Real Farmer Summer 2020

RealFarmer

RealFarmer FOR EVERYTHING FARMING AND FAMILY

S U MME R 2 0 2 0

Taranaki hills yield new promise

Hunting for the head

SU M ME R 2020

App links land to hunters

Varied crops bring promise to provinces

RealFarmer FO R E VE RY THING FA RMIN G A ND FA MILY

RURALCO

From the Group CEO Welcome to the summer edition of Real Farmer, which features articles dedicated to cropping in the regions, hunting and new technology, health and wellbeing, and a profile on our Chair, Jessie Chan.

First up we get to meet the Collier family who farm the steep terrain of the Mangamingi district in south eastern Taranaki. It is unforgiving country, but this fifth generation farming family are working hard to create sustainable and high value business within their traditional hill country operation. Brothers Ben and Tom share their experiences and plans for the future for their 2,500ha property.

Diversification from our traditional protein (butter, cheese and red meat) farming has seen New Zealand’s regions now offer a rapidly expanding variety of niche crops and food farming—something our farming forefathers could never have dreamed of. We take look at a number of these exciting crop and food options which are boosting earnings off quality land from one end of the country to the other.

When it comes to down time, many farmers are keen hunters, but while many farmers are hunters, not all hunters are farmers, so a Canterbury man has developed an app which links land to hunters, while ensuring farmers, hunters, their safety and the environment are all winners. HuntingHQ is the brainchild of Marc Featherstone, and he shares his story with us. Still on the hunting theme and Willie Duley of NZ Hunter Adventures shares his musings on 2020 and hunting’s place in a year such as this.

The Glob—rural health caravan sponsored by Global HQ is becoming a familiar site at saleyards, and is proving popular with farmers, removing the four key obstacles farmers face when dealing with health issues—access, time, cost, and their own resistance to getting checked up. It is a great initiative which is reaping rewards and we talk to those behind this successful operation.

We also hear from Fairlie farmer Andrew Hurst and his first-hand experience with Canterbury’s rescue angels—the Westpac Rescue Helicopter and its crew who were instrumental in saving his leg after an accident which saw him pinned between the farm ute and his motorbike.

And finally, our new Ruralco Chair, Jessie Chan, is profiled and shares with us her agricultural journey so far. She’s the first to admit it’s not the path she envisaged when she left school, but her continuous sense of learning and a desire to make a difference are the primary drivers for her many successes and we are fortunate to have her expertise and passion.

PO Box 433, Ashburton 7740 0800 787 256 www.ruralco.co.nz EDITORIAL ENQUIRIES:

Our team welcome your contributions, enquiries and letters.

Please email to: marketing@ruralco.co.nz ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES:

Please contact the Marketing Department on: Tel: 0800 787 256 marketing@ruralco.co.nz

DISCLAIMER: Views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of Ruralco.

CONTRIBUTORS Annie Studholme Rachel Rickard Richard Rennie Willie Duley

FAR Tel 03 3455783 far@far.org.nz www.far.org.nz

PHOTOGRAPHERS

FMC Tel 0800 787 256 ruralco@ruralco.co.nz www.ruralco.co.nz

Annie Studholme Tania Niwa TECHNICAL ARTICLES

FMG Tel 0800 366 466 www.fmg.co.nz

Agricom Tel 0800 787 256 ruralco@ruralco.co.nz www.ruralco.co.nz

Hansen Tel 0800 787 256 ruralco@ruralco.co.nz www.ruralco.co.nz

Ballance Agri-Nutrients Tel 0800 787 256 ruralco@ruralco.co.nz www.ruralco.co.nz Beef + Lamb Tel 0800 233 352 enquiries@beeflambnz.com www.beeflambnz.com Corteva Tel 0800 787 256 ruralco@ruralco.co.nz www.ruralco.co.nz DairyNZ Tel 0800 4 324 7969 info@dairynz.co.nz www.dairynz.co.nz

Irrigation NZ Tel 03 341 2225 admin@irrigationnz.co.nz www.irrigationnz.co.nz NZ Pork Tel 0800 697 675 info@pork.co.nz www.pork.co.nz PGG Wrightson Seeds Tel 0800 787 256 ruralco@ruralco.co.nz www.ruralco.co.nz Ruminate Tel 0800 787 256 ruralco@ruralco.co.nz www.ruralco.co.nz

ON THE COVER:

Ben and Tom with mum Sarah, on her horse, with expansive views of the Taranaki region.

Rob Sharkie robert.sharkie@ruralco.co.nz

Contents

S UM ME R 2 0 2 0

Interest

Cover Story

2 Taranaki hills yield new promise 8 A continuous sense of learning and a desire to make a difference 13 Recognising supplier excellence 16 Connecting farmers & hunters 22 Hunting for the head 40 Varied crops bring promise to provinces

Technical 15 Controlling twitch prior to pasture renewal 33 High yielding rape for excellent summer feed

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37 Choosing the right trough valve 39 New Washdyke location for business who are “best under pressure”

Taranaki hills yield new promise

44 Soil moisture monitoring in the irrigation season 47 Time for a physical 51 New solutions for forage brassica weeds and pests 54 A community approach to understanding water quality 57 New tool helps commercial sheep farmers source best-fit genetics 64 Strategies for farmers to meet the nitrogen cap 67 Forage brassica insect control

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A continuous sense of learning and a desire to make a difference

16

Connecting farmers & hunters

71 The forgotton weaning 74 The importance of groundcover management for pig farms

Wellbeing 58 Canterbury’s rescue angels 59 Caravan a haven for farmer health 60 Two things to be aware of this summer

Card

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Hunting for the head

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Varied crops bring promise to provinces

DISCLAIMER: All information contained within Real Farmer is to the best of the author’s knowledge true and accurate. Opinions expressed are those of the author and not of Ruralco. Items herein are general comments only and do not constitute or convey advice. This publication is issued as a helpful guide to cardholders.

11 Hynds help ensure stock never go dry

Hynds Pipe Systems 35 Thirty years on solid foundations

Tarbotton Land & Civil 39 New Washdyke location for business who are “best under pressure”

Hydraulink Mid Canterbury 49 Your first choice for all mechanical servicing

ACL Smallbone

INTEREST

Taranaki hills yield new promise 2

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The steep terrain of the Mangamingi district in south eastern Taranaki is not farming country for the faint of heart. The Collier family are well into their fifth generation farming this unforgiving country, with that fifth generation working hard to craft a sustainable, high value business into their traditional hill country operation.

WORDS BY RICHARD RENNIE, IMAGES BY TANIA NIWA

Brothers Ben and Tom Collier have taken over the family’s 2,500ha property after the untimely death of their father Cam in 2015. For Ben the shift back to the farm not long after Cam’s death was a bittersweet move.

“It was not as if I had ever thought I would not come back, it was more a case it was unexpected—it was looking less likely, given where my career was heading at the time,” says the ex-Blackstick hockey player and Olympian representative.

He and his wife Julia moved from Auckland where Ben had been working in corporate finance as a Senior Relationship Manager with the Commonwealth Bank. Coming back to Taranaki was a return to a childhood home, with many good memories, and the challenge of picking up the mantle with Tom to continue developing the family farm.

“It would of course have been great to do this with Dad, but the time spent since with Tom and Mum has proven to bring its own rewards, and some really interesting challenges with the farm business.” Their mother Sarah remains very active in the daily operations of the farming business.

Tom, a Lincoln graduate, had been bull beef farming on the East Coast prior to coming back, having also spent some time working overseas.

ABOVE: Ben, Julia and sons Cameron and Bruno LEFT: The new Bee & Flow Honey is Julias pride and joy BELOW: Tom & Ben looking out over their farm with

Mt Taranaki in the distance

The farm lies in country best defined as “steep” and “very steep”. The Collier property only has about 80ha of river flat country, with 500ha of “steep” land and another 500ha of “very steep” country.

The steepest papa mudstone-based country has had about 50ha of harder southern facing land retired back into native bush, with assistance from the Taranaki Regional Council’s bush reversion scheme.

In the last three years the brothers have spent together they have focused closely on working hard to re-develop the tough property. This has included a focus on the three pillars of drystock productivity—subdivision, fertiliser and reticulation to help lift the farm’s productive potential to a sustainable reality.

Water reticulation has been high up the list of priorities, taking dam water and pumping it along a ridgeline across the top of the farm, to be stored for paddock delivery to most parts of the farm.

This has had two key benefits. It has enabled them to get water to the steeper, higher paddocks, better utilising the grass supply in the higher country of the farm by ensuring stock don’t have to move and camp in the lower areas near natural water supplies.

In addition to further paddock subdivision, it has enabled them to better match stock rotation to grass supply. “It has also enabled us to fence off most of our riparian areas too, something becoming more of a requirement on dry-stock farms these days,” says Ben. The farm has some sensitive catchments on its boundaries including the Lake Rotokare scenic reserve and the Patea River dam area on its northern boundary.

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The farm also includes 400ha of QEII covenanted native bush within the boundary, one of the largest privately held bush areas in Taranaki.

The tendency for manuka scrub to flourish on this sort of country was once the daily challenge for the boys’ grandfather, Keith. Keith and their grandmother lived off the property while managers ran it, while they lived on Fields Tracks.

“The river flats were largely swampy and full of barberry, and the hill country had heaps of manuka scrub on it. Our grandfather used to load his dogs into his Cessna and fly up here to work from the Parapara’s, before he bought the family here in 1985.”

Today the farm runs as predominately a cattle and sheep breeding property. The majority of the lambs are sold to family. The cattle are calved as rising two-year heifers and run through a once bred heifer system where non-replacement heifers are finished as rising three-year olds, and most steers are sold as weaners.

Along with subdivision and reticulation, the brothers have focused capital fertiliser on the easier twinning country, about 700ha of the farm. Harvesting some of the pines Cam planted 26 years ago has provided a valuable source of funds to re-invest into the farm.

On the flats they planted 30ha of rape crop this year for the first time and use the flats to hold the lambs over summer, feeding up the ewes prior to set stocking them on the higher country.

The irony of once holding down summer holiday jobs chopping down manuka is not lost on Tom or Ben today. That same country they used to cut it off is the same country they are encouraging manuka to grow on today because of the value it plays in the family’s latest business venture, the Bee & Flow manuka honey company.

