Northern Farming Lifestyles, April 2023

The Northern Farming Lifestyles is published with pride by Integrity Community Media, a privately owned Northland company.

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Water done well

by Chris Penk, MP for Kaipara ki Mahurangi

It’s clear that successive governments have not invested enough in water infrastructure that we need right now and in the future.

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New Zealanders need and deserve access to quality drinking water, clean rivers and swimmable beaches. We need a solution, but we know that the answer is not Labour’s flawed and contentious Three Waters policy. It takes local assets away from local communities and lumps them into four co-governed mega-entities.

That’s why National’s Local Water Done Well policy will scrap Labour’s undemocratic and unworkable Three Waters model and replace it with a sustainable system that ensures drinking water, stormwater and wastewater remain in local control. It is because National believes water assets should stay with local communities and the ratepayers who funded them.

National does not accept the status quo where pipes are too often allowed to fail, creating pollution, wastage and massive bills for ratepayers, none of which we will not allow to continue under a National government.

It will set and enforce strict water quality standards and require councils to invest in the ongoing maintenance and replacement of their vital water infrastructure and required to demonstrate a clear plan to deliver ongoing investment in water infrastructure. Councils will also be required to ringfence money exclusively for water infrastructure, which cannot be spent on other services.

We recognise that investment in our water will require tens of billions of dollars. Our funding approach to this policy will enable greater access for councils to borrow long-term, which is an appropriate way to fund long-life water infrastructure. With access to long-term funding, Councils can distribute the cost of infrastructure over 30 years, which will help avoid increases in your rates bill.

National has always been the party that has got on with building infrastructure because we recognise it is key to a productive economy. Local Water Done Well is just one of the policies that will help us all get ahead.

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Adventures

The year of planting

Northland and Auckland landowners are encouraged to join the Kaipara Moana Remediation programme and take advantage of funding opportunities to fence off waterways and plant them in native trees.

The programme has been operational for less than two years, and is now working with almost a third of the 1,500odd landowners within the Kaipara Moana catchment. Leader Justine Daw says her team is keen to collaborate with more landowners to get more planting underway this winter.

“The impacts of the recent storms are heart-breaking to see, with many areas significantly affected. Through our investment, KMR helps landowners to retire and plant steep, eroding hillsides and land bordering streams, rivers and the coast itself.

“This winter KMR is prioritising planting to increase resilience to future floods and storms. This is a unique opportunity to join us in improving the health of the Kaipara Harbour, with KMR funding 50 per cent of the costs.

“As a Jobs for Nature investment, our focus is on developing meaningful, local, nature-based employment. We are looking to offer training and development opportunities, building long-term relationships with tangata whenua, and upskilling rangatahi. At its heart, KMR is about growing people by growing trees.”

Under a collaborative governance arrangement, Kaipara Moana Remediation is working hard to halve sediment flows into the Kaipara. Strategic partnerships with Fonterra, Environs Holdings and The Forest Bridge Trust help KMR draw on trusted channels to

communicate with farmers, iwi/hapū landholders, community groups and other landowners.

Working with the Ministry for Social Development, Trees That Count, the New Zealand Rural Support Trust, and Beef+Lamb NZ, KMR leverages wider networks to engage landowners across the catchment to take action under the KMR umbrella. It supports community planting days and partnering with EnviroSchools and recently made changes to its funding for local action.

“Through our Whenua Whānui Fund, we can now better support marae trusts, iwi/hapū, catchment groups and other community groups to participate in restoring the Kaipara Moana. We welcome all expressions of interest online at kmr. org.nz.”

KMR offers free support to landowners affected by the recent storms. For completed projects co-funded by KMR, it will repair or replace damaged fencing and plants. Where damage is more significant, it can also support the relocation of fencing and planting to more suitable locations. Affected landowners should call their KMR field adviser or email hono@kmr.org.nz.

“Landowners working with KMR to develop projects may be eligible for extra support if they have suffered storm damage. We’re also working with other agencies offering support and may be able to help you connect to other sources of funding.”

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Justine Daw, Kaipara Moana Remediation programme leader

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THE BEGINNING OF A CAREER

BY ANN VAN ENGELEN

Bill is the farm assistant employed by Andrew and Vicky Booth on Richard and Sharon Booth’s 395cow, 174ha property at Titoki. He came third in the same category last year.

“I grew up around Whangārei Heads, but not on a farm,” says Bill.

“Both of my parents did agricultural science, and my dad monitors kiwi and does predator control. I grew up working with kiwi on the hills instead of cows, and that got me interested in working on the land.

“I went to Parua Bay School and then Whangārei Boys’ High. At school, I was often asked what I wanted to do in life and never really had an answer. I got tired of being asked, so I worked out that I didn’t want to

be stuck inside, and with dairy farming you are doing different chores all the time.

“Family friends are farmers and they taught me to milk, and that started a passion for the dairy industry. I discovered that there is a wide variety of options within the industry and opportunities available.”

Bill then completed a Bachelor in Agricultural Science majoring in agriculture.

“I received a head injury playing rugby during my degree and took a year off with plans to be a consulting officer for DairyNZ, but Covid stopped that, and I decided to get work on a dairy farm. I called Andrew and asked if he knew anyone who needed a worker, and he offered me a trainee position.

“It’s a different pathway from my original plan, but I am very lucky with the way it panned out. With not growing up on a farm, trainee positions give you experience with the dairy industry and the different roles available. It’s up to the bosses and yourself to ensure you are learning the right things. I have my degree, but you can study with Primary ITO to gain qualifications.

“To begin with, I was pretty green, and now as a farm assistant, I have a range of responsibilities, including milk harvesting, fencing, typical farm repairs, maintenance, odd jobs and stock work. I also complete pasture management and pasture walks, when feasible, and make grazing and feed allocation plans.

Industry Awards Dairy Trainee of the Year Bill Hamilton has overcome the challenge of a head injury to get to where he is today in an industry he loves.

As a child, Bill learned to monitor kiwi and manage pest control from his father

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“As you gain experience, you get more responsibility and decision-making. I am pretty lucky as growing up helping dad with pest control, part of my job now is pest management, doing the possum and mustelid traps and things.

“I love lots of things about the job, and it’s always nice when I can interact with the cows. That’s what gets me out of bed in the mornings. In a day, you can be fencing, working with animal health, milking and playing scientist, working out fertiliser applications and gaining a variety of knowledge required for the challenge of constantly making decisions.

“We are autumn calving to match feed supply and demand like most farms. I often say agriculture and dairy farming is a lot like a rugby team. There is a position for everyone. Within the industry, if you are happy just milk harvesting, you can focus on that, all the way up to science research. Farming itself has so many different roles. It’s like a fullback can’t

play prop, and a prop can’t play fullback, but that doesn’t mean they can’,t be part of the team and that’s pretty cool.

“My bosses, Andrew and Vicky, are great, and I am really proud to work for them. They recently won the Northland Ballance Farm Environment Award. They have a really cool balance and understand the importance of having a profitable business while being sustainable economically and environmentally.

“Because my head injury still affects me, it was important to find the right farm to start my journey on. The range of jobs and roles in the industry is something I am now looking at to progress my career and be an active part of a sustainable dairy industry. What that looks like, I’m not quite sure at present, but I will work it out. It’s about finding the right balance.

“Entering the Dairy Industry Awards provided the drive to assess my areas of strength and the areas I needed to work on. The interaction with a range of

Bill with his award alongside Northland Share Farmers of the Year Matthew and Kortne Snedden at the Dairy Industry Awards other people at similar stages in their career, along with the experienced judges involved, was very valuable.

“I want to progress to a herd manager role within the next 12 months before

I decide whether to continue the path to sharemilking or take up a rural professional role. I’m very driven by not letting people down and focussing on seeing a good thing each day.”

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Helping to milk 395 cows is one of the many responsibilities Bill has on the Booth’s farm

Well-known counsellor

Dee Jones has launched her much-requested book called The Aspie Book, written to help neurodivergent and neurotypical people better understand themselves and each other.

“Professor Tony Attwood wrote the foreword. He is one of the top three Aspie specialists in the world, and I am honoured that he read the whole book and wrote the foreword,” says Dee.

“My mum said when I was three, she often found me talking to people who were struggling. When I was five, someone explained what a counsellor was, and I knew then that that was what I wanted to do with my life.

“I was one of the lucky people knowing what I wanted to do. People absolutely fascinate me. Some kids want to know how a hair dryer works and take it

apart to see. I wanted to find out how people work.”

Her father disapproved of psychology, so when Dee finished school at 17, she moved out of home, worked in the bank and studied for a psychology degree at night, eventually registering as a counsellor. Back then, there was no counselling degree.

