

Despite those of a more gloomy ilk, the demand does appear to be picking up albeit modestly and I have noted inventories in lumber yards do not thus far appear to be anything akin to a mountain. Framing lumber is the main staple diet and as luck would have it, Canterbury forests are pretty good at producing framing grade logs. (I bet there will be one or two who would like to argue the toss over that one!) I have noted the wailing and gnashing of teeth over the US$/NZ$ exchange rate has lifted in intensity over the last month no doubt exacerbated by commodities coming under selling price pressure. A shift downward of 1c over the last month is hardly likely to win the Reserve Bank Governor any gongs but there is a few of us who would nominate him for national hero status if he could just encourage the exchange rate back below 0.70c. Overall we are continuing to say this year will remain stable in price and demand terms internationally. However overall wood fibre demand remains good and prices are holding at a time when other commodities are softening. Thus it is has never been more timely to remember the only way forward for climate, country and the planet is to get out there and plant more trees… please… !

All you need to know

Wastewood grinding Your site or ours Wood Chip Supplies Dairy Conversion Cleanup

Laurie Forestry Ltd

Harvesting & Marketing, Consultants & Managers

SUPPLIERS OF FORESTRY SERVICES • Consulting & Management • Valuations • Harvesting & Management • Carbon trade & registering in the ETS Office: Phone 03 359 5000 Fax: 03 359 5099 www.laurieforestry.co.nz Email: admin@laurieforestry.co.nz Unit 3 337 Harewood Road Bishopdale Christchurch 22 Shearman Street Waimate

(and some things you don’t)

about

FARM FORESTRY

• Woodlot establishment • Aerial pre plant & release application • Aerial boron application • Boron supplies • Herbicide supplies

Andy McCord Resident forestry writer (and joke teller) for Canterbury Farming

Technical Forest Services Ltd 30 Pentecost Road Rangiora e-mail andymccord@xtra.co.nz web site www.techforest.co.nz

Office 03 313 4153 Andy 027 224 3271 Sammi 027 282 7580

September 2012

Forty four facts about fertilisers and soils Part One

by Brett Petersen 1 A comprehensive soil test should be completed annually to determine what nutrients should be applied to the soil to maintain fertility balance. We recommend Kinsey Agricultural Services (KAS). 2 The soil is the plant’s stomach; please respect it. We are a reﬂection of the soil’s health. 3 Some chemical fertiliser kills microbes, causing imbalances. Superphosphate and urea are deadly to beneficial soil fungi. Nitrogen is the only major plant nutrient that you can grow yourself. Watch salt

and ammonia levels, insist on applying only fertilisers which do the least damage to soil life and plant roots — you can reduce nitrogen inputs over time by promoting soil biology. 4 Ninety-five percent of plant yield comes from the atmosphere; only 5% comes from the soil. 5 Fertiliser programmes must be based around the calcium content of your soil. If base saturation calcium is below 60%, you will virtually have to purchase fertiliser ad infinitum. 6 The correct base saturation figures from KAS for soils are: Calcium 65-70% Magnesium 10-12% Potassium 3.5-5% for pastures, 7-7.5% for woody plants

Do not expect to address trace elements until those conditions are met. Soil pH will auto-correct to about 6.4 when the above conditions are fulfilled. 7 It is extremely important to get calcium levels up. Calcium is responsible for carrying other minerals into the plant, however too much calcium can tie up other nutrients and cause deficiencies. Soil testing with a reputable lab is the only way to effectively measure base saturation and calcium levels. 8 Calcium and boron are synergists so lime is more effective with boron added. Boron, along with selenium and cobalt, is commonly deficient in New Zealand soils. 9

Lime to correct calcium, not to ‘correct’ pH, calcium:

Many NZ soils are well below these figures.

•

Improves root development

•

Enhances microbial activity

Once these conditions have been met fertiliser requirements will drop substantially.

•

Increases the transport of minerals — Calcium is the vehicle that moves minerals into plants

Sodium 0.5-1.5%

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•

Improves soil structure

•

Acts as a secondary messenger

•

Improves plant health and disease resistance

•

Is required for cell walls (pectin)

•

Enhances the rate of protein synthesis

•

Serves as a weed indicator

10 Dolomite is highly rated for its calcium and magnesium content; Magnesium is found at the centre of the chlorophyll molecule, the plant’s lightharvesting, energy-producing centre. Magnesium also plays an important role in the production of oils and proteins, and in energy metabolism. (If Ca levels are too high, we will not recommend dolomite, nor do we recommend dunite, (serpentine) as it is slow to break down.) 11 Fertiliser and lime are more effective with carbon added. Carbon is food for the

microbes. Carbon sources are well-made compost, microbial inoculated aged bark, humates, aged sawdust and/or charcoal. 12 Feed the soil life using carbon from compost, green manures, livestock manures and crop residues; apply calcium from a reputable plant available source. 13 Soil fungi are responsible for retaining 100% of available calcium in the soil. It is a fallacy that one tonne of lime or another product is required to move soil PH by one point. The soil microbes have the ability to move the PH of your soil without the physical input of calcium.

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Canterbury Soils Ltd

Rob Ball a 00880000 3ntyne 3 31

31 8844 44

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INCREASED PROFITABILITY STARTS WITH HEALTHY SOIL How does yours compare?

John Deere 6420SE (2004) 21890 o John Deere 6520SE (2005) 21931 t 4WD, 110hp, 5620 hours, A/C Cab, JD 631 4WD, 115hp, 4617 hours, A/C Cab, NSL Loader (No bucket), Passenger seat, Stoll F36 loader, Very tidy. Very tidy. $75,000 $59,000

John Deere 7920 (2005) 22049 o 4WD, 200hp, 5620 hours, A/C Cab, IVT Transmission, 3PT Front Linkage, Field Office, Rear Quick Hitch. $110,000

John Deere 6510SE (2002) 22285 t 4WD, 105hp, 10300 hours, A/C Cab, PowerQuad Trans, Stoll F31 Loader, Multi coupler, Pickup drawbar. $38,000

John Deere 6200 (1993) 21959 K 2WD, 84hp, 7488 hours, A/C Cab, PowerQuad, 2 Remotes, Extra lighting, Very tidy order $25,000

John Deere 6220 roPS (2004) 22377 B 4WD, 90hp, 4224 hours, JD 631 NSL Loader, 16-Speed Powershift, Very tidy order. $57,000

By simply correcting your soils calcium and magnesium base saturation levels with calculated application of fine ground Golden Bay Dolomite you will significantly reduce your farms liming/animal health & fertiliser outgoings.

BASE SATURATION PERCENT Calcium (60 to 70%) Magnesium (10 to 20%) Potassium (2 to 5%) Sodium (.5 to 3%) Other Bases (Variable)

}80%

EXCHANGEABLE HYDROGEN (10 to 15%) John Deere 7930 (2006) #22265 o John Deere 6220SE (2004) 22294 B New Holland tM165 (2001) 21895 G 4WD, 220hp, 4340 hours, A/C Cab, JD 746 4WD, 90hp, 3032 hours, A/C Cab, 4WD, 165hp, 7085 hours, A/C Cab, Loader, IVT Trans. PowerQuad Trans, JD 651 SL Loader. Tidy unit.