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Only just kicking off into their first commercial year, Bee & Flow is capturing the family’s efforts to combine a sustainable food business into the existing farm operation, with both enterprises benefitting from the synergies that can bring.

“We have been working on a policy of cutting manuka, as opposed to spraying it out, to match supply with pasture cover. The manuka grows like crazy here in Taranaki, and we figure it is better to work in with it than try to fight it.”

Some parts of the farm they have converted to agri-forestry has the manuka thinned out where necessary, and thinning has also helped encourage better plant flowering and pasture growth, through improved light penetration.

ABOVE: Julia and 4 year old son Cameron in bee suits—Cameron loves helping his mum with the bees BELOW: Brothers Ben & Tom have been running the family farm in partnership since 2015

“So, it creates a nice balance and it fits with what our honey brand is ultimately all about,” says Ben. But the move to a family honey brand has not been an overnight one for the Colliers.

When manuka honey’s value started to surge eight years ago, the family built a strong relationship with commercial bee-keepers keen to place hives in the farm’s prolific manuka stands.

“At the same time, we started learning more about the craft ourselves.”

His wife Julia started a Taratahi course on beekeeping, learning literally from the ground up about hives and how to manage them.

Her move to New Zealand with Ben had already been a big step from her native Mexico City, and the step into the relatively remote Taranaki countryside an even bigger one that she has thrived on regardless.

“Julia found learning about beekeeping has given her an additional interest while raising a young family, and a sense of contribution to the family enterprise.”

The family started with only five hives of their own working in with the commercial beekeepers and have gradually replaced the commercial hives with their own.

Today they have 70 of their own “Collier” branded hives and proudly declare their Bee & Flow manuka honey “single-origin” to discerning consumers.

“We permanently site our hives, which is a point of difference and means we can genuinely claim to have “single origin” honey. This is also good for the bees. They are much calmer not being moved regularly, there is less stress and disease as a result. We have distinct apiaries of five to six hives each throughout the farm.”

The bees also tend to winter well, thanks in part to the family’s focus on preserving bush where possible. “The 400ha QEII block is not only a nice piece of bush, it also provides a valuable food supply for bees over winter.”

The Colliers are working closely with Taranaki Regional Council and their farming neighbours to help develop a bush corridor for wildlife, leveraging off the work done in the nearby Lake Rotokare Halo project catchment.

The project aims to make the area a wildlife sanctuary from which rare and vulnerable wildlife can spread out from into the surrounding landscape.

Intense trapping programmes for rats, mice, stoats, and possums began in 2015 and by 2017 the area covered about 3,000ha. The project linked with a trapping project run by the South Taranaki Forest and Bird, and the Taranaki Kiwi Trust, ultimately growing to 4,500ha.

Continuing efforts aim to extend its “halo” area as funding allows and initiate pest plant control alongside the pest animal controls.

“Our neighbour has 300ha of bush with introduced kiwi in it, and our block is the next cab off the rank to introduce kiwi into,” says Ben. He believes with all landowners taking small steps to contribute, the ultimate result will be a larger bush sanctuary in the region that council, farmers, and local communities will all share in, and be proud of.

“Ultimately we would love to be able to create a bit of a corridor between Lake Rotokare and the Patea River dam area.”

The native manuka that plays such a vital role in acting as a nursery plant protecting native seedlings fits nicely with the plans for a bush corridor, and as a vital component of the farm’s honey business.

The family has developed a website and e-commerce platform for marketing and selling

their honey and look forward to seeing it make its way with initial markets including Holland, Julia’s native Mexico City and possibly some other EU countries.

“We are quite happy to start small and just grow, letting the supply meet what demand we have, we really want to build a reputation for quality and provenance with the brand.”

Initial sales this year have proven very promising, and the lockdown left them cleaned out of stock.

where Ben has lived, but he says there are no regrets about coming back home.

That time away had been spent not only in Auckland, but further afield pursuing his hockey career, one that saw him in the team that made seventh place in the Beijing Olympics.

He is philosophical about sport and what it bought with it, comfortable with the results he achieved and how much it has contributed to where he is today.

Global demand for manuka and its therapeutic benefits was greater than ever, coming from increasingly sophisticated consumers who are aware of what indicators like MGO and UMF mean in terms of quality.

The loss of the tourist trade has made that aspect of sales harder, but e-commerce is increasingly helping overcome the tyranny of distance, while more product in the local market is being appreciated by New Zealand consumers.

“We have always had a view that if we can tell our story well, people do appreciate it. We have even had times when people have assumed, we are organic, simply based on how they see our farming operation, and the low impact effort we take with the land.”

While the busy honey harvest season can see all hands helping, including the farm’s two full time staff, Ben and Tom find they work well together drawing on their respective strengths.

For Ben, the focus is on stock and operational management, while Tom brings a strong practical mechanical talent to the farm. This has proven invaluable in ensuring the farm’s redevelopment programme is an enduring one.

“The water reticulation project is one where Tom’s attention to detail has been invaluable. He put a solar power system in place that pumps the water out of the dam, 3–4km along a ridge top to the tanks. He has also put a water monitoring system in place that gives us an indicator of water levels remotely.”

The quiet hills in south-eastern Taranaki are as far as one could get from the bustling urban centres

ABOVE: Tom on the flat country with the beef cows BELOW: Sheep in the high country with Manuka trees

surrounding them

“We were supposed to be the dark horse, having beaten the Dutch and drawn with the Aussies, but we lost to Spain with 10 seconds left, we did well and it was not a bad result, taking New Zealand’s ranking to 5th in the world.”

Back home today he is finding the rewards come in being part of a family business that is producing something tangible, including honey, meat and fibre.

“The work you do, you see the result of your hard work that people buy and consume. You also get to see the results here on the farm of the changes we make, all those tweaks and adjustments to the farm system, they show through over time.”

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A continuous sense of learning and a desire to make a difference

After a lifetime working in countless different facets of the agricultural sector including not-for-profit, central, and local government, co-operatives and commercial business, Jessie Chan is excited about her new role as Chair of Ruralco.

WORDS & IMAGES BY ANNIE STUDHOLME

It’s been a long, winding journey for the mum of two young sons, Adam, 7, and Noah, 2, who farms in partnership with her business-partner Hayden Dorman on a 420-hectare property at Dorie in Mid-Canterbury, milking 900 cows.

Jessie’s the first to admit that it’s not the path she imagined for herself when she had her first taste of the agricultural sector as a 17-year-old working for the Dairy Research 8

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Institute, now Fonterra Research Institute. But it’s her continuous sense of learning, driven by an innate sense of curiosity, together with a passion for making a meaningful contribution to rural communities, that continues to empower her.

Jessie grew up in Palmerston North, one of four children. Raised by her father, although she did not grow up on a farm, she developed a love of agriculture and the primary sector.

Her father also instilled the importance of education. Jessie left school at 16 but was determined to go to university. “I had always had an interest in science, in particular biological science.”

Having worked as a Lab Technician at the Dairy Research Institute working in product development, Jessie put herself through university, completing an Honours degree from Massey University in Animal Science Majoring in Ruminant Nutrition.

Fresh out of university, Jessie worked as a Technical Advisor for the Ministry of Agriculture (MAF) doing live animal export and imports, followed by stints with Meat and Wool New Zealand [now Beef & Lamb New Zealand] as a Research and Development Portfolio Manager, and as a Dairy Policy Analyst for Federated Farmers, amongst other roles.

Jessie gained invaluable skills and exposure across all these roles, but especially through her time with Federated Farmers. “I learnt a lot about farming, and I mixed with farmers from all around the country. It taught me a lot about communicating clearly, and keeping it simple, being concise and effective. And how to work with people to get a win-win.”

It was while Jessie was provincial president of the Wellington Young Farmers’ Club that she met Hayden Dorman, who was then Chairman of Tasman Young Farmers. It proved to be the turning point in her career taking her back to grassroots.

Embarking on a new journey together, they decided to move south to Canterbury and take up a lower-order share-milker position at Dorie, on the south side of the Rakaia River.

Coming from a corporate background, it was Jessie’s first exposure to rural life.

Playing to each other’s strengths, Hayden was hands-on with the cows, leaving Jessie to focus on the accounts, HR, compliance, environmental issues, and governance. “He’s the cowman. And he’s good at it,” says Jessie. “I self-confess, I don’t milk cows, because I am not very good at it.”

Working their way up from the bottom, growing their equity, skills, and knowledge they took the next step, purchasing 800 cows.

After two years of herd ownership, the farm was sold to Italian buyers and they were offered the chance to lease. “It works really well.

We run it as if it were our own,” says Jessie.

Before the sale, the farm was run as two units carrying 1,700 cows. In a bid to future-proof themselves against future downturns and to lower their farming footprint, they opted to move to a self-contained system including split calving and winter milking, reducing numbers to 900 pedigree Holstein Friesian and some pedigree Jersey cows. They also grow 70 hectares of crop to feed their cows, drystock and young stock.

While continuing to run the farm in partnership with Hayden, Jessie explored opportunities where she could give back to

LEFT: Jessie’s farm has moved to a self contained system with 900 cows BELOW: Environmental sustainability is a key component in their business

the agricultural industry. From the variety of roles she had experienced earlier in her career, she gained invaluable insight into how a variety of organisations work and what drives them.

During her 20s Jessie had numerous jobs. At the time she was concerned it was a negative, but looking back the journey of discovery was pivotal.

“During that time I discovered governance was one area I was good at and could add value in terms of running a business, understanding risk, financial acumen, legal obligations, strategic thinking and how to go about building a team of people to make that happen.”

Determined to make a difference, Jessie is not afraid to make the tough decisions. “You have to own it. Taking ownership is something that I was taught as a child. With governance, it’s on you. As a director, I am responsible for the decisions we make around the board table. I cannot point the finger at anyone else. I like that side of it.”

Having developed a sound understanding of people dynamics, Jessie’s come to realise that everyone has a story. “People’s life experiences are all different. Everybody is an individual. You need to take the time to understand people.

Once you can understand that you get better outcomes. It all comes back to people.”

The move to rural Mid Canterbury, coupled with grassroots experience provided the perfect springboard for her career into governance. “It opened up a lot of opportunities for me. It has evolved from there,” she says.