She volunteered at Lifeline and started more honours and master’s papers.

“I had a very sick child and had to choose between study and my child. Of course, my child won over completing a thesis. I started my first clinic in March 1993 in Whangārei. I offer all types of counselling for people from Wellsford to Cape Reinga and beyond.

BY ANN VAN ENGELEN

“Psychopathology was my main elective, and I completed levels one, two, three and honours. It is the study of everything that is abnormal, and I was completely fascinated by autism. In 1981, paediatrician Lorna Wing launched

a paper on autistic personality disorders as her daughter was diagnosed autistic.

“Lorna had discovered the papers Hans Asperger wrote and realised the documents described her daughter, and I read her paper in the early 1990s. It explained many clients and the missing link between severe autism and people who didn’t behave neurotypically but functioned in every other way.

The Aspie Book is the result of Dee’s clients asking her to write down her simple explanations of autism

Dee with her therapy dog Storm, who has spent many years working alongside her

“Hans appears to have cooperated with the Nazi regime to destroy defective children. He found a group of different children and kept them to observe their behaviour because he was fascinated by them. These children had symptoms of what is now called Asperger’s. Because of his negative connotations and reputation for destroying many children, the name was changed from Asperger’s and renamed Autism Spectrum Disorder or Condition.”

Neurotypical describes individuals with typical neurological development or functioning. Neurodivergent is a nonmedical umbrella term describing people with variation in their mental functions and can include conditions such as Autism Spectrum Condition.

“I spent the last 30 years reading, studying and specialising in ASC, previously called ASD. My clients would try to read books on the subject and found

them too academic. They said I explained it so clearly that they wanted to take me home and asked, would I write down what is in my head for them.

“In 2019, I began writing my book explaining the academic stuff in very simple language. My clients kept asking, ‘how’s the Aspie book going?’ So that is what I called it — The Aspie Book.

“There are drawings to describe a moment, and I was gifted the drawings in the first chapter. Examples of difficulties people face include one tradesman I worked with who was excellent at his job, providing his structure was perfect. His van was so well organised his workmates would get what they needed from his vehicle.

“They messed up his structure, even if it was just three open boxes, and he would get behind in his work because he could take two hours to sort his van again. I showed him a picture, and he said, ‘that’s

me — you captured me completely’. It was such a precious ‘wow, you got me’ moment, and he understood himself better, and we were able to discuss how he could talk to his employer about his situation.”

ASC isn’t a mental health condition — the brain works differently. Autism is a social development disorder in which people on the spectrum operate differently from neurotypicals.

The Aspie Book by Dee Jones can be ordered online at Amazon, The Nile and other websites or purchased from bookstores nationwide.

“Professor Attwood said he recommends the book to his colleagues in all professional disciplines with autistic clients.”

Read part two of Dee Jone’s story to writing The Aspie Book next month.

Cyclone Gabrielle Temporary Accommodation

If your property was impacted during this severe weather event and you need support finding temporary accommodation, we can help.

The Temporary Accommodation Service is assisting displaced people to find suitable temporary accommodation.

Register your details with us and a staff member will call you in a few days to help you find suitable temporary housing. Our staff can also provide guidance on how to access support services such as insurance advice and financial assistance.

There will be a cost for temporary accommodation, but you can contact the Ministry of Social Development to see if assistance is available to meet this cost.

If you are the tenant or landlord of a rental property, www.tenancy.govt.nz has information on your rights and obligations after a natural disaster.

For more information and to register your details, please go to: www.tas.mbie.govt.nz

If you are not able to complete the form online, or wish to discuss your requirements, please call 0508 754 163 Our Service Centre operates:

Monday–Friday, 8:30am–5:00pm Saturday–Sunday, 9:00am–5:00pm

“Iwas born and bred in Waipū,” says Laura.

“My mum is the deputy principal of Waipū Primary, dad works at Waipū Hammer Hardware, and my brother and his wife are dairy farmers. I was in the Waipū Volunteer Fire Brigade from 16 years old, and when I finished school at Bream Bay College, I went to uni for a couple of years before realising it wasn’t for me.

“I did Camp America and backpacked to Central America. Before coming home in 2016, I gained employment as a firefighter at the Auckland Airport. We do marine rescue in the Manukau Harbour, basic fire fighting and medical events. The diversity of the role and the physical challenges are stimulating.

“I have always enjoyed community service roles. Growing up in a small

AN ANTARCTIC EXPERIENCE

BY ANN VAN ENGELEN

community gives you the innate feeling of being connected and doing what you can.”

In 2018, Laura was selected for last year’s Antarctic Heritage Trust Inspiring Explorers Expeditions. The expeditions honour the legacy of polar explorers from the heroic age in the early 1900s, like Roald Amundsen, Sir Ernest Shackleton, Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Dr Edward Wilson and Sir Edmund Hillary.

“The expeditions follow historical journeys to share the legacy and continue it on for the next generation to gain inspiration and an interest in the polar regions. I’ve always had a magnetism towards Antarctica because you hear of people having been to Scott Base, and there is a romanticism about going there.

“Between November and January, my group of five completed a 920km guided traverse from the Ronne Ice Shelf to the South

Pole, celebrating 150 years since the birth of legendary polar explorer Roald Amundsen.

“It was scary going into a world you don’t know and processing the fear

of letting down a team of incredible people. Half of our team is from Norway, and we’d only had a few Zoom calls before meeting.

Former Waipū Primary School student Laura Andrews recently returned from completing an Antarctic Heritage Trust Inspiring Explorers Expedition, skiing across the Antarctic to the South Pole in 50 days.

Photo: Mike Dawson

Laura and the team at the South Pole marker upon reaching their destination

“It is phenomenal stepping off the plane — nothing prepares you for that moment. You think you are looking at clouds, but it’s endless ice caps, and the cold hits you like a wave. It’s colder than anything you’ve experienced. Our amazing guide Bengt Rotmo kept us safe and passed on his polar knowledge.

“There’s no sign of life, and you realise how small you are. It is daunting when you realise how far you have to ski, but every journey begins with a single step. The plane took off, we waved, and that was that — we set off on our adventure.”

Being summer and 24 hours of daylight, the team followed the Chilean timezone.

“We walked nine hours daily, each night setting up camp and boiling water from clean snow to cook, drink and survive with. The ice shelf is a hostile environment

and 900km from the edge of the sea, so we never saw any wildlife because nothing can survive there.

“We did the Messner route, first completed by Reinhold Messner in the 1980s. He wrote a book called Antarctica: Both Heaven and Hell. You can see how it can be the best day or worst day of your life depending on your mindset, weather and conditions. We were incredibly lucky we saw heaven more than hell thanks to our guide Bengt and expedition leader Nigel Watson, a former executive leader of the trust.

“These men are passionate about both the modern and historical polar worlds. I think I was the second Kiwi female to ever ski to the South Pole, and it was a real privilege as few people get to experience it.

“On the last day, the clouds separated, and we saw a huge telescope, Scott Base and civilisation. We went to the Geographic South Pole, which is surrounded by the flags of the original Antarctic Treaty signatory states, and I realised we were at the bottom of the world. Reaching the South Pole marker was incredible. It is a silver ball on a red and white stripy pole.

“We walked to the flag poles and stayed at the Antarctic Logistics South

Pole Camp exploring before flying back to Union Glacier to wait for a plane back to Chile. Returning home was certainly a shock after being in isolation with just five people and the complete lack of extreme stimuli with no traffic, birds, or people — all we did was survive to achieve our goal.

“I am not the best, sportiest or fastest, but I will give anything a go, even if I find it scary. I’d do it again in a heartbeat and plan to attempt the North Pole.”

Willow-Jean

Northland office 0800 957 7463 (0800 WJPRIME) office.willow-jean.prime@parliament.govt.nz

77 Gillies Street, Kawakawa PO Box 237, Kawakawa 0210

Marja Lubeck

Labour list MP based in Kaipara ki Mahurangi

For appointments and assistance please phone: 0800 582 325 (0800 LUBECK) marja.lubeck@parliament.govt.nz 62-64 Queen Street, Warkworth

Prime MP for Northland

Laura credits the positive attitude she has built in life to her experiences at Waipū Primary School and Bream Bay College

Photo: Mike Dawson

Each night the team set up camp and proceeded to turn snow into water for the following day

Rural broadband gets a boost

by Dr Emily Henderson, MP for Whangārei

The government recently marked the successful completion of the Ultra-Fast Broadband roll-out, one of New Zealand’s largest infrastructure deployment projects to date.