POA

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$55,000

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Ron McLean

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www.goldenbaydolomite.co.nz www.nealkinseynz.co.nz all prices exclude GST

CoUNtry MotorING

September 2012

Diesel or petrol; which is the better value? Country Motoring searches for answers with the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Hyundai i30 I’m often asked which is best, read cheapest to run, diesel or petrol?

Such is the case with the two vehicles pictured here the Jeep Laredo and Hyundai i30.

Last time I did a survey the comparison was with Land Rover’s latest Discovery the Series 11, in 1999. Diesel at 44c litre was a runaway winner over petrol at $1.09 even with road user charges. A winner on cost but not on driveability and many other factors including power/acceleration and noise.

I have driven both extensively in petrol and diesel variants and the answer is…no — you’ll have to read on because the equation is not so simple.

Well in the intervening period diesel is close to 75% of petrol price up from the 40% and the diesel power plants are more economical, more powerful and oh so quiet.

I chose these two vehicles as they represent good value for purpose and are powered by the latest engines and being 5-star safety rated also incorporate the latest technology in computer assistance for safety and comfort. They are also at different ends of the consumer purchase

continuum and will appeal therefore to a wide audience between them. Both vehicles are 5-star NCASP rated and feature keyless entry/start. The Jeep Grand Cherokee has a choice of three engines, 3 litre turbo diesel, 3.6 litre petrol and 5.7 litre petrol. The first two are six cylinder and the third is a V8. For the purposes of this comparison I drove the two sixes, available in the Laredo version. The 5-speed auto only diesel asks $5000 more than the identical petrol. The Limited and Overland models also available have the V8 option as well as a higher spec level.

ALPINE CLEARSPAN SHEDS

Hyundai i30 elite Petrol shows off its Coupe’ like design

Jeep has been around for 70 years and the Laredo lacks for little. The 18” polished alloy wheels set off the smart purposeful design well and they’re easy to clean.

car. The only items lacking are rear view camera ($1200) and Sat nav on the 6.5” screen. I’d also opt for leather seats, bringing up the total costs on either by approx $4000.

There are some clever electronics including tyre pressure monitoring, Hill Descent Control HDC, rain brake, which keeps the pads and rotors dry in wet conditions as well as auto dipping lights, that dip for you with oncoming traffic. As well dual as air cond, Bluetooth and cruise are all controlled on the wheel and the audio which includes a ripping or copying function to keep your fave music in the

Off the Road the big truck excels. I took it over some very wet ground and the Quadratrac full time 4WD with terrain selector and HDC just got on with the job effortlessly. I drove both through 600mm deep water, and climbed 35 degree slopes and came down 69 degree using the HDC without incident On the Road. Over a 750km road trip south to the lakes with my USB plugged

into the sound system and five up we found the ride and quietness inside effortless and mile eating. Either engine performed though my choice both on and off road is the torquey diesel which also would be first cab off the rank for towing. As you see below, oddly the petrol is rated to haul only 2268kg — a Falcon will tow 2300. The diesel is rated at 3500kg. Both models have a Trailer Sway Control to sort out problems when towing. A Roll Mitigation System ERM takes care of over indulgence of speed or inclination and works both on and off the road.

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Go Further

CoUNtry MotorING

September 2012 the launch I attended and story a couple of months ago, of ‘living at the Koru Lounge’. The car we [motoring journo’s] drove through atrocious conditions in the dark wet North Island roads was the diesel i30 which on several occasions hit ﬂooding, 150mm or more, at 100km/h or more, with a huge bang. The car[s] came through unscathed with a barely perceptible slowing in progress and no deviation from the chosen line. Front driven, they are loaded with the latest technology including

the ability to adjust the steering feel. Flex Steer allows normal mode comfort (read super soft) and sport which is really appreciated by drivers that like to feel the road. Some other innovative features include a cooled glove box for the essential bevies, electric parking brake with emergency stop function and a rear camera that pops out only when reverse is engaged therefore keeping the lens clean from dust or road film, very clever!

FARM 4X4 F Low Maintenance Cost Demo from authorised dealers Chrysler Grand Cherokee Laredo Diesel supremely competent off road

hatch in terms of value and performance. A few years ago I drove the previous model in a wagon version (and it was red). However I like the hatch, coupe-look style better and it loses little in real terms of usable space.

I really appreciated the nice weighted feel to the steering and it’s incredibly tight lock of 11.6m, great in car parks or off the beaten track switchbacks. It was also easy to get a sense of where the wheels were pointing, even in slippery conditions.

The Elite model interior seats five in leather clad luxury with heated front seats powered for the captain. As you read on you’ll see the petrol is the value and economy winner, though for driveability the diesel is the

The cargo area is accessed via a pop glass or whole lift tailgate revealing a massive 782 litres or with the 60/40 split seats lowered ﬂat 1554 litres or five hay bales!

The 1800cc petrol however is not far behind and will be the better seller due to its great value at $4000 less. Both are 6-speed autos with 6-speed manual boxes available. Standard on both are air conditioning with an automatic windscreen defog feature, that

works brilliantly and will be appreciated, as will the auto headlights that switch on when the i30 senses poor light. Hyundai provide a first aid kit, a safety vest and a fire extinguisher free with every model and these are all easily accessible from the boot even when loaded. It’s a very good useable addition to the other safety and comfort standard equipment showing real attention to detail. The eagle eyed among you will recall the photo of

YEARS

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September 2012

the developing role of tonic plantain in dairying Recent DairyNZ work with Tonic plantain has identified it as a species capable of growing a similar annual yield to perennial ryegrass pastures with similar pasture quality over the same period. The Tonic and white clover pasture had an average metabolisable energy of 11.8 MJ ME/kg DM compared with 11.4 for the farmlet of perennial ryegrass. Crude

protein of the Tonic was 18.3%, compared to 20% for the grass pastures (Roach and Glassey 2012). Currently, Tonic plantains use in dairying has primarily been for use in seed mixes as a drought tolerant species that can grow and compete with summer active grasses, providing improved quality of animal intake when other species are least productive.

The DairyNZ work indicates that Tonic could be used as a major component of a mix. Tonic plantain was initially identified as an opportunity to develop another forage herb following the success of chicory, as Tonic is well adapted to a wide range of environments and soil types. The unique characteristics of Tonic plantain that were identified during the breeding

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process included remaining upright throughout the year, making it available for animal grazing at all times The autumn dry matter production or drought recovery was at times better than perennial ryegrass and notably the winter activity and dry matter production was similar to that of perennial ryegrass. Although Tonic is a relatively free-seeding type it maintained a high level of leaf production during its reproductive phase, providing a greater amount of quality forage, even

in the presence quality stem.

low

In other work at DairyNZ, chicory and Tonic plantain’s role as a forage option for animal production was expressed when ryegrass quality dropped to 9.6 MJ ME/kg DM in summer. Feeding first year chicory and plantain to between 20 and 40 percent of the total diet increased dry matter intake of cows by about 1kg per day, and milk solids by about 17 percent compared with cows fed ryegrass pasture only (Lee and Minnee 2012).