Jessie completed the Fonterra Governance Development Programme, gaining further experience through the Food and Agribusiness Marketing Experience, the Professional Development Course for Co-operative Directors, and the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme. She received the Canterbury Institute of Directors Aspiring Director Award in 2014 and was also named 2017 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year.

She has also served as a Fonterra Shareholders’ Councillor, on the Board of Federated Farmers Mid Canterbury, Business Mid Canterbury, Connetics Limited, Environment Canterbury and as an associate director of Dairy NZ. Last year, she attended the week-long Te Hono

Stanford Bootcamp at Stanford University in California along with other major players in the agricultural sector.

Currently, Jessie sits on the board of Ngai Tahu Farming Ltd, Alpine Energy Ltd and the Bio-protection Research Centre. She is also a trustee of Meat the Need, a farmer-led initiative which sees farmer donated meat distributed to New Zealand food banks.

Having first joined the board of ATS in 2013, Jessie assumed the helm in June following the decision by previous Chairman, Alister Body, to step down from the role. In doing so, she became the first female Chair of a major Kiwi agribusiness co-operative.

Jessie was excited to be part of a board that is diverse and very future-focused, though she welcomed the day when having a female Chair wasn’t big news. “It’s lovely that people think it’s cool, but it would be nice if it was normal.

That’s when we know we’ve got equality. I’m just a person doing something. Not a woman and not half-Chinese,” she says.

She brings with her a host of skills, not least firsthand experience as a farmer. “I understand the hard graft of farming, whether you are building a business from scratch, growing a business, or trying to keep one for future generations.”

For Jessie, it’s about reflecting on her journey and what she can contribute going forward.

She says the challenge for Ruralco is thinking about how it can do things differently while staying relevant and true to its values.

“We have to be thinking about what value we can add for our members. There is a super fine line between delivering the best for members and having a viable business. Finding an answer to that conundrum is both exciting and challenging at the same time. Melded into that is how people are going to do transactions in the future.”

She believes the key always comes back to people and relationships. “People and relationships, whether it’s with our members or suppliers, face-to-face or electronically, are at the heart of all we do.”

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Hynds help ensure stock never go dry

Founded in 1973 by John and Léonie Hynds, the Hynds Group of Companies are New Zealand’s premier manufacturer and product supplier for the drainage, watermain, stormwater, wastewater and rural markets. WORDS BY RACHAEL RICKARD

Through the manufacturing and distribution of over 40,000 product items for drainage, watermain, environmental, industrial process and rural products, Hynds products have become synonymous with how water and effluent is moved through farmland around rural New Zealand.

With over 600 employees and 32 distribution centres, Hynds Pipe Systems remains proudly family owned and has built its reputation on customer service and innovation. And it is the need to continue to offer great customer service which has seen the introduction of a new Stock Water Design Service—a complimentary service to complement their range of Hynds concrete troughs and ensuring that farmers get a stock water system that is right first time.

The benefit of getting a full stock water design completed is that it gives the farmer confidence that the right amount of water is going to get to the individual trough and the volume is enough, in relation to the numbers of animals it is supplying. When this is done right, animals get good quality water and plenty to drink. Issues occur when the incorrect sized pipeline is used, and in this case there will always be a water shortage as the wrong sized pipe can never deliver enough water, meaning you’ll see stock standing around the water trough waiting.

Good placement of troughs ensures a better feed utilisation as the total paddock area gets more evenly grazed. This differs from when a natural water source is offered, as these are commonly situated at the lower areas of the paddock, and on hot dry days the animals

will tend to hang in these areas.

The Hynds Stock Water design service offers a full Irricad based plan, which is an irrigation and stock water-based CAD programme. They also use a GPS to gain certain waypoints such as tank or pump sites, certain trough sites and any further relevant information such as tracking pipeline which helps with the accuracy of the design process. Additional mapping tools via Google Earth and LINZ Mapping are utilised for accuracy and analysing topography.

Information farmers need to consider when planning a stock water system is: climate, elevation, paddock sizes, accessibility, stock numbers—including considering what the future or potential numbers for the property might be, numbers in a mob or herd that the stock would be running in, source of water and pump or gravity fed capability to run the system.

The design and planning phase is critical to getting the best result, so a Hynds designer will work directly with a farmer to go through all the relevant information required to ascertain what sort of stock water system a farmer is looking at and what might be required for the property.

Following an initial discussion an on-farm visit is arranged, where the designer will

get the lay of the land and to gather the information required to start the design process. Once this is completed the designer then works with the farmer, planning the layout of Hynds concrete troughs and pipeline to ensure the system will meet the needs, ensuring that everybody is happy before the design process begins.

A good quality water system is crucial to the health and well-being of animals, and an investment in the future of the farm.

It allows for better grazing management and options to break feed based around the concrete trough placement, keeping animals in good stead, and ensuring they never go dry.

Farmers who are considering an on-farm stock water design, or further information just contact your local Ruralco store or representative, who in turn will contact the Hynds Stock Water design service.

IMAGES: Sir David Fagan, Hynds Rural brand ambassador

Up to 30% discount

0800 937 473 www.hynds.co.nz

with your Ruralco Card

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Recognising supplier excellence

Since 2011 the Ruralco Supplier Awards have been an opportunity to recognise and celebrate the mutually beneficial relationship between Ruralco suppliers and co-operative members.

WORDS BY RACHAEL RICKARD

However, due to the unpredictability of COVID-19, 2020 has been a rollercoaster year for events, so, rather than cancelling the Awards altogether, Ruralco forged ahead with giving out two Awards.

The co-operative agrees that, even though the Awards evening are a great night out, it is more important than ever to acknowledge excellence in business, customer services and the support that suppliers have given the Ruralco members.

Ruralco National Card Sales Manager, Lester Chambers said “For many businesses COVID’s effect on the relationship between our suppliers and members improved and trade increased, owing to the Ruralco card being the best form of non-contact payment. Although we could not host our usual September ceremony, we can applaud the exceptional customer service and continued support of the Ruralco card by Members Choice Winner Neumanns Tyres and Supreme Supplier Award Winner, Aakland Chemicals.”

Voter turnout this year was comparable to others, with a similar number of suppliers nominated.

As has been the case in previous years, members voted online through a form on the Ruralco website and voter turnout did not appear to be affected by COVID-19 at all.

With increased sales the last year as well as continually acting in the spirit of the Ruralco relationship, Aakland Chemicals was proud to accept the 2020 Supreme Supplier Award.

Steve Glassey, Managing Director, at Aakland Chemicals said “it’s a great honour to receive this award again after our 2018 first time win and second last year. Ruralco is a great company to work with as it is a true partnership to achieve great results for its shareholders

and has great leadership and values which align with Aakland’s values of service and relationships with customers.”

Aakland Chemicals is a 100% New Zealand owned company specialising in the independent manufacturer of quality detergents and sanitisers for the dairy, hospitality, food processing and retail agricultural markets in New Zealand.

They manufacture under a certified quality management system to ISO 9001 and most products are NZFSA Approved, with some specialised products having Bio-Gro certified organic status. Aakland’s offer free on farm training for staff in the use and handling of chemicals and free on-farm delivery.

To be voted the Members Choice Award, four years in a row is certainly no accident. Ruralco asks its cardholders to choose a supplier who they feel has given exceptional service and value for money and again, Neumanns Tyres has come out on top.

Owners and brothers Ian and Alan Neumann, agree that their level of customer service is maintained through continually offering a consistent service by their experienced, highly trained staff and they encourage their team members to always make customer service a priority. For the past 75 years this has been the businesses main focus, and they believe the team of long-serving, knowledgeable staff who offer a high level of customer service have been a big contributor to the success of Neumanns Tyres.

Ian said “The partnership between Neumanns Tyres and Ruralco is a longstanding one, with both companies continuing to work hard together for shareholders. The ease of doing business with Ruralco is of benefit to Neumanns Tyres, and being able to advertise widely through Ruralco’s platforms of Facebook, email, and the Real Farmer magazine direct to customers and potential customers is a great tool for us. It is also wonderful to be able to offer discounts to all of our loyal Ruralco members and we hope to continue to exceed your expectations and live up to our reputation by continuing to provide the best local, friendly service.”

The Winners of both Awards received a voucher from a Ruralco Card Supplier of their choice to the value of a $1,000.

The team at Ruralco thank the entire nationwide network of suppliers, extend congratulations to the all the 2020 Supplier Award Winners, and look forward to hosting the event again in 2021.

ABOVE: Supreme Supplier Award Winners, Aakland Chemicals (Steve Glassey with Lester Chambers) MAIN IMAGE: Members Choice Award Winners, Neumann’s Tyres (From left, Ian Neumann and Alan Neumann with Gavin Templeton and Lester Chambers)

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RURALCO SEED 14

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Controlling twitch prior to pasture renewal

Over time productive pasture species including ryegrass, cocksfoot, tall fescue and clovers will slowly be replaced by less productive grass species and broadleaf weeds. When this happens both pasture production and quality are reduced, ultimately having a negative impact on both production and animal performance.

WORDS & IMAGES SUPPLIED BY PGG WRIGHTSON SEEDS

Pasture renewal offers opportunities to control weeds before re-establishing productive pastures. For this to be done successfully, correct weed identification and control is required. A common grass weed that is often not successfully controlled is twitch.

When twitch is identified in paddocks targeted for pasture renewal, a plan for control is required. Glyphosate should be applied to actively growing twitch plants with three to four leaves, this ensures there is sufficient leaf area for glyphosate and translocation of the herbicide within the plant.

Often late winter sprays prior to spring cropping are ineffective as there is little translocation of herbicide to the root and

rhizome system. Ultimately survival of twitch within a new pasture will reduce the longevity and dilute the feed quality.

For paddocks with significant twitch problems the best control will be achieved by spraying two autumns in a row. To achieve this, it is recommended to spray out the paddock with glyphosate in mid February and drill the paddock into a break crop of short-term ryegrass.

Supercruise Italian ryegrass is an excellent option for this process offering rapid

SEED

establishment and outstanding annual dry matter yield. Often farmers are concerned about the negative impact of pasture renewal on feed supply. As seen in Figure One, Supercruise Italian ryegrass offers increased pasture growth over perennial ryegrasses rates for 18–24 months. Increased winter activity and a rapid establishment speed means there is often minimal impact of average pasture covers.