Fast, reliable connectivity has been especially crucial in recent weather events. More than 38 towns and cities,and a whopping 31,763 premises are now connected to fibre across Northland, including the majority of Waipū, Maungakaramea, Maungatapere, Kerikeri and Hikurangi.

We proudly rank high on the world stage when it comes to access and uptake of digital connectivity, and we are firmly on track to ensure 99.8 per cent of the population has access to improved broadband by the end of 2023.

While there are several digital connectivity programmes aiming to cover large parts of New Zealand, there are still more households remaining to be covered. These are in some of the most remote areas of the country and are difficult to find a solution for.

That’s why we recently announced the Remote Users Scheme and further investment into the Rural Capacity Upgrade programme to reach the most remote homes and lift Internet speeds in rural areas.

The new Remote Users Scheme is focussed on increasing the availability of broadband connectivity where broadband is not currently available, and there is only access to voice calling and text services.

The first phase of the scheme aims to provide a broadband Internet service to an area by extending existing networks. Those still without coverage after this

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Prime Minister Chris Hipkins with Northpower chief operating officer (network) Josie Boyd and Dr Emily Henderson

A tropical tang

by Liz Clark

After finally getting out into the fruit trees, now settled weather has arrived, this rather neglectful writer encountered her rather forlorn yellow guava tree buried under weeds.

There were a few lessons to be learned from that experience. Fortunately, the neglected tree was persisting, despite the lack of light. A quick tidy-up and some fertiliser have seen it put back to health and growing happily.

Guavas come from the South American regions and are grown commercially in tropical areas. The fruit size ranges from cherry size to sizeable round fruit. However, most available cultivars in New Zealand are the smaller ones, such as the red and yellow cherry varieties.

There is a caveat, though, where the red cherry guava is concerned. In some parts of the country this particular species is considered invasive, especially in the Auckland region. Check with your regional council before heading to the local garden centre to obtain one so you’re not disappointed.

Guavas grow well in the warmer regions of the country and are cold

Hon

hardy. Young trees are prone to frost, so they should be protected during the first two years after planting. Once established, they will fruit prolifically. Nurseries recommend two trees for each household for abundant vitamin-C-rich sweet, tangy fruit. Trees are self-fertile and will produce throughout the spring and summer growing seasons. They grow to a height from three to five metres but can be kept at a manageable size lower with pruning.

Before planting, find a sunny, sheltered situation with good drainage available. If poor drainage is an issue, create a raised mound out of the existing soil, then add a good layer of compost and soil mix, and add in some blood and bone as a starter.

If planting directly into the ground, dig a square hole twice the width and depth of the planting bag. Place sheep pellets or other manure in the base, add

Davis

a layer of compost, followed by good quality fruit tree mix, then plant your guava. Ensure the soil is well watered after planting. Staking your tree will ensure it won’t be wrenched or blown

over during inclement weather. Water and fertilise regularly while the tree is fruiting. Prune lightly after fruiting in autumn to maintain shape and height requirements.

Guavas need protection from frosts during flowering

This winter we’re focusing on planting erodible hill slopes to help prevent sediment runoff into the Kaipara Moana. If there are hillsides on your land that are putting sediment into or near water, be it a river, a stream or the coastline itself, we can fund up to 50% of the costs of planting.

KMR invests in local people to develop meaningful, nature-based employment, and long-term relationships with the whenua. Through our mahi, we’re investing in local businesses, communities and young people.

24 local accredited contractor businesses and 19 nurseries

1 in 3 landowners are already working to restore the Kaipara Moana

Creating over 60,000 hours of new work

Photos courtesy of Auckland Council.

‘The rural heart of Northland’

by Vince Cocurullo, Whangārei Mayor

Northland is unique in New Zealand, with a population that is almost evenly split between urban and rural areas (60/40).

For the past 10 years, it has become clear that more and more people are moving to our region’s rural areas, which show higher growth rates compared to our urban areas.

To really drive this point home, when you look at New Zealand as a whole, Northland has the highest percentage of population living in rural areas out of our whole country. Our agricultural and horticultural sectors are essential to the economic growth of our region, as was proven at the recent Ballance Farm Environment Awards held in March here at Barge Park.

It’s clear that Northlanders are ruralhearted people. That needs to be reflected in the quality of rural services provided by our local and regional councils and our central government.

It’s become painfully clear that in many of Northland’s rural areas, the resilience of our essential services, such as water, power, connectivity and communications are lagging behind. Our recent experiences with Cyclone Gabrielle have highlighted the need for

an urgent review of our services to rural communities, with a spotlight on how we can make our essential services more robust across our rural sector.

Roading continues to be one of the biggest pain points for our rural communities. The condition of our rural roads, even outside of extreme weather

events, needs serious consideration. I will continue to campaign for more government funding to cover our roading needs.

As mayor of Whangārei, I am continually campaigning to the central government to provide funding for more than just bandaid fixes and to find long-term solutions to keep our rural communities connected for all our essential services.

THANK YOU FOR CHOOSING LOCAL

Vince Cocurullo, — Whangārei Mayor

“It’s clear that Northlanders are ruralhearted people. That needs to be reflected in the quality of rural services provided by our local and regional councils and our central government.”

Smart and swift building innovation

EasyBuild is a nationwide modular home building company specialising in at-packed homes which can be built up to twice as fast on-site as other new home options.

Despite the affordable cost, there is no compromise on quality. EasyBuild homes are more than twice as airtight as conventional builds. Each build is extra weathertight, with a rigid air barrier and ventilated ceiling cavity. All this translates to more money in your pocket, with lower bills for heating and cooling your home. Even better, building waste is reduced by two-thirds when building with EasyBuild.

Another huge surprise to anyone who’s ever built new is that Easybuild’s on-site building process only takes around 12 weeks. It saves time and money across the entire build, including rent, nance, labour costs and more.

The team at EasyBuild Northland offer more than 25 modern, one-tofour-bedroom home designs to suit all kinds of living situations, from growing families to downsizers and investors, to multigenerational living.

A great example of farmworker accommodation is Carol’s build. Carol owns a 170-hectare dairy farm in Galatea, about an hour’s drive south of Whakatane. Galatea is predominantly a

dairy district, so offering quality farmworker accommodation to attract and retain milkers is important. After realising it wouldn’t be worth renovating her existing farmworker dwelling, from a nancial perspective and because of the limits to what could be achieved, Carol made the smart decision to build an affordable new home for her employees through EasyBuild.

“My vision was simple,” Carol says. “I wanted to build a quintessential Kiwi home for farmworkers and their families. Three bedrooms, one bathroom, solid, functional, modern and affordable.”

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Making their new home greener

by Andy Bryenton

What they found was a way to combine their shared love of working outdoors with their passion for the environment. The perfect solution was the foundation of their business; KiwiCan Contracting.

Their timing could not have been better, turning the Covid disruption into a silvicultural silver lining. Lucas and Meg’s revegetation and forestry venture has put more than 250,000 native trees into New Zealand soil in the last two years. The Kiwi-Canadian couple hopes to achieve their goal of planting 1,000,000 trees by 2028, and they are well on their way.

Another of the couple’s goals was to start their native nursery. This year, Lucas and Meg have grown close to 100,000 native plants that will be used for their planting projects across Northland. The local business can grow, transport and provide planting advice, making it simple for Northland communities to start their revegetation projects.

Although KiwiCan Contracting specialises in native revegetation,

the business also takes on other projects such as planting shelter belts, investment forests, erosion control, riparian zones and many more. The team of two pride themselves on proper planting techniques and quality control, factors that are sometimes overlooked by large crews. After years of travel, the couple has found a sense of belonging in Northland and high hopes to expand their business and nursery with the support of the community.

A modern farm worker’s home built on a 170-hectare farm in Galatea, Whakatane, with Easybuild’s Havelock design

Meg and Lucas of KiwiCan Contracting

After getting stuck in New Zealand during the Covid pandemic, Lucas Malone-Prince and his partner Meg found themselves searching for a new way to make a living.

A CITY’S JOURNEY

BY PAUL CAMPBELL

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After the Māori, Captain Cook and the crew of the Endeavour were the first Europeans to sight the harbour entrance. It is recorded that they caught about a hundred fish in the harbour, no doubt the bountiful snapper, but described then as bream, giving the name of Bream Bay.

In the early 19th century, Europeans began visiting, and in the 1820s, the area was repeatedly attacked during the Musket Wars. William Carruth, a Scotsman and trader who arrived in 1839 was joined six years later by Gilbert Mair and his family. In February 1842, settler farms were plundered in revenge for transgressions of local custom and in 1845, many settlers fled to Auckland never to return.

Dredging at Whangārei wharf circa 1924

By the mid-1850s, there were a number of farmers and orchardists in the area. The Whangārei township began

to grow with the timber and kauri gum trade, where the current Town Basin was the original port.