This work highlights that Tonic plantain is an exciting forage option for the dairy industry. For more information about Tonic plantain please call your local retailer or contact Agricom 0800 183 358. Dr Julia Lee and Elena Minnee, Hot Science showcase, Forage herbs for summer feed, Inside Dairy June 2012 Roach, C., Glassey, C. 2012. Yield and composition for two years of a plantain/white clover crop, Scott farm, Hamilton. p. 12. In Plantain for Northland Pastures Workshop, (eds. G. Piggot), Whangarei, New Zealand.

An ideal source of minerals for animal health and performance. Valuable year-round growth, especially in winter and early spring. Adding Tonic to your pasture mix is an easy way to add value and diversity. To find out how Tonic can maximise production on your farm, contact 0800 183 358, visit www.agricom.co.nz or visit your local seed merchant. Another great product from:

September 2012

Cultivation

Addressing trace element deficiencies in crops Spring can be a trying time for crops. Nutrient stresses often show up, brought on by various weather conditions It is common to see manganese deficiency at this time of year — in autumn-sown wheat or barley, especially around Mid Canterbury, and in North Canterbury’s lighter soils, where zinc may be affecting arable crops.

increase yields and therefore profits.

Australian company Agrichem has undertaken numerous trials to illustrate how trace element deficiencies can affect crop yields and — more importantly — how addressing deficiencies can

“These are well-supported findings. For instance, manganese is essential for photosynthesis, being involved in chlorophyll production in all plants. It activates a large number of

Canterbury-based Fertigation Systems is a distributor for Agrichem. Owner Graeme Pile says the company’s trial results are backed up by longstanding scientific papers.

enzymes — some of which help with nitrate assimilation and many of which assure maximum productivity during the citric acid cycle. “Manganese deficiencies often show up in cereal crops as speckled or light-coloured leaves. And wheat crops low in the trace element can be more susceptible to root diseases. “One simple way to reduce the incidence of manganese deficiency is to coat the seed with manganese, using a product called Nutriseed. The photos show the effect of Nutriseed on root mass. And, increased root mass is good, as it

improves the chance of a better yield.” The diagram demonstrates how Nutriseed works. “Once sown, the seed begins to absorb water. At this stage, the seeds are removed from the fertiliser band. The seed coat softens and, where the seed has been treated, the nutrients on the seed coat are absorbed. The seed will use

the nutrients and activators in the seed dressing to grow roots,” Mr Pile says.

crop reaches ‘growth stage 32’ on the Zadok cereal development scale.”

“Once there is sufficient root growth, the plant starts to absorb nutrients and water from the soil and pushes a shoot up. By now, it will also be able to tap into the fertiliser band. Part of the crop potential is set. The next step is to apply foliar manganese, before the

Fertigation Systems can provide Nutriseed coatings for most crops (including kale, barley and wheat), and grass seed. For more information, trial data or to purchase products, call Graeme Pile on 0800 3374 840 or contact your local ATS store.

DAIRY FARMERS • Direct Drilling • Full Cultivation • Farm Advising

B A Murray Ltd REGD Agricultural Contractors

Contact – Steve Murray

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0800 65 65 88 Calvin Bracken (Canterbury/West Coast) Ph: 027 290 9942, (03) 312 6865 Email: cr.bracken@farmside.co.nz

Mark Jackson (Mid/South Canterbury) Ph: 027 620 3085, (03) 614 7494 Lester Gibson (West Coast) Ph: 027 431 0058, (03) 732 3422

Mobile 0274 343 119 A/H 03 312 2299

September 2012

Cultivation

Rural Fields has all your spring cultivation and drilling requirements covered Rural Fields now offer a full range of cultivation options right through to drilling with fertiliser. Their primary cultivation tools consist of a plough and subsoiler/ vertical plough

Rural

Fields

Ploughing • Cultivation • Drilling Mowing • Pivot Tracks Contact David Buckley 027 659 6596 • 03 317 9522 • ruralfields@xtra.co.nz

www.ruralfields.co.nz

The plough is fully adjustable from the cab which means that the land wheel can be lifted for the last round leaving a shallow furrow against the fence. Rural Fields’ subsoiler and multidiscs make a perfect combination for working up after winter grazing and for minimum tillage. In this combination they can achieve what they believe is a better result than a one-pass machine (which often requires two passes) and for a similar price. Rural Fields now offers a full range of drilling services including direct drilling, roller drilling and minimum till drilling. Our new roller drill is ideal for re-grassing as it enables closer row spacing than our current tyne drill. Rural Fields recently purchased a new Horsch Pronto AS Drill with fertiliser. This drill cultivates, rolls, and drills all in one pass. The drill is also capable of tramlining and has ﬂow sensors installed. The drill will allow farmers to cut at least one cultivation pass out and for some paddocks will only require one grub before it is ready to drill.

Second Hand Stock

New Horsch Pronto AS with fertiliser

Accuracy plays a big part in how we operate at Rural Fields as it saves us time and the farmer money through reducing overuse of inputs. That is why we are upgrading our GPS signal to a pass accuracy of 5cm and using ITEC Pro at

no additional costs to farmers when using our new Horsch Pronto AS Drill. ITEC Pro is an automatic headland turning system that lifts and lowers implements and puts them down exactly at the right time with no human judgement required.

Subsoiler in kale ground after winter grazing

Ex Demonstrators

Alpego 5mtr Saker c/w A52 Seed Drill & Hydraulic row Alpego 5mtr Saker + GST markers $45,000 c/w A52 Seed Drill & Hydraulic row makers $40,000 + GST

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Duncan 17 run Enviro 740 Direct Drill 5in spacing Triple Disc Duncan 17 run Enviro 740 & GST with Press wheels $59,000 Direct Drill 5in spacing Triple Disc with Press Wheels $52,000 + GST

Celli Rotor Spike Pioneer 140 c/w Cage Roller Celli Potor+Spike $24,000 GST Pioneer 140 c/w Cage Roller $22,000 + GST

Alpego RK300 Power Harrow c/w Packer Roller Alpego RK300 $32,000 + GSTPower Harrow c/w Packer Roller $32,000 + GST

Duncan 23 run Quantum 720 Drill Dual Box Press Wheels & Tow Bar Duncan 23+ run $28,000 GSTQuantum 720 Drill Dual Box Press Wheels & Tow Bar $28,000 + GST

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Duncan 28 run Mk4 Renovator Dual Box, Hydraulic Disc Openers Duncan $47,00028 + run GSTMk4 Renovator Dual Box, Hydraulic Disc Openers $47,000 + GST

Alpego KH300 Rotopick c/w Packer Roller Alpego KH300 $33,000 + GSTRotopick c/w Packer Roller $33,000 + GST

Taege MPS Fert Spreader Fully Reconditioned Taege MPS Fert Spreader $9,000 + GST Fully Reconditioned $5,000 + GST

Sam Spreader Tandem Axle Sam Spreader $13,000 + GST Tandem Axle $10,000 + GST

Panarazor 5 Leg Ripper $3,000 + GST Great Plains Spartan 607HD Trailing Triple Disc Air Drill Dual Seed & Fertilizer Boxes Upgraded to latest Specifications POA - Finance options available

Robertson Transpread 770 Row Crop Spreader Rata 304 Panerazer Aerator $55,600 + GST 5 Leg (2.5m) Winged Feet Crumbler Roller $9,500 + GST

COCHRANES

your farm machinery specialist

September 2012

Cultivation

“In the field”

Pasture tips with Pasture First by Nigel Johnston

Choose carefully when selecting varieties to sow winter activity between the varieties. While certainly not the number one priority for perennial ryegrasses, the speed of establishment and growth through the first winter can have an inﬂuence on the performance of that variety through the following spring period and especially on the critical first and second grazing rotations following calving and lambing.