Supercruise offers cool season and early spring growth (coinciding with key times of feed deficits) and gives grazing management options in wet conditions, where it can be treated as a sacrifice area enabling permanent pastures to be protected.

The following autumn the paddock can be sprayed out with glyphosate in February before sowing into permanent pasture. This second application of glyphosate provides a second opportunity to control twitch that survived the initial spray out.

If feed shortages, dry conditions or financial constraints mean the paddock cannot be taken out at the intended time, Supercruise can be expected to persist for up to two years providing flexibility in the renewal programme.

Ultimately a successful pasture renovation will generate more feed both in the shortterm break crop and permanent pasture.

If this extra feed is well utilised there is potential to greatly increase productivity.

For more information and advice on how Supercruise Italian ryegrass can be integrated into your pasture renewal programme contact your local Ruralco On-Farm Account Manager.

IMAGE: Problem grass weed twitch.

Photo credit: Trevor James, AgResearch

AVERAGE PASTURE GROWTH RATES (KG DM/HA/DAY) OF SUPERCRUISE ITALIAN VS. PERENNIAL RYEGRASS LINCOLN, CANTERBURY

Figure One: Average pasture growth rates of Supercruise (mean of two years) and perennial ryegrass (mean of three years) in high fertility under partial irrigation measured in adjacent trials between 2016 and 2018 in Lincoln, Canterbury.

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INTEREST

Connecting farmers & hunters 16

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Many farmers are hunters, but not all hunters are farmers, and Canterbury man Marc Featherstone has worked out a way to bring the two together with some innovative thinking. It promises to ensure not only farmers and hunters, but the environment and safety are also big winners with its launch.

WORDS BY RICHARD RENNIE, IMAGES SUPPLIED

BY HUNTING HQ

Using a phone-based app to do anything from shifting stock to ordering a ride in town is second nature to most people, in both rural and urban New Zealand today. Marc Featherstone, the creator of HuntingHQ is confident he has come up with a similarly easy to use solution to link farmers with land suitable for hunting on, and hunters keen to make use of it.

“Over the years the willingness and ability of farmers to make parts of their farms available for hunting has reduced, for a number of reasons.”

“Traditional access hunters may have enjoyed of a farming family’s land may disappear when that family has moved on, or often farmers have been so inundated with enquiries they have simply stuck up a ‘no shooting’ sign and shut the gate on it.”

Of course, there has also been a growing health and safety concern about visitors coming onto what is essentially a farm business premises to conduct what can be a risky activity at the best of times.

Under work-place health and safety regulations there is greater responsibility placed upon a landowner when someone enters their property.

“A farmer is known as a PCBU (person conducting a business or undertaking) and as such that farmer is responsible for the health and safety of the hunter. The HuntingHQ App provides a tool for the farmer to identify and communicate all hazards and health and safety farm requirements to the hunter prior to them arriving on the property. This tool ensures the

farmer remains health and safety compliant.”

A late returner to hunting, Marc has spent the past several years as an avid sport gun competitor. But recent changes to the rules around gun type and ownership put an end to various aspects of club competition and he started to think about re-igniting his earlier interest in hunting.

“I talked to guys who have hunted for a long time and they describe how much harder it is finding suitable land to hunt on.”

Marc has spent time talking to farmers, finding out what deters them from allowing hunters onto their properties.

“And while I had a lot of farmers offering reasons, there were really only a few key things farmers said they need to know when people come to hunt on their property: how many hunters; when; how skilled; and when did they arrive and leave?’”

With safety a priority he turned his digital marketing mind to developing an app driven system that ensures visiting hunters are health and safety compliant, covered by insurance and competent enough for farmers to allow entry. Meantime, farmers can list their suitable properties with peace of mind knowing this.

Due to launch this summer HuntingHQ is the result, with hunters paying a $199 yearly subscription to belong to a virtual hunting community Marc likens to an “Air BnB for hunters”.

The subscription includes full liability insurance cover for hunters up to $10 million.

“This was one of the main things farmers wanted to know when we talked to them about hunting access—‘are they insured?’”

To register on the site intending hunters have to create a detailed profile introducing themselves and their prior hunting experience, upload their firearms licence, then pass an online health and safety and code of conduct exam, and only a ABOVE: Hunting HQ App & Desktop platform LEFT: Mitch Tucker, Hunting HQ Marketing & Events

Manager (left), Marc Featherstone, Hunting HQ Director (right)

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100% pass mark enables them to proceed.

Passing automatically gives them a “four star” hunter rating—if they belong to a gun club or have a first aid certificate they will be upgraded to a “five star” rating.

Once the hunter’s registration has been verified, they can begin booking suitable hunting locations, with options available from Kaitaia to Stewart Island.

“So far, we have 170 farms registered with us, but we could do with quite a few more. We already have 2,000 hunters registered and good to go.”

HuntingHQ enables registered farmers to enter an array of hunting block details, including what species can be hunted, the daily rate per hunter and size of the block.

A detailed map means they can highlight access points and the boundary of the block.

Most importantly from a health and safety perspective farmers can identify hazards they are legally required to notify hunters about— this could be ground hazards like old mine shafts, or potentially hazardous farm activity that may be carried out.

Marc is excited about the potential of the HuntingHQ app, and how it is going to expand into a number of hunting related areas, including hunter education.

“There is the opportunity here to really improve the standard of hunters heading out. Often keen hunters will video what they have shot, and there will be opportunity to view a variety of educative videos—from how to choose a firearm right through to skinning, gutting and preparing your kill for cooking. HuntingHQ provides a supportive community for anyone with limited hunting experience to expand their knowledge.

HuntingHQ also provides the ability for a new hunter to book an experienced hunt guide to show them the ropes.”

There is an online community forum for hunters and landowners to chat and Marc sees the opportunity to rekindle the link between

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the two, creating a stronger bond between landowner and hunter in the process.

Once hunters arrive, they scan a QR code at the entry to the property, and again on the way out.

While within the property boundary they can be tracked on the app, giving peace of mind to anyone entering alone that they can be located, and full knowledge to the landowner about a party’s presence on the land.

“There is peace of mind there for all parties.”

While larger corporate style farms are typically more conscious of their health and safety obligations, Marc is confident the easy to use app will engender greater awareness and attention among smaller operators as compliance on health and safety grows in all areas of farm operations.

Listing a property on HuntingHQ is free and the HuntingHQ app provides the landowner with additional income.

“HuntingHQ takes just a small service fee, similar to Air BnB. The daily rates paid per hunter on a block will vary between $30 and $150,

depending on the type of game, animal size and location.”

Marc has one property near Christchurch that is only $30 a hunter per day which is swarming with rabbits and offers an ideal ‘starter block’ for anyone with children who may be interested in having a go at hunting.

Heading into the trophy stag country of the Southern Alps, the app is a lifeline for an industry starved of overseas hunters for the past eight months.

“Some of the New Zealand’s private hunt lodges who usually only cater for wealthy overseas visitors have now registered with HuntingHQ to enable locals to enjoy their facilities. For someone just looking to shoot a deer for meat, it may cost $100-$150 each per day, but if you want to go for a trophy stag then the rate will be higher.”

As New Zealand ramps up its Covid-19 expenditure on biosecurity and pest control, the app is likely to play an integral role in helping bring pest numbers down.

HuntingHQ software will make hunting at pressurised times of the year like the roar in April, safer.

“Rather than just passing out permits, the app’s built in safety features have the ability to break down DOC land into smaller blocks, places hunt groups further apart, and keeps track of exactly where and how many hunters are in an area at any one time.

Meantime in coming months Marc and the HuntingHQ team are hitting the road at A&P Shows, field days and farmer meetings, hoping to build up the estate available to keen hunters happy to be part of his growing community. www.huntinghq.co.nz

Dunstan Downs adds HuntingHQ to its bow Whether it is wallabies in Waimate or tahr at Tekapo, the ability for hunters to log their sightings and their kills will over time provide invaluable data about pest locations and density, helping better target government sponsored eradication programmes.

“The recent controversy around tahr populations and the cull intentions has highlighted how uncertain pest numbers are for some species which are difficult to sight and eradicate,” says Marc.

The HuntingHQ app turns the usual pest eradication process on its head. Usually government organisations or landowners have to pay to manage pests.

“For example, the government and landowners have spent tens of thousands of dollars trying to eradicate goats on Banks Peninsula over the years, but they are still there. There are plenty of hunters happy to pay for the opportunity to have a go at them.”

Marc is excited about the potential of the HuntingHQ app and how this can assist “Predator Free NZ 2050” and DOC in improving eradication of unwanted wildlife.

For the Innes family of Dunstan Downs near Omarama, the opportunity to be part of the Hunting HQ network gives owner Tim and Geva Innes the opportunity to expand their tourism appeal.

Like many high-country stations relying in part upon tourist stays for station income, this year has been a particularly tough one with their overseas market drying up almost overnight following the Covid-19 lockdown.

The family offers an assortment of accommodation within the station ranging from a farm stay experience at the homestead, a backpacker’s lodge for budget and group travellers. For those seeking to get well into the station’s heart there is also a lodge 15km down a four-wheel drive track offering the ultimate in high country seclusion.

The Innes’s have regularly had people come onto the property to shoot an assortment of deer, rabbits and pests, and Tim Innes welcomes the structure that Hunting HQ will bring to that arrangement.

“This will really be another string to our bow and fit in well with the family business.

With HuntingHQ it will be good to know the hunters are coming in fully insured and all the health and safety aspects are well covered. It does take the pressure off us as landowners.”

It is early days and the Innes’s are still sorting through final details with Marc at HuntingHQ, but Tim is looking forward to the network being up and running for summer.

“What I would really like to see by being part of HuntingHQ is that it will be safe and easier for parents to bring their sons and daughters through to have a chance to hunt something.”

“The opportunities today are not as great as they used to be in my day. They may even be able to come away with something they can turn into a meal,” says Tim.

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INTEREST

Hunting for the head Crisp air, snow-capped mountain scenery, earthy smells of manuka and beech forest, heaving lungs and a pulsing heart rate, man did it feel good to be back out in the hills!

WORDS BY WILLIE DULEY, PRODUCER, NZ HUNTER ADVENTURES

I could feel weeks of tension, stress and grief (as well as litres of sweat!) simply lifting out of me with every step I took.