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A look at the history of Whangārei must begin in pre-European times with the expansive harbour a landing point for many of the early arrivals who sailed across the Pacific to Aotearoa, the land of the long white cloud that lay on

Timber was an early town export and continues today

Clay from mines near Kamo supported brickworks for several decades. Good quality limestone was quarried at Hikurangi, Portland and Limestone Island and initially sold as agricultural lime, and later to produce Portland cement on the south side of the harbour.

Whangārei was the most urbanised area in Northland towards the end of the 19th century, and grew slowly in the 20th century, with farming coming to the fore with dairying adding to the local economy. Shipping was the main transport in and out until the railway reached the town in 1925.

The road north from Auckland was not suitable for travel in poor weather

until 1934, but as has been seen most recently, it can still fall short of demands upon it. Rail and road, though, saw coastal shipping decline.

The town continued to grow into a service centre for Northland. The population was 14,000 in 1945, then grew rapidly in the 1960s, incorporating Kamo and other outlying areas in 1964. It was then declared a city in 1965 with a population of 31,000.

The second half of the 20th century brought the establishment and expansion of the now-defunct Marsden Point refinery and then the growth of Northland Port, now a major regional employer and economic baseline.

The Northland Harbour Board first proposed a container port facility at Marsden Point in the late 1960s. A futuristic drawing was published, but it was not until 1976 that the proposal was moved ahead when the first of several environmental reports was written.

As part of that first report, a hydraulic model was constructed, and tidal flow data was fed into it to give a realistic model of the effects on the harbour at the site of the proposed port. During the 1980s, the plan faltered. It was not until Marsden Maritime Holdings (formerly known as the Northland Port Corporation) was formed in 1988 that it once again gained momentum.

Marsden Maritime Holdings entered into a joint venture with Port of Tauranga Ltd in 2000 to form Northport Ltd. Northport began trading in July 2002 as the port operating company when it took over the port activities of Marsden Maritime Holdings at both Marsden Point and Port Whangārei. With the closure of Port Whangārei to commercial shipping, all cargo operations were transferred to Marsden Point.

Northland’s forestry industry was slowly increasing in production, and it was the catalyst for establishing the new port. In 2000 final consents for a two-berth port were granted, and construction began. The first berth opened for business in June 2002. In late 2004 further consents were obtained for the third and fourth berths, with construction started in late 2005.

The government allocated up to $550 million for upgrading Northland’s rail system, including a long-awaited link to Northport, which was granted consent without the need for a rail link to help transport goods, particularly containers. Northport has begun the process of expanding its eastern end while continuing to develop proposals for a shipyard and drydock on its western side.

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A place of stories

by Amy Fifita

Kiwi North has plenty to excite the mind with various attractions for people keen on history to those who enjoy machinery.

The park has various attractions for guests to discover and continues to preserve social, natural and cultural heritage. It is a place where stories are told and held for future generations. On the grounds are the Whangārei Museum, Kiwi House and Heritage Park, all of which house different types

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of education and journeys for people to enjoy.

Explore the natural world and observe New Zealand’s native kiwi in captivity at the Kiwi House. The habitat mimics the flightless birds as if they were in the wild. You can also experience native geckos and tuatara.

If you have an appreciation for engineering and machinery, you may have the opportunity to ride on mini trains, larger steam trains or tractors. The Northland Vintage Machinery Club usually offers tractor rides on event days and the monthly Sunday Funday for $2.50.

The Whangārei Model Engineering Club opens its tracks for the mini trains on the third Sunday of every month from 10am–2pm and on Wednesdays during school holidays for an offering of $2. The Whangārei Steam and Model Railway Club is also on the third Sunday of each month from 10am–3pm and on Wednesday–Friday during school holidays. Rides cost $2.50.

Also located at Kiwi North is the Clarke Homestead, known as Glorat. The house was built in 1886 after Dr Alexander Clarke immigrated from Scottish shores to New Zealand and settled in Whangārei. Guests

can walk through the house and view preserved depictions and artefacts of what it would have been like in its former days.

Other historic buildings are scattered throughout the grounds, such as the Oruaiti Chapel from Mangonui, which boasts being the smallest in New Zealand. Riponui Pah School is located on the grounds, as is writer Jane Mander’s study. There are even the original jail cells from the Whangārei Women’s Jail.

Discover more at the Whangārei Museum and learn about local history. The museum has a story of its own and began displaying items in the public library in 1903. Throughout the years, its collections have moved from place to place before finally resting in at the Kiwi North.

There is currently no cafe on-site, so it may be a good idea to pack a picnic, although cold beverages, ice creams and snacks are available. A gift store is on-site, and various other attractions for curious minds.

Kiwi North is located at 500 State Highway 14, Maunu, Whangārei and is open from 10am–4pm every day. Hours may differ for public holidays. Look online at kiwinorth.co.nz for more information and to stay updated on events or browse some of its stories.

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The Clarke Homestead is one of the various historic buildings located at Kiwi North

Keeping fit with sport supports

by Amy Fifita

There is plenty to do to be active in Whangārei whether it be enjoying one of the various walks nestled in and surrounding the city or going to parks and facilities.

“Sports facilities are an enabler for people to get into physical activity, which is one way of attracting people to be more active,” says Sport Northland CEO Brent Eastwood.

Sport Northland owns Kensington Fitness, the Mackay Stadium and the Whangārei Aquatic Centre down at the Town Basin, where the management is contracted out. Other sports facilities in Whangārei that support active living and sports in the community are the Trigg Sports Arena, the Hockey Stadium and Semenoff Stadium.

“They run very well and attract plenty of people to them, and on top of that, there are school facilities and infrastructure that the council have put on like the loop.

“If you want to be active, find what you really like to do and try to add variety to what you do. Doing the same thing day in and day out can get to the point where you become unmotivated to continue. I think that variety keeps people motivated — walking, swimming, going to the gym or playing with the grandchildren.

“Sometimes, doing the same thing every day motivates people too. We have many different initiatives and

activities which people try. One of the key supports is the Green Prescription.

The initiative is by Te Whatu Ora nationally, and Sport Northland runs it in the region. Green Prescriptions are obtainable via your general practitioner or nurse.

“Patients come to see one of our patients support people at no cost and have a discussion and start them off

with something they would like to do like walking. It can progress into other things once they get fitter. The prescription helps thousands of inactive people every year start their journey into physical activity.

“We recently had the Parihaka Trial Run event, which we had to hold at the Glenbervie Forest because some of the tracks were damaged in Cyclone Gabrielle. About 400 people attended.”

Check out the Sport Northland events page to see upcoming events to get active in your area.

“We always try to do things differently to get people active. We focus on young people. Sport New Zealand contract us to run activities like the Healthy Active Learning initiative supporting primary schools to promote activeness and healthy eating to their students. We support the schools to get the students active in a way they want to be active. It is a huge initiative that is gaining traction.

“There are huge challenges in Northland for whānau to keep their children playing sports with the recent pandemic, Cyclone Gabrielle and the cost of living. We are encouraging schools to prioritise sport because children playing sport gives them skills for life.”

Brent Eastwood, Sport Northland CEO, talks about what supports are in place to promote health

“If you want to be active, find what you really like to do and try to add variety to what you do.”

Avoca’s Agricultural Lime (AgLime) and Limestone are manufactured at our three lime quarries at Rarewa (Whangarei), Pokapu (Bay of Islands), and Port Albert (Wellsford). Both are also available at bulk stores in Dargaville and Te Kauwhata (Waikato). From all of these locations, we’re well placed to deliver Agricultural Lime products Northland and Waikato wide. Avoca also provide soil fertility testing and consulting as well as lime and fertiliser products and custom mixes.

NORTHLAND LIME

1

Increases nutrient availability; raising soil pH with lime to ~6.3-6.5 releases and balances soil nutrients for plant uptake, maximising return on your fertiliser spend.

Improves pasture yield. Trials have shown pasture production increases up to 68% and corresponding live weight gains. 2

3

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5

Reduces need for N-fertiliser; lime stimulates N-fixation by legumes, and N-release from organic matter into plant available forms.

Improves P availability through a ‘phosphate sparing effect’ - trials in Northland showed 50-60kg more P available consistent over 3 years after applying 5t/ha of lime to a pH 5.8 soil. Optimal P availability occurs when soils are limes to pH 6.3-6.5.