Last month I outlined the pasture evaluation trial that Pasture First is running near Springston to assess the performance of a number of different perennial and Italian ryegrass varieties available on the market

For Italian ryegrasses, this first period after sowing is very important as these Italian ryegrasses are designed

to provide significant periods of feed in a shorter period of time.Looking at the Perennial ryegrasses, there was a 26% difference between the top variety and the bottom variety. The top yielding variety grew 2241kg DM/ha with the lowest variety yielding only 1712kg DM/ha. It was also interesting to note that the top five varieties were recently released varieties bred by leading New Zealand seed companies, while the common variety ‘Nui’ (although not the lowest yielder) was 14% below the highest.

In the Italian ryegrass trial, there was a 13% difference between the highest and lowest yielding varieties. Again, the highest performing varieties were relatively recent NZ bred varieties, while the two lowest yielding varieties were Moata and a European bred cultivar. As mentioned above, it is too early to make any conclusions at this stage on the merits of each individual variety. However, what the results so

far do indicate is that there are significant differences between the performance of different varieties, and therefore careful consideration should be given to a variety yield potential when deciding which variety to sow. While grazing management, fertility, and environmental conditions will ultimately decide how much a cultivar will grow, it is important to remember that if you get these factors right, then the choice of cultivar does have

an effect on the yield potential of your pasture. ‘Contact Us’ form at the right hand side of any webpage. Include in the subject line — ‘Trial results’. For more information contact Nigel Johnston on 03 347 6440 or 027 777 2877 or visit www.pastureﬁrst.co.nz Nigel Johnston is an independent pasture agronomist and Managing Director of Pasture First.

CULTIVATION & DRILLING by

The trial contains most commercial varieties of perennial and Italian ryegrasses available and includes perennial ryegrass varieties containing five different types of endophytes.

E N T E R P R I S E S LT D

Although the trial was only sown in autumn, and it is too early to make any real conclusions on each variety’s performance, it was very interesting to see that there were major differences in establishment speed and

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September 2012

Cultivation

New evidence helps stamp out pugging Cattle are no lightweights, and when conditions are damp it’s inevitable that their hooves are going to cause damage to the foundations of good pasture — the effect known as pugging. It’s been a problem for as long as people have cultivated livestock, but with more intensive farming practises and increased herd sizes, it’s an issue which needs more attention than ever It’s not just an aesthetic consideration, either — pugging doesn’t just reduce drainage, leading to more runoff, it also harms the soil in other ways. Pugged soil is less aerated, meaning that soil temperatures remain low, and anerobic conditions can develop down at the root level, robbing grass of the good microbes and the oxygen it needs to ﬂourish. Ryegrass is especially impacted by pugging — the ‘tillers’ which are the roots of ryegrass

are delicate, and pugged pasture supports less than 45% of ground cover compared to healthy pasture. Yield can be cut from between 20 to 80 percent by pugging, and the effects can last over half a year, seriously impacting the growth of all important dry mass and thus impacting your bottom line. Obviously, doing nothing about pugging isn’t even an option — but research conducted in New Zealand by the Taranaki

soil is less aerated, meaning “thatPugged soil temperatures remain low, and anerobic conditions can develop down at the root level, robbing grass of the good microbes and the oxygen it needs to flourish

Agricultural Research Station has produced some interesting facts. The usual method for tackling pugging has involved the farmer’s old friend, the harrow and roller combination. Levelling the paddock and providing aeration by deep-tine harrowing has an immediate effect, reducing runoff and breaking up the harmful anerobic conditions caused by deep compaction. But alone, these methods aren’t enough. Studies have proven that following up the harrow and roller with broadcasting of ryegrass seed is the most effective method of rebuilding a healthy paddock — 16%

better than simply using the machinery alone. Broadcasting the seed was found to be even more effective than drilling. Another option which works on many levels is to plant a ‘break crop’ after regrassing. Crops such as turnips are not on the menu for grass grubs and other pests, ruining their life cycle and killing them off

In short, it’s a multilayered approach. Machinery can take a pugged pasture so far back to good health, but it’s also important to re-seed, rather than relying on existing

grasses to try and re-establish themselves. Vigorous and hardy varieties of grass are readily available through many agricultural companies to kickstart the regeneration process. And in the end, it all comes down to getting the most from your pasture — the most fuel for your herd at the lowest cost both to your bottom line and to the environment.

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naturally. And of course, a summer crop can provide feed at a better level than damaged pasture, helping lay in a stock of feed for the winter months.

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Seeds Seeds

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Lincoln/Tai Tapu contractors Robert and Grant McCarthy employs up to 25 staff to meet the requirements of both ﬂat land and hill farms in the area broadly bounded by the Waimakariri and Rakaia rivers and eastwards to Banks Peninsula. Specialising in direct drilling, fertiliser spreading, cultivation, drilling, baling, and cartage, McCarthy Contracting Ltd continues its long association with Duncan farm machinery.

“I don’t believe you can get anything better than the Duncan Renovator direct drill metering system, and there is nothing more robust or easier to set up. Calibration is easy, and the large hopper means easy loading,” says Robert. “We pushed for Duncan Ag to develop the air seeder technology to go with their MK4 Renovator drill and we now have the reliability of seed placement despite the rough terrain and wide-ranging

September 2012

Busch contracting Limited

soil conditions we often get into. The new AS3000 really meets the challenges of terrain and soil types remarkably well, and we believe it comes into its own when drilling on hill country and in hard ground.” “We sow about 2,500 ha per annum and that includes a wide variety of seeds,” he says. “The AS3000 doesn’t require as much horsepower as many might expect. That means there is a lower carbon footprint in terms of diesel, and the low capital cost of the AS3000 is to our advantage too.” The drill is also versatile in that it can go from arable drilling to direct drilling without making any alterations to the drill. McCarthy Contracting favours the 5 inch row spacing to improve seed placement and avoid the necessity to cross drill. “We often drill clover through the back box and grass through the front box. We don’t drill fertiliser through the

For Pastoral and Crop Direct or Conventional Drilling

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drill as we prefer to keep the boxes clean. This enables us to drill the same seed through both boxes or to drill one seed

through the front box and keep the back box for fine seeds like clover or insecticides when required.”

Corey 027 623 8003 / 03 322 1150 For advertising call 03 347 2314 or email sales@canfarm.co.nz

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September 2012

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September 2012

Seeds Intensive agriculture demands versatility Seeds

Deane Taylor is one of the farmers providing a bounteous harvest of veges to keep New Zealand full and healthy — his 405 hectare farm southeast of Ashburton spans a fertile swath of the Canterbury plains, an area legendary for its productivity But there are challenges inherent in the intensive arable system Deane and farms like him utilise to maximise production. As farming becomes more and more scientific and industrialised the demand for machinery grows, leading to technological overload and an effect known as ‘iron disease’ — the accumulation of more and more specialised equipment which is tough to maintain.

construction and ease of use have proven reliable across beetroot, parsnips, brassica and more — and all without the high-tech complications of many other similar implements.