I appreciate many did lockdown and are still doing Covid-19 much harder than I did in my privileged and opportunity filled Kiwi life so I say all this with a grain of salt, but to be stuck in an old farmhouse miles away from the mountains for the entirety of the roar, well that was pretty tough for me.

Rightly or wrongly, Level 4 lockdown saw the recreation of hunting despite its isolated nature 22 RE AL FARM E R

and comparatively low injury rate, deemed off limits and understandably, my business was not considered an essential service, although some diehard viewers might disagree! Could our Covid-19 situation have been handled better given we are one of the most isolated countries in the world? Yeah probably, but I sure as heck wouldn’t want to be in charge of steering the bus through the unknown…

The thought of the show now being a whole season behind in production and marketing budgets (which are the bulk of my income) being first on the chopping block, coupled with the tragic loss of a couple of close friends entering the lockdown period, was enough to make me feel a bit like a lab rat in a cage being poked and prodded with no outlet to release what I was feeling.

Me ol’ noggin seems to be fairly resilient though and I had an endless amount of work to keep me occupied, but I do sympathise for the many rural folk that find things get on top of them and then struggle to find ways to shake it.

Roll on Level 3 and an allowance was made for hunting to take place on private land within your ‘bubble’. We were back on the hill from that very first morning and absolutely embracing our newfound freedom!

But why did it feel so good? I’m a firm believer that the simple task of climbing a mountain is good for the soul and to steal a quote from Newton McConachie, “you’ll learn no harm from the hills”. This year illustrated to me beyond all others just how good hunting is for people’s wellbeing. Beyond the obvious physical benefits of exercise and providing the ultimate ethical and free range source of kai (pipping grass fed beef and lamb at the post in my highly bias and unqualified opinion), I am also becoming ever aware of the mental health benefits gained from hunting.

Hunting in the mountains is all consuming, right from the get-go, you become engrossed in small everyday challenges, like getting from Point A to Point B while carrying a heavy pack on your back, scaling mountains, searching out likely

areas where animals are living, bush cooking with minimalist equipment, and even basic survival instincts like finding water and shelter are critical if you want to come out of it all in one piece. Listing these off makes me laugh as on face value, I’m not making hunting sound super inviting. Admittedly, hunting does often fall under the category of ‘Type 2 Fun’, you know like when something isn’t actually fun at that moment. In fact, it feels much like suffering. It’s only after the event, and in reflection, that you come to realise you actually had fun!

Nonetheless, I find that hour by hour, day by day, my worries and stresses from home and work just fade away and that the mountains and hardships you are forced to overcome when hunting have an incredible way of putting life in perspective, what’s really important and what’s not.

By the end of a trip, I head home a new man.

I’m carefree, happy and positive like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I even look forward to sitting at an office desk, well for a day or two at least!

I realise hunting is already a popular pastime among our rural communities but an observation I have made (though I’m by no means an expert on the matter), is that some who struggle with mental health are those that

don’t have an outlet by way of an extra passion or hobby beyond their normal day job, an extra purpose beyond work and family. Some might work on the farm day to day and then spend all their spare time also working on the farm because there’s forever another job that should or could be completed. I accept it’s ‘easier said than done’ and my own transition from a cushy rural banking job to running my own business on the bones of my backside was a shock, going from a stress free lifestyle with no real risk or skin in the game to suddenly struggling to leave the desk and shut-off from work as there was always something that needed doing and I continually seemed to be behind on deadlines.

I probably blur the lines here a bit myself and I’m sure it’s similar for many famers, where to a large extent our passion, whether that’s hunting or farming, is also our day to day job and that’s why we go the extra mile and stick at it. I’m lucky in a way that I still get enjoyment from trips in the bush even when a camera is in tow, and I manage to regularly squeeze in recreational hunts with my partner and friends as a ‘weekend warrior’ to keep the freezer full and mind clear.

I think farmers can easily relate to hunters and vice versa as there are many parallels between us, particularly around the challenges we presently face. Our way of life is under attack more than ever before, we are constantly having to defend our jobs and pastimes and fight for commonsense outcomes, which is undoubtedly hugely

ABOVE: The freedom of the hills and mental outlet they provide is not to be overlooked ABOVE TOP: The great thing about hunting is it’s a sport for everyone, male and female, young and old LEFT: The hunt consumes you with overcoming everyday challenges

taxing on our mental state. You can’t nurture and even encourage intensive farming practices and hunting businesses like Regional Councils and DOC have done over the last 10 years, collecting their consent and concession fees along the way, then suddenly pull the rug from under those people’s feet and expect them to change and adapt overnight. By in large, we all agree change needs to take place and things can be done better, but the rationale and process of that change is key to get full ‘buy in’.

While all the people I’ve introduced to the sport, irrelevant of their backgrounds have embraced it, hunting is understandably not for everyone.

I think however any sport that involves some form of graft and mountain scenery is good for our mental state, mountain biking, tramping, rock climbing and mountaineering are a few others I’ve dabbled in that have given me a similar release.

A lot of people tend to measure the success of a hunt with securing a trophy head. The older I grow and the busier life becomes, it seems the real trophy of a hunt is being able to clear one’s own head, reset your mental space and return home ready to live life to the fullest.

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SHOP ONLINE OR IN STORE WITH RURALCO

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What's New

SUMMER COOKING MADE EASY The best-selling Instant Pot Duo multicooker not only replaces seven appliances but speeds up cooking and saves up to 70% of the energy used in traditional cooking methods.

The Instant Pot brings quality and convenience with sauteeing, steaming, slow cooking, pressure cooking, rice cooking and even yoghurt making capabilities.

SummerStyle

Check out this mouth watering BBQ ribs recipe from Instant Pot. The perfect option for your summer BBQ.

TABLE ESSENTIALS

Make sure you have your summer dining table essentials on hand when entertaining.

Quality carving sets such our Victorinox 2-piece set will last for many more Christmas hams to come.

Keep the seasonings handy for all your dinner parties and barbeques with the elegant but durable Cole & Mason Lynhurst Salt and Pepper Mill Set.

BBQ RIBS COLE & MASON LYNHURST SALT & PEPPER MILL SET $149.30

CHRISTMAS PANTRY ESSENTIALS Get your pantry ready with our wide range of food options available in store. From our popular range of delicious cakes to boxes of chocolate to our locally sourced Crozier’s turkeys and range of condiments, Ruralco has convenient options for your trip away to the bach or Christmas party.

FORKING PREMIUM MINT SAUCE $14.50

Tiff ’s tips

WHITE CHOCOLATE & RASPBERRY CHEESECAKE $50.60

Make this christmas merry and bright with Tiff’s table styling tips.

Decide on a theme. For a traditional look, go with red, gold and green, or if you prefer a modern look, choose a colour and add decorations with simple gold or silver tones.

Simple foliage and florals are very much on trend again this year so consider adding fronds of eucalyptus or pine to your centre piece or table runner.

Add some warmth. Candles can add a cosy touch and bring warmth to your table. Try festive fragrances such as pine and cinnamon.

Incorporate some elegance.

Consider adding napkin rings and classy candle holders to add some sparkle to your setting.

CANDLE HOLDER $54.10 MAXWELL & WILLIAMS RADIANCE ENTERTAINERS DINNER SET $183.50

VICTORINOX 2 PIECE CARVING SET $97.80

LOCALLY MADE The Prebble family have produced Flax Seed oil in the heart of Canterbury for over 25 years and are involved in every step of of the production process of their products.

TOTALLY KIWI FLAX SEED OIL $13.90

2 baby back ribs 700gm 1/3 cup packed brown sugar 2 tsp kosher salt 1 tsp garlic powder 1/2 tsp paprika 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper 1/2 tsp mustard powder 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 1 cup water 2 cup barbecue sauce warmed If your ribs have a thin membrane over the bones on the backside, remove it by carefully sliding a knife under the membrane and peeling it away.

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, salt, garlic powder, paprika, pepper, mustard powder, and cayenne. Rub mixture all over ribs. Place trivet in Instant Pot and add water. Place ribs on trivet so that they are standing up. Secure lid and set to pressure cook on high for 20 minutes.

Follow manufacturer’s guide for quick release, making sure to wait until the cycle is complete before unlocking and removing lid.

Using tongs, carefully remove ribs from Instant Pot and lay them flat on a large baking sheet. Brush both sides all over with barbecue sauce before serving.

MAXWELL & WILLIAMS VERONA HI BALL GLASSES $59.90

INSTANT POT $219.90

ALL ITEMS AVAILABLE FROM:

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SUMMER YOUR TRAVEL GUIDE

SUMMER ESCAPES FROM MAXINE WHITING, ASHBURTON HOUSE OF TRAVEL

RAINFOREST RETREAT—FRANZ JOSEF

EXPLORE FIORDLAND & MILFORD SOUND

Immerse yourself in the awe-inspiring mountains, glaciers and bush of the South Island’s stunning West Coast with a spectacular tree house experience at Rainforest Retreat.

Located in the heart of Franz Josef village, this secluded alpine retreat is the ideal base for those exploring the glacier country.

Explore Milford Sound on an overnight cruise through the heart of Fiordland, providing astonishing views and the ultimate Milford Sound adventure. Experience a mysterious underground world at the Te Anau Glowworm Caves with a guided cave tour past the rushing water of an underground stream before drifting in silent darkness beneath the luminous shimmer of hundreds of glowworms.

WINGS is unlike any other aviation event—the Wairarapa scenery provides a stunning backdrop to an extravaganza of aerial action over three days. The Vintage Aviator Hood Aerodrome based aircraft collection is without doubt the largest flying collection of flying WWI aircraft in the world. Static displays include the opportunity to get up close with aircraft, emergency services displays, delicious food, wine and market stalls. There really is something for everyone.

Three nights including overnight Milford Sound Cruise & activities from

Two night holiday from

Two nights from

$499

per tree house (inclusions valid for two adults).

$369

per person, family share, based on 2 adults & 2 kids 5-14 yrs.

WINGS OVER WAIRARAPA 2021

$359

per person share twin, flights are additional.

BOOKS FROM THE LIBRARY

Summer Reads Betty

By Tiffany McDaniel So begins the story of Betty Carpenter.

Born in a bathtub in 1954 to a Cherokee father and white mother, Betty inhabits a world of poverty and violence. But despite the hardship she faces, Betty is resilient.