Improves pasture palatability allowing for more even grazing of pasture and better pasture utilisation

NORTHLAND LIMESTONE FOR RACES

1

reasons to apply lime to your soils: 10

Increases soil biological activity and diversity; key to nutrient availability, good soil structure & porosity, and ultimately pasture/crop yield. 6

Increases resilience to droughts, floods, and runoff/erosion, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and greater root penetration for pasture/crop growth by flocculating (loosening) your soil to improve soil structure and porosity 7

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Increases water holding capacity in the dry and water drainage in the wet. Lime drives down magnesium in ‘tight, high Mg’ soils such as estuarine soils found in the Hauraki Plains.

Reduces elemental toxicities evident at low pH levels, e.g. Al, preventing subsoil acidification and improving root growth, root development, and reduces P-fixation.

Provides calcium which is essential for both plant and animal growth and health 10

5

Improve cow flow and lower your costs related to lame cows; vet bills, lost production, mating issues and getting cows in calf, and the possibility of having to cull the cow. The cause of cow lameness is often as simple as poor or stoney race surfaces - smooth them out with Avoca’s race limestone!

Avoca’s race limestone is cost effective. Avoca screens its limestone to GAP30 & GAP40, giving you a consistent product size that will spread further as it can be applied more thinly. 2

The other advantage of screening to GAP30 and GAP40 is that there is an increased amount of fines as the larger stones are recirculated for crushing. These fines provide the glue to cement the larger pieces of lime stone together. 3

Avoca’s race limestone forms a hardwearing surface in high traffic areas. Its natural cementing properties allows it to pack down to a durable surface with no sharp stones, as found with other rock types. 4

The smooth edges of Avoca’s limestone reduces stone bruises and hoof infections in your herd. 5

benefits of limestone races:

For more than 75 years, Avoca has been supplying Northland farmers with expert advice and top quality agricultural lime and fertilisers to ensure better crops and healthier livestock.

FOCUS

Collaborating for commerce

by Andy Bryenton

NorthChamber, the chamber of commerce organisation

for Northland, turns 120 this year, taking the time to reflect on a legacy of business cooperation and promotion that has fuelled local prosperity.

Twelve decades is an excellent track record for any group. Still, it’s especially heartening to note that this particular anniversary is not for a single business enterprise or a sporting team but for an organisation established in 1903 to advocate for business, help develop relationships and a broad skill base across businesspeople, and mentor those with fresh ideas.

The current board of directors comprises professionals from many areas of expertise, ranging from construction, recycling, accountancy, retail, hospitality and tourism, among others. Board members are also well represented as volunteers helping manage various charitable and pro-social groups alongside their work with NorthChamber.

At the same time, hundreds of local businesses come under their banner, benefitting from collaboration, idea sharing and initiatives to promote the support of local customers. That is important, but it’s not the only benefit of membership. Businesses that participate in this 120-year-old legacy can expect bonuses

when it comes to promotions, upskilling and training, and a knowledge base built up over all those years. There’s a huge resource library at the service of members to make doing business easier.

Another evident aspect of the work NorthChamber undertakes is the organisation of the annual Northland Business Excellence Awards. These highprofile awards cover multiple categories serving as the highest level honour, which can be bestowed on a business in the Northland area. Coming up on 45 years of mentorship and celebration, these awards provide a boost to far more than just the confidence of the winners.

Northpower chief executive Andrew McLeod says: “Developing principles of business excellence can only be good for the region, and the awards process is the ideal platform, people can look into their business performance, see how they have progressed and look for areas of innovation.”

His point is backed by Top Energy chief executive Russell Shaw who said: “We want to facilitate strengthening our business

community, and we see sponsoring the awards as a way to help make that happen.”

Both of these leading businesses in Northland play a key role in making the awards possible.

As April is now upon us, expressions of interest for the 2023 Northland Business Awards are now open. There’s a path from entering to the gala prize-giving event later this year, and it’s not simply a matter of accumulating votes. Those who have competed in previous years speak of the valuable lessons they have learned in terms of business strategy, and how energising it is to benchmark oneself against the very best.

This year, there will be awards for the cultural and creative industries, not-for-profit endeavours, and the best transformations for workplaces with health and safety or digital technology in mind. There are award categories for innovation, environmental excellence, and many more, celebrating all aspects of business achievement.

Heather Carrigan of Flax and Fibre is a previous winner of two titles via the Northland Business Excellence Awards; an accolade now open for 2023 nominations

Say no to unwanted winter guests

by Andy Bryenton

When winter comes, your homes should be a haven of warmth and comfort against the weather and low temperatures of the season.

The only trouble is, there are others who’d love to share in the war and dry conditions you have spent so much time and money perfecting. These pests are unwelcome at the best of times. Still, insects and rodents can make their presence felt when the outdoors becomes inhospitable.

Those with pet cats may have already noticed a new crop of rats and mice brought in by proud little hunters. As the mornings and evenings turn cold there is less to forage outdoors, and the allure of a warm space with lots of treats to steal

is rodent heaven. Those without a feline force in defence, or one of the small dogs which can do an equally good job, should look at a solid exclusion policy, checking for places where rats and mice can get in. Seal up everything in your pantry, too, and make sure outside rubbish bins have a tight snap-on lid.

Some insect pests tend to fade away in autumn; mosquitos and flies may reduce in numbers as the cold weather bites. However, other types of crawling critters can find the cold weather a good excuse to come inside. Cockroaches are a prime

example. Unlike the city ‘roaches depicted on most overseas television shows, New Zealand has a mix of species, some of which should be gainfully employed in the leaf litter of the forest. They hate light, and clean surfaces, but a real infestation is best dealt with by pest control professionals.

Winter is also prime time for moths, as it’s common practice to bring out heavier seasonal blankets, curtains and clothes from storage and tuck away summer-weight fabrics. Moths love to infest stored fabrics, so plan to repel them before you store them.

Bed bugs, ironically, love winter. They don’t just live in bed, either. These pests can be stopped by washing bedding and soft furnishings at high temperatures. Still, the fact that they often give beds a miss means that sometimes people afflicted with these unwanted guests take care of just the bed and leave rugs, curtains and cushions as a perfect hiding place.

Perhaps the winter visitors with the worst reputation and the least real threat are spiders. While the white-tailed spider, an Aussie import, can indeed give a nasty bite, many other spiders come in from the cold and seek out food. That

food is usually made up of insects you don’t want in your home, so they could be doing you a favour. While some of our native spiders are large and intimidating, most are harmless to humans and are best handled by simply throwing them out the window.

If pests become a big problem this autumn, call in the professionals to make your home secure before winter makes the issue worse.

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From spiders in the basement to possums in the attic, winter chills can send pests scurrying for the warm, dry comfort of your home

WINTER FOCUS

Leaving nothing to waste

by Andy Bryenton

Off-the-grid living doesn’t mean having to revert to the old ways when it comes to matters of waste; the long drop has been consigned to history by a range of clever ideas.

Even the successor to the ‘thunder shed’ of olden times has passed into history, with new septic and wastewater systems refining the concept of natural waste processing into an art. As living off the grid becomes a lifestyle goal instead of a frontier test of fortitude, some of these ideas are crossing over with other concepts to enhance the selfcontained nature of the true eco-dwelling.

First up is the ability to use solar energy to run the pumps and controllers of a modern wastewater system. While these systems harness the power of microorganisms to digest and purify, some require pumps and filters to get the resulting water to where it needs to go. Using solar energy to help with this process makes for a self-contained, grid-free result. Certain wastewater systems also utilise the water they produce to irrigate plants, instead of soaking into a wide expanse of paddock. Enterprising homeowners have adapted this to irrigate species that support bees and native fauna.

Another more radical idea, involves turning waste into biogas, which could conceivably power electrical appliances. It’s a concept being developed very seriously in metropolitan South Korea,

where Cho Jae-weon, an urban and environmental engineering professor at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, has invented a system to turn flushables into voltage.

The mathematics of the BeeVi biobathroom are as follows; every person produces, on average, 50 litres of methane gas daily via fishable wastes. If this is collected, after the waste is processed in an organic ‘digester’, it could generate enough electricity to power an electric car for 1.5 kilometres. That seems small, but multiply it by the population of an entire apartment block, and you can see why populous nations like South Korea are very interested.

On a smaller scale, treatment systems exist which turn methane from the biobreakdown of waste into cooking gas. These can cost as little as a couple of thousand dollars to buy and promise utterly hygienic gas for the kitchen without any comical smells. It’s all thanks to anaerobic bacteria and the way they deal with effluent.

In a way, off-the-grid septic systems are an evolution to a world where each household is responsible for its own footprint, and some good can be made

from a substance that’s traditionally been seen as bad. In another, they are a return to older ways of thinking about waste; in pre-modern times, many of the substances we flush away were collected for various industries and utilised. We can do away with the smell and make the process cleaner and greener with technology, making it possible to live closer to nature without damaging the environment as we do so.