That’s why Deane was impressed when Murray Implements introduced him to the Aguirre RS 6000 series seed drill. This advanced but simple machine is the ‘swiss army knife’ of seed drills, able to handle the sowing requirements for a vast range of crops. Its no-nonsense

The Aguirre is an air seeder, using pneumatic technology to ‘drill’ seed into the soil at just the right depth. The advancement of such machines, especially overseas, has seen them become highly specialised to one particular crop or another — but no so the Aguirre RS

“Farming is more complex now than ever,” says Deane “We went to this drill because we need to maximise our returns, and with less wear points and less maintenance it’s just simple and easy to use.”

6000, which effortlessly handles the shift from small cereals to the large seeds of legume crops like peas.

“It’s a good entry into air seeder technology for the New Zealand farmer, simply because it’s versatile” says Deane. He points out that many farmers using the intensive arable system as he does are not tied down to a single crop, and having a single machine which can cover up to 85 percent of sowing is a great investment. The reduction in labour has also been significant since Deane began using the Aguirre seed drill in 2009. “We’ve halved our sowing time, as a general rule. It’s a good wide unit, able to cover a lot of ground rapidly.” But the gains in time away from the tractor (keeping up that all important work life balance) are not the whole story. Despite lacking the computerised technicality of more expensive, more specializsd seed

drills, the Aguirre is also accurate.

“You need to make every step a winner,” says Deane, referring to the many parts of the cultivation cycle. “But the first step is the most important of all.” That means sowing efficiently and accurately for a better harvest later in the year. As a farmer — and a customer — Deane also respects the knowledge and commitment of the people at Murray Implements. Not only did they source the Aguirre from Europe, picking that it would work well half the world away in Canterbury, but they also stand by their product with advice and service.

“The team from Murray Implements are always easy to talk to — and they’re very proactive in meeting the needs of their customers,” he says. By matching the right tool to the right job, the Murray Implements team have made a big difference on his farm.

“As your farm gets bigger it’s easy to get more and more equipment, but it’s important to invest your dollars wisely,” says Deane. And with the Aguirre RS 6000 series seed drill, that investment will pay dividends for years to come, both on the bottom line and in terms of time spent sowing.

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September 2012

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IgY antibodies provide a passive immunity effect in the gut in the same way bovine colostrum would. Studies show that IgY’s successfully pass through the gastro -intestinal tract in an active form and are not altered by the digestive process. Their ability to bind to antigens is maintained within the local gut. As the Rotagen products are based on a local gut immunity provided by immunoglobulins, there is no issue with toxicity and no withholding period. The product can be used with calves of any age and

a cryptosporidium specific treatment for calves. Approved by the ACVM as an aid in the prevention and treatment of calf scours caused by cryptosporidium, this is available as a standalone product without the addition of rotavirus. This is particularly useful in cases where the herd has been vaccinated for rotavirus, but the farm has a history of cryptosporidium parvum scours in their calves. Calves of any age or weight can be treated at the same dosage rate. For prevention, the recommended

Appropriate rehydration is essential and Rotagen can be used in conjunction with electrolytes or milk feeding. Treating the calves with Rotagen is one part of the equation, reducing the effects of environmental contamination is also important in reducing the effects of an outbreak within your calves, this is where another Vetpak product Vetsan can help, Vetsan is a santiser and disinfectant that is effective against all major organisms including Rotavirus, Coronavirus, E Coli, Salmonella Sp and Cryptospordium. One of the major benefits of Vetsan is that it is a very safe product which can be sprayed around and over your calves without any affects to them and it is also non toxic to humans. Vetsan comes in two forms, one is a ready to use product and the other is a concentrate mixed at a 1to 4 ratio, Vetsan should be used with a fine nozzle or mist sprayer or it is suitable for use with a fogger.

treatment can be initiated at any stage of infection. It can be used to both prevent and treat specific calf scours. A recent addition to the range is Rotagen Crypto,

dose is 10 grams per calf per day for five days. For treatment, dose calves with 10 g twice daily for the first day, then 5 g twice daily for three to seven days.

A litre of Vetsan will cover 36m2 compared to many products on the market only covering 3m2 per litre of product and Vetsan also has residual activity over 7-14 days meaning the product keeps working longer.

DAIry

September 2012

Soil Matters — with Peter Burton

How fertiliser nitrogen applied now may cause your land to devalue in the future

The effect that will have on current land values could be catastrophic. There are however nutrient programmes that include strategic use of nitrogen fertiliser which may well allow intensive pastoral farming to continue in even the most sensitive water catchment areas. These programmes are supported by long term grass growth figures, total farm production records, and most recently nitrate nitrogen leaching figures. Not proof as that will take at least ten years of work by research institutes, but enough data to show there is a sound long term alternative.

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Still a little sceptical they asked if they could speak to farmers using the programmes. Several clients that have been using DoloZest for more than five years were spoken with, along with customers that started within the last twelve months.

Increasingly local body authorities have been drawing lines on maps and stipulating the conditions under which

ET OD

That didn’t sit well with them, and they didn’t see it as an answer to the increasing damage by ﬂea and weevil each year resulting in greater areas

Information collected over the last eight years showing DoloZest based programmes to have increased total pasture production, improved animal performance, reduced damage by pests, as well as increasing the sense of pleasure and wellbeing of farming families, was presented.

The answer is, in the short term yes, and in the longer term no, depending on quantity and

frequency of application. It has since been explained to me that some farmers have become conditioned to short term fixes, with a subsequent loss of long term perspective.

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Having already voiced their concern about total pasture production to the representative of their local fertiliser company, a soil test had been taken and the recommendation was to increase the level of all inputs particularly phosphorus and nitrogen.

My recommendation was to apply more calcium in the form of lime in conjunction with DoloZest the biologically active product based on dolomite. Maintenance amounts of phosphorus, potassium, and sulphur were also recommended, along with a steady phasing out of fertiliser nitrogen.

Despite having received only positive responses there was still a reluctance to place the order. The reluctance to change eventually surfaced, ‘nitrogen grows more grass, doesn’t it?’

Farmers no longer have a privileged position when it comes to their environmental footprint and should they decide not to comply with regulations on nitrate nitrogen losses they are likely to have to relocate, and eventually the net will spread.

Specifically they were concerned about the cost of their fertiliser programme which included the cost of urea. Although they said those costs were not rising rapidly they had drawn a link between fertiliser and what seemed to be declining pasture production.

of pasture requiring renovation or renewal in autumn.

One regulation that is being put in place throughout the country right now stipulates the quantity of nitrate nitrogen permitted to leak from farms and in some instances the time by which the standard must be met.

TR Y

I was approached recently by a dairy farming family passionate about their farm and dedicated to the dairy industry. Their concern was the steadily escalating cost of producing milksolids and the rapidly declining amount paid for them.

farmers particularly intensive dairy operations may continue to operate.