Her fierce love for her sisters and her father’s brilliant stories are kindling for the fire of her own imagination, and in the face of all she bears witness to, Betty discovers as escape in the redemptive power of words.

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SUMMER READS FROM NORMA GEDDES, ASHBURTON PAPER PLUS

The Stranger

The Vanishing Half

By Simon Conway

By Brit Bennett

From the corridors of Westminster to the refugee camps of Jordon, and the Badlands of Iraq, MI6 agent Jude Lyon must piece together the shape on an implacable horror coming towards him—and a conspiracy of lies behind him.

Twins, inseparable as children, ultimately choose to live in two very different worlds: one black and one white.

Weaving together multiple strands and generations, from the Deep South of Carolina, from the 1950s to the 1990s,The Vanishing Half is at once a riveting, emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of race, gender, and identity, and the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person’s desires and expectations.

CHRISTMAS CRAFTS

FOOD

Your own edible house

Create your own Rudolph WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

METHOD:

INGREDIENTS

• • • • • •

Step 1: Start by cutting individual cups from an egg carton.

2 cups icing sugar

Step2: Paint each individual cups with brown paint and let them dry.

1 packet Arnott’s Nice biscuits

Step 3: Glue on some googly eyes and a red pom pom for the nose.

1 handful lollies

Step 4: Cut out some reindeer ears/antlers from card stock paper and glue them onto Rudolph.

1 handful sprinkles

Egg carton Red pom pom Googly eyes Brown card stock paper Glue/Hot glue gun Brown paint

2 tbs milk

1 handful M&Ms

METHOD

The Christmas Maze TRACE THE PATH THROUGH THE MAZE & GET THE GIFT TO THE CHRISTMAS TREE.

Step 1: Sift icing sugar into a large bowl. Add milk a little at a time and stir until you have a thick, paste-like icing.

Step 2: Spread a little icing onto one biscuit and top with another to form the base of a house. Spread icing onto this top biscuit as well. Repeat to make six bases.

Step 3: Spread some more icing along the long edge of one biscuit and press it against another to create a V shape. Place this upside down onto a base, using icing to adhere. Repeat to make six houses.

Step 4: Decorate the houses with lollies using icing to stick them to the roof and base.

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Ruralco Kids Christmas Colouring Competition Once completed, get it to Ruralco by 22 December and you’ll be in to win great prizes!

NAME

AGE

MEMBER NO.

TERMS & CONDITIONS: • There are two age groups and prize packs allocated per age group: age 4–7 and age 8–11.

• Please ensure the family Ruralco account number, age and name of the entrant is submitted with the entry.

• All entries must be received by Ruralco no later than 4.30pm, 22 December 2020. Either drop it in to any of the Ruralco stores or post to PO Box 433, Ashburton 7740.

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• Winners will be announced by 29 January 2021.

• One entry per child only.

• Ruralco reserves the right to publish all entries and details of the winners. The judge’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

• Once the judging has taken place, winners will be notified by telephone.

• The prize is not transferable or exchangeable and Ruralco reserves the right to change the prize to the same or equal value at any time if the prize becomes unavailable. No responsibility accepted for late, lost or misdirected entries.

Additional copies can be downloaded from www.ruralco.co.nz/kids

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High yielding rapes for excellent summer feed

When it comes to selecting a rape cultivar for summer feed, it is important to base this decision on the potential yield needed at key times.

WORDS AND IMAGES SUPPLIED BY AGRICOM.

There are, however, other important factors to take into consideration. One that is often overlooked is the quality and palatability of the stem. Another key trait that must be considered is the plant’s natural ability to combat aphid pressure. When properly balanced, these three factors will not only ensure a reliable yield but will maximise the plant’s quality and it’s re-growth potential.

Spitfire and Mainstar forage rapes from Agricom are New Zealand-bred cultivars with very high utilisable yield for their types.

Recent trials have confirmed that Spitfire and Mainstar have excellent yield in both their leaf and stem at the first grazing and have a high total yield when combined (see figure 1).

It is the excellent aphid resistance, high leaf yield and utilisation that makes these varieties different. Farmers have been impressed with how healthy and clean plants are during the growing season, especially when they compare them to other cultivars sown at the same time. High aphid tolerance makes management a lot easier, saves on insecticide use and contributes to a

high leaf proportion in the crop at grazing.

Many cultivars can look just as impressive for height and yield at grazing but can disappoint farmers with the amount of the crop that stock are reluctant to eat.

The most important determinant for the real productivity of a forage rape is the proportion of leaf to stem and how much is eaten by animals—often described as the edible dry matter. Famers have found that their stock perform very well on Mainstar and Spitfire, which is mainly down to the high proportion of green leaf in the diet.

Mainstar is Agricom’s new early-maturing rape cultivar with the time to first grazing being 10 to 12 weeks. If managed correctly,

Mainstar can be grazed three times and, for some a 4th grazing is possible if mixed with herbs such as Ecotain® environmental plantain. This provides a much wider grazing window starting in early summer and going through autumn into early winter. It has been noted in grazing preference trials the vast difference in crop residue postgraze when animals have a choice of which cultivars to graze.

Spitfire can be planted in spring to provide grazings over summer. The time to first grazing is 13 to 14 weeks and often two good grazings can be achieved before shutting up for winter feed or being direct drilled into in early autumn for winter feed.

Establishment and management are similar to other rapes, except that aphid spraying is likely to be required at a lower frequency while some stressed crops may still need an insecticide. Spitfire is ideal for situations where the feed pinch occurs in mid-summer and animal feed requirements are high.

The forage rape grazing management defined by Agricom’s research should be followed to maximise stock performance and crop regrowth. Herbs and clovers can also be planted with Spitfire and Mainstar to produce a high-quality pasture after the rape has thinned out.

Having both an early maturing multi-graze type in Mainstar and a high yielding summer dominant variety in Spitfire gives farmers options. Rape is widely respected as a crop that is very tolerant to drought conditions and in times of uncertainty, becomes an integral part of many farm systems. If farmers are after proven, modern, high-performance rape cultivars with crucial added benefits, they should look no further than Spitfire or Mainstar.

For more information on Spitfire or Mainstar contact your local Ruralco Representative.

2018–2019 KIMIHIA RAPE TRIAL LEAF TO STEM PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL YIELD

FIGURE 1: Shows how the yield of each cultivar in the trial was made up between the leaf and the stem. The average yield in 86 days was 11 t DM/ha and, as can be seen in the Mainstar data, the majority of yield comes from the leaf, which in turn results in more being consumed.

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Thirty years on solid foundations

“The road to success is never straightforward” says Stuart Tarbotton, who, after founding an excavation business as a 21-year old now knows, “there are always twists and turns along the way. But 30 years on, I’ve learned that being the best isn’t about being the fastest or cheapest, its about getting a job done right.” WORDS BY RACHAEL RICKARD

With time comes wisdom, experience, and change. After 30 years in business, Stuart, along with wife Debbie, sons Brad, Tim and Ben, and their team of 45 employees—many who have been with the company for over 20 years—are rebranding as Tarbotton Land & Civil.

The idea of rebranding had been in the pipeline for a while and the 30th year of business seemed like a good time to announce it. Tarbotton Land & Civil—Done Right, reinforces their scale and capability as a team rather than an individual.

They found the term “Land and Civil” better aligned to the ‘big picture’ of what they do and Done Right speaks to their commitment to quality, every project, every time.

Stuart was quick to point out, their values of building strong customer relationships and getting the job done right, remains a top priority.

“Doing things right means getting off to a good start and quite simply, we’re not prepared to compromise our high level of service, quality and accuracy. We believe it’s these strong principles and passion for doing the right thing by our customers that sees us work with many of them time and again” Stuart said.

The team at Tarbotton Land & Civil explore every angle of a project upfront, ensuring that once they hit dirt, the project will run smoothly and efficiently. This approach is born out of them doing the hard yards and having earnt a reputation as one of the most trusted and experienced contractors in the region. With their base in Ashburton, they undertake work across all of the Canterbury region and into the Mackenzie District.

Tarbotton Land & Civil offer a wide range of services including earthmoving, civil siteworks, quarry and plant supplies, green waste and hardfill disposal, transport and heavy haulage.

Operating across the agricultural, commercial, and residential sectors, they know a thing or two about the local ground conditions.

Their experience in earthworks, particularly in agricultural earthworks, has seen them work alongside farmers as well as land developers to develop and maintain land assets.

Whatever the project—from water storage ponds and farm maintenance to subdivisions and drainage, Tarbotton Land & Civil begin with thorough planning, ensuring they bring in the

right people—their qualified and competent team—to ensure the project gets off on the right foot. And with a commitment to getting a job done right, from start to finish, they have their own quarry to ensure the resources needed are available which includes a weighbridge, mobile screening and crushing service, and aggregate supplies. They supply materials and they can deal with unwanted materials too, as they are consented to dispose of clean hardfill and green waste, making land clearing jobs smoother and more efficient. Their heavy haulage and bulk cartage services provide complete transport solutions specialising in the transport of bulk materials along with heavy agriculture and earthmoving equipment.

Big jobs call for big machinery and Tarbotton Land & Civil have a fleet of well-maintained vehicles, and they have invested in the latest equipment and 3D machine control technology to ensure their process are up to date and work is delivered as efficiently and accurately as possible.

“Whether your project is big or small, our experienced team will treat it with the same solutions-focused approach to ensure the end result is just as you need it” says Stuart.

ABOVE: Tarbotton Land & Civil ensure they bring the right people to ensure the project gets off on the right foot.

BELOW: With experience in earthworks, particularly in agricultural earthworks, has seen Tarbotton Land & Civil work alongside farmers as well as land developers to develop and maintain land assets.

Tarbotton Land & Civil 203 Frasers Road, Tinwald Tel 03 307 7065 www.tarbotton.co.nz

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WATER

Choosing the right trough valve So, will any old trough valve suit my needs? Definitely not!

WORDS AND IMAGES SUPPLIED BY HANSEN

Trough valves are needed to allow water to fill a trough, then turn off the flow before the trough overflows. In some situations the trough valve also indirectly controls the pump, telling it when to turn on and off, so it is a very important part of any water system.