Irrigation for plants, clean biogas, and even electricity; wastewater need not be wasted, with new, ecological ideas at hand

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Steel solutions nationwide

by Andy Bryenton

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It could be new steel or used in various lengths and forms. When it comes to steel, the Egmont Industrial Supply team has 55 years of experience and all the skills needed to assist with your next project.

As one might expect, Egmont Industrial Supply is located in the heart of Taranaki, with a view of the region’s iconic mountain as a backdrop. They are located in Egmont Village, under Mount Taranaki, with a team of eight professionals ready to select and dispatch quality steel around New Zealand. Steel is the raw material forming the backbone of many of the nation’s most productive economic sectors. Over time, the company has established a strong reputation as a reliable supplier of various products.

These span new and used steel pipe, casing, culvert, walkway grating, steel mesh, plate, steel sections and sheet piles. Specialising in large-diameter and heavy wall pipe, in particular, Egmont Industrial Supply has become renowned for its expertise and a handy cut-to-length fabrication service across its wide range of stock.

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Egmont Industrial Supply is secure in a strong reputation with their customers. Another big strength is its wide range of surplus steel and recycled steel. As a tough product, steel can be easily given a new lease on life, and there are many applications in which this can prove more affordable. It’s another innovative way to recycle, and Egmont Industrial Supply passes the savings on to its clients.

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Modelling — one size does not fit all

by Colin Hannah, Federated Farmers Northland president

From the fear that the Covid models created to get people vaccinated, to the ‘know your numbers models’ that produced a different answer depending on which model you chose — we are inundated by models.

Model outcomes and suggestions are in mainstream media and social media daily.

Models are tools and provide writers or modellers with a best guess around potential outcomes on a particular subject. For example, be it the number who will succumb to Covid, what the grass growth on the farm is likely to be this week or month, what the feed demand is going to be, or what the weather will do tomorrow.

We need to be careful in believing what a modeller says. We need to apply common sense, ignore the models and rely more on the knowledge we have and what has been passed down to us over time.

Too often, we are told by government departments that various models are correct and we should follow what the models imply. However, a model is usually based on a data set that can be reasonably expected to provide an outcome from some inputs that user has put in looking for guidance or a result.

There are models for everything, but they are not absolute. Farming data collated in Waikato or Canterbury will be vastly different from Northland due to numerous aspects of regional differences. Most data sets have outliers: unexpected data points outside the data detail, which can have a material impact on outcomes. Modellers can deem them irrelevant and leave them

out of the data making the resulting accuracy questionable.

Additionally, models can be influenced by someone’s ideology and directive towards a desired outcome. The old adage that ‘he who pays the piper calls the tune’ can be expected to affect a model’s predicted outcome.

While I use models daily around the farm to help my decisions, I

equally apply my own experience and mental agility to the other factors not considered in the model to ensure the best outcome for the farm, myself and those around me.

Beware that models don’t become a source of additional taxation, nor that any one suggested model is touted as a single solution for New Zealand — regardless of the topic or issue.

Models are increasingly impacting our lives and more than we care to acknowledge. I am concerned they are having an adverse impact on New Zealanders’ mental health.

Colin Hannah — Federated Farmers Northland president

TOTAL REPLACEMENT THERAPY: COULD THIS BE NZ FARMING FUTURE?

I haven’t written for a while, but an update on where we are is in order. With the launch of Total Replacement Therapy in November 2019, we felt we had answered the call to help farmers dramatically reduce synthetic nitrogen without loss of profit.

By rigorously following a strict, 8-step plan, the 20 farmers that went on the plan have had outstanding results, in a very short time.

We have not only seen an 86% drop in synthetic nitrogen within 18 months, but increased clover ground cover by up to 70% and pasture roots descending to one metre in the same time.

Seeing these consistent results was enough to safely say the 8-step plan is working.

Having reported, marketed and shared all the data we gathered, we felt we had completed the marketing plan of the Total Replacement Therapy concept. So, we thought, what’s next?

We decided to peer review our pathway, using Dr Lucy Waldron. We aimed to find out what established science already existed in the programme, so we performed a literature review of peer-reviewed, established science that was part of the 8-step plan, at our own cost.

The next part was to work out the areas that were not covered, and needed to be scientifically proven. This needed 8 replicable, funded new farm trials to measure the science.

To do this, we needed to apply for funding. We were encouraged by funding administrators to apply for large amounts of funding because we had a corporate structure. We put an extensive presentation together, but two days after it was received, the application was declined.

Apparently, after seeking outside advice they were told that our results –replicated on 20 farms – were “impossible”, and, “we don’t fund impossible”. We were also told that any further applications from us would be declined. So, we’ve taken a new tack. We won’t bother to apply for funding again; instead, we will focus on what we do best – helping farmers reduce synthetic nitrogen without loss of profit.

“We are still actively looking for farmers to volunteer to be part of the trial,” Dr Waldron said. “Once we undertake the scientific trials on farm, we get that science peer reviewed, which will give the 8-step plan integrity and give farmers confidence to use the programme.”

With Total Replacement Therapy, we are totally replacing synthetic nitrogen with a biological system. As we strictly go through the 8-step plan, there is a transition period, which includes that the soil be balanced before any liquid fertilisers are added.

We also don’t restrict a farmer if he wants to use synthetic nitrogen during this time.

As we follow the 8-step plan, we see a change in the soil, and once we start applying the liquids, we start seeing a reduction in the dependence on synthetic nitrogen at around 8 months. Our scientifically formulated liquid combinations change the farm completely, and totally replaces a chemical system with a biological system.

We are against the concept of regenerative farming, because of its lack of transition time and advocation for no fertiliser. Regenerative farming bases its theories and programmes on land that has balanced soil already; but if the soil is not balanced, and you stop applying fertiliser abruptly with no transition plan, the farm will not cope.

One such farm on a regenerative programme was failing with reduced fertility and reduced feed grown on the farm. So, we put that farm on Total Replacement Therapy and we are seeing exactly the same trends that our other farmers have experienced.

Scientists have proved that without a transition plan, the cost to the farming industry will be huge.

If you are going to a new system, you need to understand what system you are moving from. For example, a chemical system is a plant-feeding system; when the plants are given synthetic fertiliser as a plant feeder the plants use up what is needed, grow the grass well and when the plants have used what they need they deliver the unneeded synthetic nitrogen to the roots. To the roots, this is like breakfast in bed; they don’t need to do anything.

In extreme cases, our measurements have shown that the roots in a chemical system are only 75 millimetres deep, which do not help the reduction of leaching. In farms under the Total Replacement Therapy programme, we are seeing plants that start with these short roots extend root growth to 500 millimetre over 9 months, and 1 metre at 18 months.

Trials and tests on a farm with a chemical system will show that there is an absence of biology, because the conditions aren’t right for biology to thrive. Synthetic nitrogen will survive in the absence of biology, whereas biostimulants will not work if there is an absence of biology – because there is nothing to stimulate in the first place.

The Total Replacement Therapy programme is very strict, and with the results we are seeing and the products we are using, we are confident we can transition farmers to a biological system without loss of profit, totally replacing synthetic nitrogen.

Biological Soil Fertility Course with Albrecht consultant, Neal Kinsey

The Albrecht concept of biological soil fertility is simple: Tests carried out on soils that consistently grew the highest quality crop yields revealed that all these soils had a similar chemistry: Calcium levels between 60-70% , Magnesium between 10-15%, Potassium at 5%, Sodium at 1.5% and definite levels for Nitrogen, Phosphate, Sulphur and trace elements. Agricultural crops and high production pastures grow best within this range of soil chemistry.

HEAR NEAL KINSEY AT THIS UNIQUE 3-DAY SOIL FERTILITY COURSE

Today, Neal Kinsey is the leading consultant and advocate for this Albrecht biological system. For over 40 years in over 70 countries, Neal has proven that this balanced approach to soil chemistry is the key to successful plant growth and animal health. He has demonstrated, scientifically and practically, that when this nutrient balance occurs, soil pH, aeration, drainage, structure and beneficial soil biology inevitably improve.

THIS 3-DAY COURSE IS WILL COVER THE MAIN MINERALS:

Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium and Sodium as well as Phosphate, Sulphur and Nitrogen. The importance of trace elements will also feature.

Neal Kinsey has been called a ‘consultant’s consultant.’ His understanding of micro and macro nutrients in the soil is hard to match.

GOLDEN BAY DOLOMITE, KIWI FERTILISER AND TOP SOILS INVITE YOU TO ATTEND

Whether your business is orchards, vineyards, cropping or pastoral farming, we invite you to take this opportunity to participate in this seminar to hear Neal Kinsey speak about the most important issue facing our industries today – soil health.