Murray Taylor 03 314 7254 or 0274 323 250

Notes from the

shed

Our clay shingle is nOt mixed prOducts it is 100% naturally prOduced

with Mike Prendergast

It’s great to finally see the sun shining and the grass growing. It has been a wet but a warm spring so far and unfortunately this is prime condition for all those nasty bugs that cause mastitis to thrive. There can be several causes of mastitis from environmental to mechanical. Consulting with your animal health professional (local vet) should be first on your list, at the same time ruling out your milking plant. Here are a few tips that may help you find some of the basic issues preventing your machine working at it’s peak: Weekly Checklist: 1. Check your milking liners — how old are they? Are there any split or twisted ones? Liners should be replaced at least every 2500 milkings. 2. Check all your pulse tubes on the milking claw — are there any cracked or split ones? 3. Check your claw bowl seals — are they cracked or split?

As the clay shingle is screened not crushed, there are no sharp stones for cows feet.

We can also arrange: • Transport of shingle • Rolling and grading

4. Check your claw bowls for cracks.

to your pulsation rate and ratio — only a machine test can pick this up. But it may help you isolate a pulsator that is not working. 7. If you have an accurate vacuum gauge, check your vacuum level is not too high. Vacuum may range from as low as 41 kpa on a low line set up to 45 kpa on some high lines, but this is best discussed with a trained milking machine technician. 8. If you have cup removers check that they are milking the cows out cleanly and not over milking or under milking your herd. 9. Get a machine test done at least annually. 10. Get your milking plant serviced annually or every 1500 hours.

5. Check the pulse tube leading to the claw for splits or cracks.

The smallest crack or split can cause problems and any of parts showing signs of wear should be replaced immediately.

6. While the milking machine is running place your fingers inside the teat cup (for a short period, 10 — 20 seconds) to check if the pulsation is working. Please note this is not an accurate guide

Hopefully these quick tips will help you isolate any small issues you may be having. Call your local Milfos Service Partner to get your shed booked in for a machine test and a milking plant service.

DAIry

September 2012

DAIRY FARMERS

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With Fred Hoekstra A beautiful autumn and early winter took a horrible turn at end of the winter. We have had an amazing amount of rain. Some farmers have told me that it washed the tracks clean! We have been inundated with phone calls to book lame cows in for trimming. Calving is the period when many farmers don’t have the staff resources available to trim cow’s feet over and above the extra work load they already have at this time. So, what sort of problems are we seeing? Most of it is severe bruising — a sure sign of laminitis. What has happened is that all that rain has had an effect on the grass. The fibre in the grass breaks down and becomes less effective, whilst the protein becomes more rumen digestible. Severe changes in the weather substantially increase the stress the cows are experiencing, especially when coinciding with calving time when there are a lot of hormonal changes also going

on in their bodies. Have a look at some of the cow’s hooves of cows that have only calved today — they will have bruising as well. This would not have come from any physical damage because these cows will have only had one or two days of walking on hard surfaces. The bruising would not have had enough time to grow out into the hoof as far as it has in just a couple of days. You will find that this situation occurs with many cows, even in a nice, dry winter and spring, let alone in a wet, calving season like we have had thus far.

cows sensibly. With that I mean making straw available and not making sudden changes to their diet by taking them off winter crops one day and putting them on grass the next. Feeding straw will create more body heat and it creates a better rumen function, therefore, the cow will be more content. Straw also helps the transition from winter crop to grass but it won’t eliminate laminitis if the transition is overnight or too sudden. Another precaution that you can take, which may seem obvious, is to put the cows in sheltered paddocks to minimise the stress.

So, what can we do to prevent it? Nothing! Laminitis is a normal occurrence in our dairy cows. Our aim should be to just keep it under control or managed. The key is to minimise stress and feed the

Soon after a wet period there will be more laminitis which obviously makes the cows’ feet more tender. It is particularly important not to push cows and be impatient with them at these

times. Laminitis needs to be managed. Some of you will say that the suggestions I make are not workable on your farm. My response to that is that if you really want something you can usually find a way to make it work. Minimising the effects of laminitis is in your best interest and in that of your — corrected cows.

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DAIry

September 2012

Control without chemicals — carrot rust fly Dr tim Jenkins

The dreaded carrot rust fly is just starting its first flight of the season. The adult carrot rust fly is a small 4-8mm shiny black fly with yellowish legs and iridescent wings. It lays its minute white eggs in the soil near host plants Larvae hatch 7 to 11 days later and locate carrot roots, burrowing in to form holes and surface scarring. The larvae feed for 4-6 weeks before pupating in the soil for 3 to 4 weeks (which then creates the next flight) or, later in the season, the pupae over winter. The carrot rust fly season is marked by distinct flights, starting in September/October going through to May. The number of generations is usually three in Canterbury and four in warmer regions. The third and fourth flights are usually the most severe as numbers build up over the season. These insects are not great flyers — travelling not far off the ground and preferring sheltered areas. The flies prefer to overnight in the shelter of vegetation notably shelterbelts. Management involves gaps in the rotation between susceptible crops (carrots, celery, parsley, parsnip and other members of the carrot family). If possible, avoid planting carrots in areas where there are wild populations of members of the carrot family and nettles (alternative hosts). Avoid planting early and late crops near to each other and remove infested plants rather than leaving material around or regrowth of host plants that enable further generations of fly. Ideally plant carrots after the first flight, grow them fast and harvest before the third flight (thus avoiding peak

problem ﬂights). This demands favourable growing conditions and good soil fertility to get a successful and sufficiently grown crop. You can use yellow sticky traps (from hort suppliers or homemade) to check dates of ﬂights. Plant carrots in exposed fields and with a gap from the shelterbelt to reduce the pressure from the shelter loving pest. Perhaps plant a sacrifice crop of carrots between the shelterbelt and crop — harvesting these sacrifice ones before larvae emergence. In intensive growing, some growers use

Severely affected carrot with rust fly larvae poking out of the distorted root

senses of carrot rust fly (with some research highlighting the necessity of having the onions established in time for the first flight of the carrot rust fly in late September, early October — effectiveness of this method is much reduced by the time of the third rust fly flight). A mix of carrots and onions also goes further than confusing the carrot rust fly. They are accessing nutrients from different areas so maximise the utilisation of available nutrient.

The foliage of carrot is also markedly different and can reduce the weediness of onion patches although it is important to control weeds well during initial establishment. A further species to include in this intercropping is beetroot or spinach. The canopy of these plants encourages predatory ground beetles which will improve the natural control of carrot rust ﬂy eggs and larvae that are trying to reach the carrot roots.

protective covering (eg ﬂoating row cover) and there has been some success with metre high windbreak fencing (since the ﬂies mostly don’t go so high).

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Mulching around the carrot crop can be practised to prevent successful egg laying — though this is labour and material intensive. Encourage predatory ground beetles and other predators of carrot rust ﬂy eggs with grassy areas (eg beetlebank strips of cocksfoot or Yorkshire Fog grasses).

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DAIry

September 2012

FarmWise

by Eric Jacomb, FarmWise Consultant, Canterbury

Alternative wintering systems Regional Council concerns about increasing nitrogen levels in groundwater and waterways has sparked increased interest in alternative wintering systems to our traditional wintering on crops. The challenge becomes clear when you consider that wintering on crop can result in excess of 100kg of nitrogen being leached per hectare contrasting with Regional Council proposals which aim to reduce farm nitrogen leaching to 20kg/ha, and down to 10kg/ ha in at risk catchments.