In New Zealand there are three common types of trough valves: 1. Sleeve valve Piston travels horizontally (Hansen Mini Fast-Flo Valve & Hansen Fast-Flo Valve); 2. Piston Valve Piston travels vertically up and down (Hansen Super-Flo Valve); 3. Diaphragm Valve All have a rubber diaphragm internally that opens and closes to allow water through the valve (Hansen Max-Flo Valve).

When designing a water system, a good designer will take into account the flow required at the trough valve, as this will help them to determine the correct valve for the application.

The flow rate is determined by the number and type of stock that you are trying to supply water to.

The best design will usually be one that provides the correct flow at the lowest pressure, excess pressure is not required in water systems as it can cause a host of other issues.

Some farms could have all three types of valves on the same water system. Hansen make all three types of trough valves and have established themselves as a market leader.

Typically the sleeve valves have been associated with lower flow requirements such as lifestyle blocks and smaller sheep farms, however due to its increased flow the Hansen Fast-Flo can be used in a wide range of applications such as sheep and beef, deer, goats, calf rearing.

The Hansen Mini Fast-Flo is perfect solution for small bowl feeders and inquisitive stock like horses.

Piston valves have been associated with sheep, beef, dairy, and deer. Piston valves tend to stick open or shut over a period of time. The Hansen Super-Flo valve addresses this problem by having a built in flushing system that works every time the valve is openend.

The piston and sleeve valves are closed purely by leverage so using the correct size ball float is crucial. Where possible you should always use a large ball float.

Diaphragm valves are most commonly associated with higher flow requirements such as dairy farming, or larger sheep and beef herds.

Typically diaphragm valves have been problematic due to their design, which has required an inline filter to protect the internal components from damage. This filter creates a large restriction, reducing flows. The Hansen Max-Flo Trough Valve has addressed this issue by not requiring an inline filter of any sort . The Max-Flo has a self cleaning feature which allows it to handle dirty water.

Not all troughs are built the same, so this will also play a part in the correct valve selection.

Obviously the valve needs to fit in a given space. Hansen have all bases covered with multiple combinations for every valve, ie long arm, short arm, ezi bend arm, big float, small float, long adaptors, short adaptors, cord operated. This allows for top entry, side entry and also bottom entry troughs.

All trough valves require maintenance. This should not be overlooked and often it is as simple as just looking at the valve to see if it is leaking. If it is, fix it early, it may just be that something is fouling the seat area of the valve, or slightly worse it could be a damaged seal, either way its an easy fix and all Hansen valves can be purchased in individual parts at any stockist of Hansen Products.

So there you have it. The trough valve is not just the bit at the end of the system, it’s a vital part of any stock water system, helping to determine the good health of your stock.

Just like buying a Bull or a Ram, choose the correct trough valve and you will get years of trouble free service.

For more information visit your local Ruralco store.

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New Washdyke location for business who are “best under pressure”

With the opening of a new Washdyke, Timaru location on Monday 30 November 2020, the relocation to Ashburton’s Business Park 12 months ago, and for the second year running the Supreme Award winners for the Hydraulink New Zealand network, Dan Bruce and the team at Hydraulink Mid Canterbury are proving they really are “best under pressure.”

WORDS BY RACHAEL RICKARD

Offering the same great service and expertise as they do in Mid Canterbury, the move to take over the South Canterbury franchise and relocate to a prominent location at 114 Hilton Highway in Washdyke, allows Dan and his team the opportunity to further assist customers in Canterbury region. “We want to offer surety to customers from Rakaia down to Waitaki and through to Omarama, that should you require assistance with hose and hydraulics’, we can be relied on as your first point of contact. We’ll help repair breakdowns, replace parts, maintain equipment and anticipate issues before they become problems.”

Hydraulink service and repair hoses and fittings for all machinery including tractors, diggers, fertiliser spreaders and trucks as well as all moving parts under pressure. As part of a nationwide network of specialist hose and fitting suppliers, Hydraulink’s highly trained staff assist with everything from breakdowns, to lubrication systems, full installations to fire suppression systems. With products from industrial valves, to stainless steel fittings, pushon couplings and adaptors, to services like 24/7 mobile response, lubrication systems and fire suppression, Hydraulink Mid Canterbury pride themselves on their ability to get their customers back on track in a very short time, no matter how much pressure they’re under.

Hydraulink continue to grow and Dan is taking big steps to future proof the business. He said

“we want it to be easy for our customers to contact us. We offer real time tracking of our fleet to ensure the fastest response times, the accurate tracking ensures we accurately bill our milage, being a proud Ruralco supplier we offers members an easy billing solution and we are in locations that are accessible for the array of vehicles and machinery that may require repair or parts replacement. The new Washdyke is easy to find, offers a fit for purpose workshop, a showroom and a parts room for inventory.”

With 75 years of operating in New Zealand, Australia, and the Pacific, Hydraulink is proud to be a business supporting the agriculture and transport industries.

Building long term relationships with customers is of huge importance to Dan, and this, coupled with their high sales growth, experienced, highly trained staff and continual professional service has seen Hydraulink Mid Canterbury, again, pick up the Supreme New Zealand Hydraulink Award. “I am proud of our Mid Canterbury team; they’ve worked hard, and we are excited to offer customers in South Canterbury the same great service and expertise that we offer in Ashburton.”

“No two days are the same” said Dan, “and there’s never a silly question. Feel free to give us a call or drop in with your parts, fittings or machinery and we will assist.

And if you can’t get the part to us don’t hesitate to pick up the phone and give us a call.”

ABOVE: For the second year running Hydraulink Mid Canterbury are the Supreme Award winners for the Hydraulink New Zealand network BELOW: Dan Bruce and the team at Hydraulink Mid Canterbury are proving they really are “best under pressure.”

Hydraulink Mid Canterbury Ashburton 17 JB Cullen Drive, Timaru 114 Hilton Highway, Washdyke

Tel 027 223 0105 or 03 934 7173 dan@hydraulinkmc.co.nz www.hydraulink.co.nz

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INTEREST

Varied crops bring promise to provinces

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Once seen as the “protein farm” for the United Kingdom with an ample supply of butter, cheese and red meat for the old country, two generations of farmers later, New Zealand is offering a rapidly expanding variety of niche crops and food farming forefathers would not have dreamt of.

WORDS BY RICHARD RENNIE

Changing consumer tastes, an innovative generation of farmers and shifts in climate all mean several exciting crop and food options are opening up, boosting earnings off quality land from Northland to Bluff.

In Northland, avocados are offering the promise of new job opportunities and higher value land uses as the region experiences significant investment from both corporate and iwi interests into the versatile and popular fruit. With some new plantations as large as 200ha, it is likely Northland will assume most of the crop area from Bay of Plenty by the end of the decade.

A focused effort by the industry to develop beyond the traditional Australian market has been buoyed by the recent entry to China. New Zealand avocados’ bigger size, high quality, health claims and traceability have all helped establish the fruit in non-traditional Asian markets, including Thailand.

Usually considered a fruit found along the equatorial zones, bananas are now also appearing as a crop that can combine well alongside traditional land uses like dairying in Northland.

New Zealand has one of the highest consumption figures per capita of any country in the world, but limited largely to one commercially grown banana variety, the Cavendish.

But a strain of tropical disease threatens this variety’s continuing success, and has turned attention to some less known but hardy varieties capable of growing in Northland’s sub-tropical environment.

Tropical Fruit Growers of New Zealand chairman Hugh Rose has been a strong advocate for planting more bananas, and the formation of Tropical Fruit Growers of New Zealand by him in 2017 has grown the profile of the fruit’s potential.

He points to the economics of the crop starting to stack up, as Northland rapidly approaches selfsufficiency in the popular fruit.

He says when dairy effluent is used for watering bananas, their ability to capture nitrogen and phosphorus is invaluable, along with providing a supplementary feed option for cattle.

He has built a successful business selling banana stems and Northland now has a thriving farmers market section based on locally grown bananas, retailing for $7 to $8 a kilogram.

Hugh calculates that with 1500 plants a hectare, a good plantation should result in 15 tonne of fruit a year. At $7 a kg retail, the gross returns per hectare approach green kiwifruit.

The success of Gold kiwifruit is now well known after the sector was devastated by the Psa outbreak in 2010, resulting in the replacement of the vulnerable Hort16a variety with the more Psa tolerant Gold3 variety.

However, another upside of the SunGold “goldrush” has been the crop’s ability to grow beyond the traditional kiwifruit growing region of Western Bay of Plenty.

Michael Fox, Zespri’s head of communications said the marketer was encouraged to see significant growth in regions including Northland, Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay. “This means not only are we expanding to meet growing consumer demand, but we’re also providing more jobs and opportunities and underpinning investment in those communities.”

While the likes of avocados and kiwifruit have immediate consumer recognition, New Zealand is also developing some niche crops that play a role as ingredients in other food and beverage products.

In Taranaki the climate and soils that have made it so good for growing grass means the region is also proving its potential for growing botanicals, the herbs, roots, flowers and leaves added to drinks, food and cosmetics for scent or flavour.

Anyone who enjoys a good gin will appreciate the distinctive scent of juniper berries, often accompanied by liquorice root and the herb angelica. Gin is legally required to have at least 50% juniper as its main botanical flavouring.

Yet as New Zealand develops a vibrant gin distilling industry, the irony has been the critical botanicals used in them have to be sourced from overseas.

But Massey University researchers are working to identify the genetics of juniper samples submitted from around New Zealand, aiming to identify what it is that may make New Zealand juniper unique.

Taranaki gin company BeGin Distilling who make Juno Gin have been leaders in identifying and using locally grown aromatics, with support from AGMARDT and Massey University and through Venture Taranaki’s Tapuae Roa project.

Distillers are also working on sourcing other botanicals locally, including orris root from Hawke’s Bay and coriander from Wairarapa.

Angelica is also well suited to growing in Taranaki’s climate.

So far there has been interest from local Taranaki farmers about the potential of growing juniper, both as a crop and to use as a shelter belt.

The popularity of “ancient grains” like spelt, rye and quinoa has increased in recent years as people seek out wheat alternatives for baking and cooking.

Methven cropping farmers’ Andrew Currie and Gaewynne Hood have cut a path from farm to market with their Canterbury Quinoa brand, commercially producing the Andean superfood.