FOR ENQUIRIES PLEASE CONTACT EITHER:

• Ross Wright 027 2462114 ross@goldenbaydolomite.co.nz

• Don Hart 0274320187 don@topsoils.co.nz

• Ron McLean 027 289 4258 ron@kiwifertiliser.co.nz

• Trevor Pearce 027 230 9934 trevor@sollys.co.nz

Or register online at www.goldenbaydolomite.co.nz

VENUE:

mission is to respect biological life in all areas of the farm

1st, 2nd & 3rd May 2023

FIREARMS

LICENCE

HOLDERS THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE ‘THE ROAR’AND GAME BIRD SEASON

If you’re a firearms licence holder, you’ll need to know about changes to the storage and transport rules for firearms and ammunition, and changes to the seven rules of firearms safety.

Regulations were updated in February 2022, and to help Kiwis make sense of those changes, Te Tari Pūreke, the new firearms regulator, published a Secure Storage and Transport Guide.

You can download a copy of the Secure Storage and Transport Guide from www. firearmssafetyauthority.govt.nz/firearms-safety

Storage and transport for firearms and ammunition, key points

Transportation

If you’re driving to a hunting location, your firearm needs to be inoperable during your travel and, ideally, concealed from view. This means removing the bolt or an essential part (or if that’s not possible, applying a trigger or cable lock), or transporting the firearm in a locked carry case.

The ammunition needs to be separately and securely stored in a locked glove box or similar storage area, if practical.

And please, whatever you do, once you’ve finished using your firearm, lock it away. Never leave any firearms in your ute, shed, home or vehicle unsecured at any time.

The only exceptions to the firearms and ammunition transport rules are if you’re using the firearm on a farm for farm-related activities, or you’re doing legally-authorised hunting or pest control (such as a regional council employed pest controller) and the licence holder is in the vehicle or the immediately vicinity of the vehicle with the firearms in it.

Make sure you read or download a free copy of the storage and transport guide to keep up to date with the details of the changes: www.firearmssafetyauthority. govt.nz/firearms-safety/storagetransportation

The 7 rules of firearm safety

Rule 1

Rule 2

Rule 3

Rule 4

Rule 5

Rule 6

Rule 7

Ammunition

All ammunition must now be stored in a locked container. You can now only store ammunition with firearms in a gun safe that has a separate lockable compartment with a different key than the key for the gun safe. You must keep these keys separate.

If your safe doesn’t have a separate lockable compartment, you need to store ammunition in its own secure storage container with a key, combination, or padlock, or in a stout locked cupboard.

Taking a break when you’re travelling with firearms

For those who travel with firearms to hunt locations, your inoperable and secured firearm can be left in your vehicle unattended, for example during a break in a journey, for up to 60 minutes. But you need to lock your vehicle and stay within the immediate area or vicinity of the vehicle and meet other conditions.

Read the storage and transport guide for full details: www.firearmssafetyauthority.govt.nz/ firearms-safety/storage-transportation.

Under no circumstances can firearms, ammunition or other arms items be left in a vehicle overnight.

Treat every firearm as loaded

Always point firearms in a safe direction

Chamber a cartridge only when ready to fire

Identify your target beyond all doubt

Check your firing zone

Store and transport firearms and ammunition safely

Avoid alcohol or drugs when handling firearms

The seven rules of firearm safety have changed.

Get ahead of the changes to firearms safety rules with the Firearms Safety Code. Buy the book from www. firearmssafetyauthority. govt.nz/firearms-safety and have it shipped to your door or download a PDF copy for free.

Firearms licences online

Apply for a firearms licence and update your contact details online using MyFirearms: a secure, online portal available at www.firearmssafetyauthority.govt.nz

There will be no charge to registering your firearms.

Te Tari Pūreke and the Firearms Registry

We want to enable the legitimate use of firearms for feeding our whānau, conservation, farming and recreation while keeping our communities safe. This involves making sure firearms licence holders are fit and proper to possess firearms and are meeting the obligations of their licence. New Zealand will have a firearms registry from 24 June 2023. The Registry is one of the ways we are strengthening how firearms are managed in New Zealand.

Information from Te Tari Pūreke - Firearms Safety Authority

SEPTEMBER 1st & 2nd 2023

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DARGAVILLE WEARABLE ARTS

Immune tune up for autumn

by Andy Bryenton

The change of seasons is when we’re often busy preparing our homes for the onslaught of winter chills, but what about the front line of defence against illness?

While it’s not the cold temperatures of autumn and winter that cause a cold, dealing with adverse weather and more hours of darkness can find our immune systems at a low ebb. However, the body’s natural defences are amazingly resilient, and with a little support, they can power through even the dreariest months in the calendar. Here’s what medical experts suggest as we head into autumn.

Adopt a fresh seasonal diet. Fresh food high in iron, vitamin C and antioxidants are great immune system boosters. Fresh, locally grown produce, eggs, seafood and cuts of meat are best, as they are as close to their point of origin as possible. While some famous cold-busting foods and drinks such as echinacea, garlic, and green tea can help prevent a cold, they are not the best fix when it’s already struck. For recovery, a mineral-rich homemade soup packed with fresh ingredients is best, combined with lots of rest.

Soup works not just because it’s full of goodness, but also, we’re told, due to the need for hydration. Water helps with cellular oxygenation. and it also flushes away bacteria and toxins. Aim for eight or more glasses a day of water as pure as you can get it. A home filter system is a good idea for this, and those who already own one are reminded to change their filters out for the start of the season.

Get outdoors in autumn, and make little changes to help prevent illness in winter

A little exercise goes a long way for immune system health. Doctors recommend approximately half an hour of gentle, low-impact exercise, such as walking, cycling or yoga. It doesn’t have to be high-intensity to work. Exercise, even a little, can help encourage the production of disease-fighting white blood cells.

Sleep is equally important, and the change in daylight hours can often throw

people out of their sleeping routines. Winter is a time for ‘hibernation’, and the best way to give your immune system time to muster its forces. Aim for seven to eight hours of sleep each night, and make it

deeper and more restful by eliminating all light from your bedroom, especially ‘screen light’ and the coloured LEDs which glow from appliances on standby. To drop off, try reading a paper book instead of using a device for half an hour before bed.

Finally, if you leave for work before dawn and come home after dusk, plan some time in your day to get out from under artificial light. If the weather permits, get outdoors for at least an hour each day in the sun to boost vitamin D production.

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Northland

Health & Winter Wellness

Mind food for winter wellness

by Andy Bryenton

Art and innovation go hand in hand, and psychologists now think that the same process that made prehistoric cave artists innovate new tools and ways of life goes on in the brains of people learning to be creative.

Creativity and problem-solving skills come from exercising the imagination and turning those inner images into real physical items, say researchers who look at the brain’s ‘wiring map’. This is just one way to develop artistic skills during winter could boost your mood, sense of wellbeing, and mind’s sharpness.

Since University of Utah scientist Dr Jeff Anderson debunked the ‘left and right brain’ hypothesis in 2013, a lot has happened in developmental neuroscience. The prevailing thought about how creativity and logical thought interact is now all down to how the nerves and pathways inside the brain connect up, a process dictated not by your genes but by what you do. This process carries on well beyond your school days.

There’s a movement in education that says teaching art to children is vitally important. It enables them to turn what they can imagine or envision into something real, reinforcing areas such as fine motor skills for movement and building bridges between pure imagination and the logic required to make it tangible.

What’s true for young minds is true for older ones, though there’s an extra benefit. Building neural pathways by learning new things is a brilliant way to preserve memory, and, like playing games and solving puzzles, learning art and crafts can help prevent dementia.

Winter is a time when seasonal depression can strike, when the cold, short days can weigh you down. Indoor pursuits such as learning arts and crafts are a superb remedy for the winter blues and can boost a person’s mood and self-confidence. However, these recent revelations about the power of creativity for both young and old suggest that getting creative can do much more.

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Magnesium and hypertension

by John Arts

It is still going now after 30 years. One of the many observations was the relationship between magnesium and hypertension (high blood pressure). The study showed that magnesium intake was inversely related to hypertension; those with low levels had much higher chances of developing hypertension.

Indeed, it seems as if magnesium can help many conditions, including cramp, heart rhythm, mood, sleeping and many more. That should not be a surprise because of the special role of magnesium in governing muscles and nerves. Calcium is the mineral that causes muscles to work and nerves to carry impulses. Magnesium helps return muscles and nerves to a resting state.