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property will have to follow an externally audited Farm Environment Plan. Most dairy operations in Canterbury will find it challenging to get modelled nitrogen loss down to less than 20kg per hectare without significant changes in management practices and potentially less profit. The issue of land use and water quality is likely be one of the most significant challenges facing Canterbury farmers as they seek to maintain and/ or expand their farming operations. The new Land and Water Regional Plan establishes new limits for water quality across the region and requires all land users to be farming to recognised industry best practice within a prescribed timeframe. The Council is also working at a sub-regional level to establish catchment nutrient load limits. The first area where

limits have been set is the Hurunui and by the end of this year limits will be set for the Selwyn-Te Waihora catchment. In the case of the latter each farming enterprise will be assigned a nutrient discharge allowance (NDA) which they will need to adhere to. What this will mean for farmers is that they will all be required to have a Nutrient Budget and a Farm Environment Plan. On some farms significant changes will be required in order to meet the NDA target and fulfil Farm Environmental Plan commitments. The extent of change required (and the costs involved) will vary depending on farming type, level of intensity and soil types. The use of alternative wintering systems where all the efﬂuent is captured and spread evenly onto land when leaching risk is very low, has the potential to significantly reduce the amount of nitrogen

The challenge is that these systems have the potential to increase the cost of production, reducing profitability and competitiveness, as well as adding complexity to our farming systems. FarmWise has issued an invitation to New Zealand farmers, considering alternative wintering systems, to join a tour to the UK this summer. We’re confident the tour will arm you with knowledge to make betterinformed decisions. The tour will explore a range of pads, housing, and farming system set-ups and how they relate to management, running costs, animal welfare, efﬂuent, and long-term profitability. Various housing and outdoor management systems will be tested within the context of: • Cost effectiveness and adequacy;

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September 2012

My point of view Allen Cookson

Devious, ignorant or mad? You own a company with a dividend yield 75% of profit, similar to The Warehouse. Its debt:equity ratio is 0.85:1, compared with a normal company debt:equity ratio of 1.2:1. The five-year average return on equity is 8.5%. There is an assured and increasing demand for the product. Alternative methods of producing it are far less efficient, and their inputs are getting more costly as time goes by. Furthermore, the most competitive of these alternative methods produce environmentally harmful outputs. At some stage the community will put irresistible pressure on politicians to see that those competing companies pay for at least some of the damage their dirty methods entail. Bearing in mind all of these factors, what investor owning this company would want to sell it? As you may have guessed, the company is Mighty River Power and the owner is John Key’s National government. Some would say the New Zealand public are the owners. Let’s look at the proposed Mighty River, Genesis and Meridian partial sales collectively as a method of reducing government debt.

You can compare current government income from them, against savings from partial sale. If the proposed sales proceed, there would be annual losses of $130.7 million from sales, compared with keeping them in public ownership and borrowing. This is using Treasury’s estimates. Their estimate of $5.5 billion raised, along with their probably too low estimate of 5% for costs of the sale would increase the loss actually occurring from sales beyond $130.7 billion. Capital gains are not considered in the analysis.

The market prices government can obtain by sales now will drop below Treasury’estimate. Our renewable energy generators are about twice as efficient as most overseas power stations. The electrical energy industry is the most highly paid sector of the economy- far better than farming, horticulture or tourism.

The industry feeds these and other sectors. Some people say foreign investors’ desperate need of safe havens for their money is good reason for selling SOEs. Building up our stock exchange is another. Others say Key wants to raise money for preelection bribes. I leave it to the reader to judge the merit of these opinions.

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September 2012

The sins of our forefathers

by Lorne Kuehn

The Good Book makes it clear that the sins of the father are paid for by the children and grandchildren. This became quite apparent to me in the course of genealogical research on the family of my mother in central Alberta over the last 140 years. I had always wondered

why it was that I experienced a certain coolness from some of the farming neighbours whenever I stayed out at the family farm for various school holidays. On listening to my mother’s stories, I had also detected that there was a reason for the social distance between her family and those of the

neighbours. What was this mystery?

the farm garden, while settling the estate.

Eventually my mother and her brothers all passed away and I was left to act as executor to settle her family estate, there being no explicit will. I’ve written before on these pages of the time I spent looking for my uncle’s buried treasure in

However, the real surprise and answer to the mystery was what I found on going through my uncle’s personal trunks.

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He was a real squirrel and kept meticulous records of all farm and family transactions. In the bottom of one trunk I found a charge sheet issued in 1890 addressed to my grandfather from the NorthWest Mounted Police (NWMP), the precursors to Canada’s renowned Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The NWMP were set up in Canada’s territories (at the time) to control the burgeoning whiskey trade from distilleries in the United States. The charge sheet was wrapped around a small spirit-bubble level that I have since figured out came off an old horse-drawn hay mower or maybe a stationary combine. The charge against my grandfather was for theft of this small instrument from machinery belonging to a longdead neighbour. What seems to have happened was that my grandfather, then a young man barely 24 years old, may have unscrewed the levelling tool from the mower or combine and pocketed it, without being detected. Nevertheless, the neighbour had seen that the instrument was missing from the machinery and went to the NWMP with a complaint of brazen theft. Subsequently, a trial was held and my grandfather, who could barely speak English and may have not understood the court proceedings, was sent to prison for a period of three months. He never admitted guilt or the fact that he had the missing instrument, which can only have been worth one or two dollars, if that. Perhaps he gave the presiding judge some

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backchat or obfuscation and was punished for his lip. Why he would have decided to commit the crime beggars belief. Maybe he did not even commit the crime. Perhaps it was one of his young sons who took the level. Maybe he figured that he needed the level in his rudimentary farming, building granaries or extending fencing. Tools for farmers were much rarer then than they are now. Nevertheless, he remained staunch and took his punishment as was the custom in those days. Justice was harsh on the wild Canadian frontier. While talking to my oldest cousins still living in that part of Alberta, I learned that this situation put my young grandmother in a terrible fix. She had little ones hanging on to her skirts, with a large mixed farm to run. She had a very hard time of managing her responsibilities and, as I already mentioned, the family reputation was destroyed for decades. She had to sell her husband’s life insurance policy to get enough money to keep the farm going.

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If there was no evidence that the theft took place, i.e. the stolen property was not found in the thief’s possession, just a warning would suffice. What else could a policeman do? There was not enough evidence for a trial on such a charge, just one farmer’s word against another. A theft had definitely taken place, else why would the instrument be found a century later in my uncle’s personal trunk, but who stole it and why was it not surrendered to the NWMP? The charge sheet makes for a great conversation piece since there are now very few in existence. It has actually become a point of pride in my family history. As for the level, I find it handy whenever I am fencing. So the long journey of it getting into my possession is not all bad.

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I have since discussed this situation with various policemen, both here and in Canada. If it was to occur now, a similar complaint would probably result in a kick up the bum and a warning to the supposed culprit.