How does magnesium help hypertension? Our blood vessels have a special type of muscle called smooth muscle. Just as a de ciency can cause cramp or tightness in our skeletal muscles, so low it causes smooth muscle to lose its natural suppleness. That can impede blood ow and forces the heart to pump harder to circulate blood.

The main mechanism is that magnesium is a powerful calcium channel blocker; many hypertension medications are calcium channel blockers. It allows the smooth muscle in blood vessels to relax, thus allowing for enhanced blood ow.

The challenge is to get the right forms of magnesium in the right doses. My preference is to use three different forms of magnesium: natural marine magnesium from seawater is well-proven, magnesium citrate, and probably the most effective, magnesium glycinate. We then need to get the right doses. That is where once-a-day supplements can be dif cult, as you cannot modify the dose. My magnesium has a dosage range of one to four capsules, so it can be customised to a person’s needs.

John Arts (B.Soc.Sci, Dip Tch, Adv. Dip.Nut.Med) is a nutritional medicine practitioner and founder of Abundant Health Ltd. For questions or advice contact John on 0800 423 559 or email john@abundant.co.nz. Join his newsletter at abundant.co.nz.

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Or

Art and creativity are not extracurricular to learning, but may play a far more important part in brain health than previously thought

The Women’s Health Study is one of the most in uential medical studies; it followed nearly 30,000 Female Health professionals over 45.

Still cruising after all of these

by Andy Bryenton

It’s close to 40 years ago that the world first got a glimpse of what was to become the toughest thing on four wheels, the venerable Toyota Land Cruiser 70 series.

Officially going into production in 1984, the big off-roader was scoped out in late ‘83, and caused quite a stir with comparisons to the then-current J40 flying. Across the Tasman, the news of a fresh Land Cruiser was far more important than that other new arrival in 1984, the Apple computer. After all, the J40 had lasted since 1960, conquering the harshest terrain and superseding the Land Rover as king of the outback.

In New Zealand, the Land Cruiser was also a big part of the rural scene. The new 70 series was about to make the nameplate even more recognisable. Debuting in New Zealand as a two-door and a long wheelbase variant, early Land Cruisers were equipped with engines that would become familiar to rural tinkerers in sheds; the 3F petrol and the 2H diesel. Sheer longevity saw a wide range of petrol and diesel motors tuck under the bonnet of the Land Cruiser during its production run, which, nominally, has lasted until the present day.

There’s been a lot of innovation and evolution in those years, with 70 series machines adapted to almost any kind of task and terrain on Earth. Farmers have come to rely on them, tradies have towed everything with them, and examples have seen combat action with forces as

disparate as the French army and Somali rebels. There have been troop carrier variants, ute-backed workhorses, and Land Cruisers, which kickstarted the SUV craze by accommodating whole families on camping trips.

As well as being a favourite for Kiwi and Aussie drivers, the Land Cruiser became a core vehicle for South and Central America. Few other machines could handle the combination of jungles, deserts, extremely high

altitudes and rugged roads the continent had in store. In Venezuela, access to 70 Series Land Cruisers became a political issue. Not only was the 70 series used by a vast number of locals, it was also the official vehicle of the Venezuelan National Guard. Keeping the fleet up was so important to Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez that he threatened to seize Toyota’s factories if they didn’t meet his production targets.

That same level of devotion to the brand, and demand for the 70 series, spilt over in Australia last January, when it was revealed that there was a two-year waiting list for a new one. Australian drivers were distraught when they were told that no new orders were going to be taken in the near future. It’s unlikely that there has ever been such customer demand for a car that’s close to 40, but there’s a reason for the love the 70 series evokes. If you see one out there, you’ll soon see why; they are unstoppable, by either time or terrain.

Four decades after it broke cover, the Toyota Land Cruiser 70 series is still in hot demand

“Being a favourite for Kiwi and Aussie drivers, the Land Cruiser became a core vehicle for South and Central America.”

FARM WHEELS & MACHINERY

Powerful ‘beast’ wins best in show

by Andy Bryenton

Valtra has unleashed ‘the beast’, the company’s internal code-name for a new tractor with more than 300 horsepower and a suite of smart electronics.

The new Q Series was front and centre at Valtras’ offering for the SIMA agricultural show in Paris last November, an event equivalent to the Geneva Motor Show for automobiles. Here, the top prize is the title of best farm machine, and 56 candidates have to assess a variety of categories to winnow out the best from the rest.

When all 29,000 votes were counted, the jury prize went to the Valtra Q, with judges saying that, in this instance, the nickname ‘beast’ was well earned. Even the heaviest implements were handled with grace and power by the big machine, which was said to have an impressive focus on the agricultural contractor.

“We know we have a winning machine with the Q Series,” said Mikko Lehikoinen, vice president of marketing for Valtra.

“It has exactly the power, comfort, and technology large farms and contractors are looking for in a tractor of this horsepower. Furthermore, we guarantee the best tractor experience for our customers with the Q-certified dealer programme. We are confident that ‘the beast’ will continue to impress customers and juries.”

The reason they’ve given this tractor such a macho nickname is partially to do with the sheer amount of torque it generates. There’s a very nicely balanced six-cylinder engine under the hood, displacing 7.4 litres

and designed by AGCO Power to balance fuel economy with maximum grunt. It’s all about the big implements for many contractors, and to handle the demands of such machinery, the Q Series has a hydraulic pump with more than 200 litres of capacity, and 75 litres of exportable hydraulic oil capacity. Maximum flow is reached at just 1,650 rpm.

Valtra’s motto for its award-winner is simple; ‘power without control is

useless’. To harness all that horsepower, it has coupled the Q Series engine to an intelligent CVT transmission, allowing the tractor to pull solidly and smoothly. The Q Series has been specifically tailored to this kind of heavy pulling, ensuring the high torque of its 7.4-litre six is utilised at low revs, and remains consistently high throughout the 1,500 to 1,800 rpm range.

The toughness under the hood is matched with technology in the cab, including an innovative new joystick design and a nineinch touchscreen layout to put implement control at the driver’s fingertips. With an increasing emphasis on the economies of scale that can be leveraged through utilising bigger, more powerful implements, it’s no wonder the judges in France could appreciate the beauty of the ‘the beast’.

Jari Rautjärvi, managing director of Valtra, with marketing manager Charlotte Morel, Alexandre Chantrelle, sales and brand manager, and Mikko Lehikoinen, vice president of marketing

Power to keep Maungatūroto moving

by Andy Bryenton

One of the biggest names in motorcycle manufacturing is proving that it has an ear to the ground with the release of some fresh new models to augment its 600cc offering.

A new expansion to CFMoto’s UForce 600 model range is an example of the big bike manufacturer listening to its public. The original UForce 600 has been a success story for CFMoto, matching a sharp price with a big 280 kg cargo capacity, room for three, full rollover protection and 680kg of towing. A powerful but simple single overhead cam 580cc single-cylinder engine delivers power via a CVT gearbox, allowing for a smooth ride and no need for wrestling with a gearshift. It’s water-cooled, too, so that long days of hard work or long treks down muddy off-road trails won’t come close to making it overheat.

That’s a tidy package that allows the UForce 600 to play in the same league as some rather more expensive competitors. Maungatūroto’s hilly terrain and large farming heartland are the right spot, for just such a machine, especially considering the many upgrades available to customise it. However, customer feedback led to CFMoto adding two more variants to its off-the-showroom offering.

The first is for those who want a workhorse that’s tough and capable, but

don’t feel the need for ostentation. For these people, the Uforce 600 Base is the answer. It’s got an even lower price point, achieved by replacing certain pieces of kit with more simple, reliable components. Consider it the ‘army spec’ side by side; for example, alloy mag wheels are switched for cross-drilled steel. LED lamps are replaced with powerful halogen. There’s a fixed rear diff, anticipating hard work rather than top speed, and it’s available in one colour; CFMoto blue.

At the other end of the scale is the UForce 600 Hunt, exactly the opposite recipe, with all the extras for a wilderness adventure. Windscreen, side protector bars, a snorkel kit, and aggressive forestcamo styling with chunky mag wheels are the order of the day for this 600, which is aimed at those looking to explore and engage with wildlife of the edible variety.

For your own particular off-road needs, whether they lie in the direction of adventure, hard work or something in between, CFMoto has you covered. Come and chat with your local dealership about your next machine, what it needs to do well and what could be the perfect fit for your farm or lifestyle.

USED TRACTORS & MACHINERY

Three of the best — CFMoto has turned its successful UForce 600 into a family of economical, hard-working side-by-sides

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ATV MATS from $89 — Come in & see us at Rouse Motorcycles, King Street, Hikurangi. Ph 080 096 3636. www.atvtyres.co.nz.

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