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September 2012

Farmers markets One can’t help noticing the increasing numbers of farmers markets that are popping up all over the city and in rural areas. I even saw one on a side road last weekend advertising a market on the front lawn of the property. The lovely thing is that they work because they are meeting a demand for fresh and home grown produce. I am not sure what IRD think about the whole thing, but I am sure those doing it will be playing fair. The interesting thing is that markets are as old as tilling the soil, and is the most obvious way of selling your excess to those who are not producing what you are. Everywhere else in the world people seem to be selling through street markets rather than supermarkets and it is all part of their culture. OK the supermarkets are still there for all those other things that a household needs, but when it comes to eggs, cheeses, breads and vegetables and fruit, the market shines. Sadly the tourist markets in the Square and the Arts Centre have gone leaving a raft of people without an income, but the markets such as Riccarton Bush and Riccarton Racecourse are still thriving. I know people who drive out to Oxford just to go to the

market out there, a sort of ritual that gets them out of the city, and the feeling of buying pork pies and honey from well away from the city. If it is produced this far out it must be fresh and good type thinking. Our food, or farmers’ markets, isn’t the tourist attractions that overseas markets are, but as I have already pointed out, we don’t have any tourists to speak of anyway. What beds are available in the city are filled with people from out of town working here

to rebuild the city and all but booze money goes out of town to their families. So it’s up to the locals to support the markets, and it certainly seems they are. Publicity would be the major hurdle, but with stalls providing excellent fare, the word soon gets out. Government has strict rules about food hygiene, but thankfully Kate Wilkinson has designed them so that the small stall holder can still sell their jams pickles and whatever else they either specialise in or have excess of.

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Is your body on fire? Most chronic diseases have an inflammatory component. In some cases inflammation is the cause of the problem and in others it is part of the problem. For example, autoimmune arthritis is caused by the immune system starting to attack joint tissues. With the more common rheumatoid arthritis the attack is against the membranes that contain synovial fluid. The body then tries to remedy the autoimmune attack by initiating an inflammatory response. Unfortunately, the problem is one that cannot be repaired and this leads to a permanent state of elevated inflammation. This prolonged inflammatory attack then causes cocktails of oxygen and nitrogen free radicals and the combination of these, plus destructive inflammatory chemicals called prostaglandins and cytokines cause joint tissue destruction. The outcome is a progressive loss of joint function with pain, stiffness, swelling and disfiguration. There are about 70 autoimmune diseases and these typically attack specific types of tissue. In arthritis, the joint is attacked while lupus attacks connective tissue. Some like polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) attack muscles, and with others, including psoriasis and vitiligo, it is the skin that is attacked. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is a bizarre disease where the attack is launched against cell energy structures especially the mitochondria which produce energy. In every case, the inflammation is an attempt of the body to heal the problem it actually caused resulting in more destruction, swelling and pain.

Nutritional therapy to lower inflammation is usually very complementary alongside medical treatment. When I create antiinflammatory programmes I target food compounds that can lower cytokine levels and generally reduce immune system generated inflammation. Many of these are also potent antioxidants which appear to directly lower cytokine levels and additionally mop up the excess free radicals these produce. Most antioxidants exert some anti-inflammatory function but the most important are the OPC’s, usually extracted from grape seeds, resveratrol, compounds from acai berries, most dark berries and spices especially turmeric. The key is to use the most potent extracts at the right levels. For example, with PMR I target about 400mg of pure OPC, 100mg of resveratrol and 50–100mg of turmeric extracts. There are many plant foods that are anti-inflammatory including tropical fruit, especially pineapples and papaya, pomegranate (as juice) and ginger. If you have any chronic inflammatory problem give me a call as many people have been helped by adopting the strategies mentioned here.

John Arts is the founder of Abundant Health Ltd. If you have questions, or for a free health plan contact John on 0800 423 559 or email john@johnarts. co.nz. You can join his weekly email newsletter at www.johnarts.co.nz or visit www.abundant.co.nz.

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WooL

September 2012

Wool Perspective From Rob Cochrane GM, Procurement, PGG Wrightson Wool

Respected ‘wool man’ retires A stalwart of the local wool broking industry, David Studholme, retired recently from the PGG Wrightson Wool business after 43 years of uninterrupted service. David recalled the many changes he had witnessed

within that time, none-theleast of which were the several company mergers. David began his career in Dunedin on July 1 1969 with Stronach Morris as a trainee wool classer, where his duties included ordering

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and gathering lunches from a nearby bakery for the ‘senior’ staff members, as well as cleaning the toilets on a regular basis whether they needed it or not! In 1970 a merger with National Mortgage and Agency Co of New Zealand took place, followed by another in 1972 with Wright Stephenson Ltd, The NZ Farmers Cooperative in 1984, Dalgety NZ Ltd in 1986, and Pyne Gould Guinness Ltd in 2005. Throughout his career David witnessed many changes such as the transfer from weighing wool in pounds to kilograms, centralised computerisation, and pre-sale testing of wool for yield, micron, vegetable matter, colour and length.

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Once wool could be reliably tested, the need for opening of full bales stacked three high, was replaced with wool samples drawn from each bale within a line, enabling the samples to be transported to a central point for appraisal by exporters, reducing the need for several

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selling centres to two (Napier and Christchurch), reducing staffing levels, expensive ﬂoor space, and travel. David is a very well respected wool judge having judged at most South Island A&P shows and Royal Agricultural Society Golden Fleece competitions, with a highlight for him being invited to co-judge the World Merino Congress international ﬂeece competition in Christchurch during the mid 1990s. David also recalls his first judging assignment at the Wanaka show when the three wool stewards were local icons within the merino sheep breeding industry, and how he felt very proud when, at the end of 2½ days solid judging, was told by one of them ‘that was one of the most consistent jobs ever seen’. During his farewell speech, David referred to having his hands in wool as being ‘an unexplainable therapy’, and how he enjoyed touching and looking at wool

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right from his high school days when he received one guinea (£1:1s) by winning a wool classing competition, and was able to tell his parents that he had received his first return from the wool industry. David recalled the enjoyable annual wool canvasses with local stock agents, when wool brokers were an important part of a sheep farmer’s advisory group, and particularly the long days spent canvassing in the Nelson and Marlborough areas (usually a 5.30am start), when sometimes a boat trip was required and how, at the end of the long day a few beers were enjoyed at the accommodation point, and the publicans seemed quite happy to keep the bar open until ‘quite late’. In recent times David has taken up the art of ﬂy-fishing and from all accounts has been reasonably successful whenever the opportunity has arisen. I would suggest that because David has at some stage visited many a back country station during a wool canvass that he probably has a plan to fish many of the lakes and rivers he was unable to stop at whilst ‘on duty’. David also enjoys his boat and sea fishing, as well as golf, a sport at which he is very good, so no doubt he will be working at reducing his handicap now that he should have more opportunity to spend time ‘on the course’. A large gathering of both company and wider industry people on August 31 in Christchurch wished David and his wife, Trish, well for the future. That’s my view.

September 2012

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faster after grazing than other cultivars. It has also shown excellent recovery from hard grazing in wet and cold conditions, an important feature that will benefit persistence on many farms. These comments support the belief Agricom had in the product many years ago when initially selecting a high producing lateflowering ryegrass out of an extremely competitive ryegrass breeding programme. Most importantly today, ONE50 performs very well in trials and on farms

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September 2012

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