Once mainly popular with the whole food health market, today the grain is recognised for its highquality nutritional profile and wide application across numerous dishes, offering a good protein alternative to traditional meat sources.

The ability of the crop to be grown without pesticides or fungicides, and its suitability to higher, drier climates mean it offers another option for arable farmers in suitable areas that they may not have considered before.

Another crop that is offering new options for farmers is hemp, grown both for its fibre and its seed. Changes in the trans-Tasman food standards in 2018 to allow hemp seed products to be legally sold for human consumption heralded this new opportunity.

They meant that in addition to hemp seed oil which has been legal since 2003, solid hemp seed products could also be sold in New Zealand.

Ashburton based Midlands has been growing hemp since the first licences were issued back in 2001, with the Canterbury Plains proving ideal for temperature, climate and soils.

The crop received a higher profile after Fonterra planted a 10ha crop at its Darfield farm, integrating the planting with wastewater irrigation from the company’s nearby factory.

Minimal fertiliser and no need for a post emergent spray resulted in a prolific crop with the grain used in food products including flour and oil.

New Zealand’s food and beverage sector has recently launched “Made with Care”, a campaign to boost NZ’s profile, linking the environment, the people and the produce with key markets.

NZ Trade and Enterprise CEO Peter Chrisp says this country’s food and beverage sector is increasingly being noticed for its cutting-edge innovation.

“There has never been a better time to leverage the positive global sentiment being felt towards New Zealand and to raise the international profile of the New Zealand brand in key markets,” he says.

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WATER

Soil moisture monitoring in the irrigation season Mid October and the irrigation season is all go here Hawkes Bay. I am already hoping for some rain. We all know that earlier this year New Zealand suffered a drought. Those in my backyard of Central Hawkes Bay were still in trouble going into winter. This wasn’t just a dry land problem though as people ran out of their seasonal allocation well before they ran out of the need for water. WORDS SUPPLIED BY VICKY BLOOMER, DROP CONSULTING LTD TECHNICAL CONSULTANT TO IRRIGATIONNZ IMAGE: Soil moisture monitoring is starting to get traction with more irrigators and there are many options out there

NIWA’s climate outlook is indicating a La Nina event this year which typically means hot days but rain events for the east. Looking at their data further, they indicate that for all of New Zealand there is a 60% chance of higher than average temperatures. For soil moisture there is variation across the country with Canterbury having a 55% chance of being below normal and for everyone else about a 40% chance of being below normal.

To that end, it is essential that irrigation scheduling is being undertaken from the start of the year. It is no good thinking about being cautious in February as you near the end of your allocation. This caution needs to start in September/October.

Soil moisture monitoring is starting to get traction with more irrigators and there are many options out there. From permanently installed probes providing telemetered data for you to interpret, to the weekly monitoring services where technicians give you advice on exactly what you need to do and when.

Uptake for the technology is currently undergoing a surge as many Regional Councils are now requiring the technology 44

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under farm plans and resource consents.

However, it is only as useful as you make it.

If you’re spending the money, you should let it show you its value. Learn what it is telling you and follow it.

Correctly installed soil moisture sensors, with the information used, should lead to increased yields decreased nutrient loss and decreased pumping costs as you give the plant only what it needs, when it needs it.

If you don’t have soil moisture monitoring, at a minimum, you should be keeping a simple water budget.

In the example, the opening soil moisture is at field capacity- 35mm. You can then see the tracking of the inputs (irrigation and rain) and the tracking of the outputs (Evapotranspiration (ET) and Drainage events).

The aim is to keep the soil moisture between Field Capacity (35mm) and Stress Point (17mm). This means plants always have readily available water (RAW) and they are not having to work harder to access the water The example shows the soil did go below stress point, but this meant the coming rain was fully utilised and returned the soil to field capacity. There was no drainage event (keeping the nutrients out of ground water) and it saved a day’s pumping cost.

Login in to IrrigationNZ’s E-learning platform to learn more about irrigation scheduling, including topics such as soil moisture monitoring and water budgets (including this budget.)

Vicky Bloomer, Drop Consulting Ltd Technical Consultant

DATE

OPENING SOIL MOISTURE BALANCE

DEPOSITS RAINFALL (MM)

DEPOSITS IRRIGATION (MM)

WITHDRAWAL EVAPOTRANSIRPATION (ET) (MM

WITHDRAWAL DRAINAGE

CLOSING SOIL MOISTURE BALANCE

SOIL MOISTURE DEFICIT

1 OCT

35

0

0

4

0

31

4

2 OCT

31

0

0

6

0

25

10

3 OCT

25

0

0

6

0

19

16

4 OCT

19

0

20

5

0

34

1

5 OCT

34

0

0

6

0

28

7

6 OCT

28

0

0

6

0

22

16

7 OCT

22

0

0

6

0

16

19

8 OCT

16

0

0

5

0

11

24

9 OCT

11

0

0

5

0

6

29

10 OCT

6

27

0

2

0

31

0

11 OCT

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FERTILISER

Time for a physical

A fertile soil with physical health issues can still perform poorly, so it could be time for a physical health check. WORDS & IMAGES SUPPLIED BY BALLANCE AGRI-NUTRIENTS. Soil also does better if it is covered with vegetation, ideally a variety of species, as different species exude different carbohydrates from roots to feed greater variety of soil microbes. Growing more vegetation also produces more food for soil microbes, so maintaining a moderate to high soil fertility is beneficial.

Pugging and compaction can seriously affect soil structure. AgResearch studies showed that a single, moderate treading event reduced pasture production by 52 percent (600 kg DM/ha) over the two following months. Another study showed clover’s ability to fix nitrogen was reduced by 60 percent after moderate treading and 80 percent after severe treading1.

Assess soil visually

Physically healthy soil?

Aerated structure is a very important aspect of soil’s physical health. Structure affects the pore space in the soil, and allows water to infiltrate the soil rather than running off, and for roots to penetrate. A healthy soil is 25 percent air and 25 percent water.

Soil particles and organic matter (8 to 15 percent of a soil) arrange into small clumps (peds), which give the soil structure. The shape of the clumps depends on the soil’s composition but also on conditions, such as wet and dry, freezing and thawing, foot traffic and farming or cultivation techniques.

The remaining 35 to 42 percent of a soil is varying proportions of silt, clay and sand.

This determines the soil’s texture—one of 12 classes, ranging from clay to sand.

Soil colour is influenced by its mineralogy, but can also reveal other aspects. Dark brown or black soils are high in organic matter. Welldrained soil is brightly coloured whereas soil that is often wet and soggy has a mottled pattern of greys, reds and yellows.

The bulk density of soil is measured by the mass of dry soil that fits in a specific volume.

Low bulk density soils are fluffy and easy for roots and water to pass through, and high bulk density soils are heavy and often hard to dig or plough.

‘Unhealthy’ management practices Leaving soil undisturbed is good for its physical health. Cultivation results in losses of soil from wind and water erosion, and losses of organic matter due to mineralisation (release of nutrients from organic matter).

Many physical soil properties can easily be assessed visually. Visual Soil Assessment is a reliable, cheap way for anyone to score soil condition.

All that is needed is some basic equipment and the Visual Soil Assessment field guide (available free online) developed by noted soil scientist Graham Shepherd. The guide provides scorecards, information and images to help assess key bio-physical indicators of soil quality and plant performance.

The indicators are underpinned by extensive research and linked to economic performance. Once you have determined your overall rating, you can refer to the relevant suggestions in the companion volume of Soil Management Guidelines to maintain or improve your score.

For soil quality the indicators are: soil texture, soil structure, soil porosity, number and colour of soil mottles, soil colour, number and size of earthworms, soil smell, potential rooting depth; surface ponding and surface relief. Soil indicators are generic and generally independent of soil type.

Soil can be visually assessed without knowing the soil type, it is a hugely beneficial complement to soil testing, and results can inform management practices.

VSA guides and soil management guidelines can be purchased by emailing gshepherd@bioagrinomics.com and through some regional councils.

Free PDFs can be downloaded from the Landcare Research website (www.landcareresearch.co.nz/publications/ books/visual-soil-assessment-field-guide/ download-field-guide).

Betteridge, K, Drewry, J, Mackay, A, Singleton, P. 2003.

Managing Treading Damage on Dairy and Beef Farms in New Zealand. AgResearch.

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Your first choice for all mechanical servicing

Renowned for their high-quality professional service, use of latest technology, and 24/7 emergency call-out team, in July 2020, the workshop team at ACL Smallbone went even one better—consolidating two existing workshops in Ashburton into one of the largest commercial workshops in the South Island. WORDS BY RACHAEL RICKARD ACL Smallbone is the mechanical workshop division of Ashburton Contracting Limited (ACL). ACL proudly employs over 150 people; has a focus on offering a high level of service and quality workmanship. ACL is proud to be part of the success of the Mid and South Canterbury landscape—providing jobs and supporting and sponsoring an array of community projects.

LEFT: ACL Smallbone offer spare parts for all brands of commercial vehicles BELOW: From servicing the neighbour’s ute, to overhauling diggers, loaders and graders, no two jobs are the same BOTTOM: ACL Smallbone take extreme pride in their work and by using the latest technology and equipment available.

ACL Smallbone is a collaboration of two respected businesses which have been prominent across the Canterbury region, and it is the partnership of these business which enables ACL to offer a whole new level of service and expertise both to their existing and new clients. The businesses are run by Mike Johnston.

With two new locations, in Ashburton at 1 Range Street, in the Riverside Estate and in Timaru at the prominent 84 Hilton Highway, Washdyke site, ACL Smallbone now has two large commercial workshops and a dedicated team of staff continuing to offer their trusted, high quality repair services on all makes of trucks and commercial vehicles.

Both the Timaru and Ashburton workshops specialise in the service, repair, warrant, and certificate of fitness of all makes and models of commercial vehicles, trailers, and construction equipment. They offer spare parts for all brands of commercial vehicles and use Castrol oil. They can maintain or overhaul vehicles, industrial plant, or farm machinery. And, although they welcome every brand of vehicle through the door, ACL Smallbone are proudly the specialist agents for parts and service of Scania and Isuzu trucks in Mid and South Canterbury.

Every day is different for the dedicated team of staff—from preparing the latest model of truck to be road ready, servicing the neighbour’s ute, getting a motorhome certified for the next road trip, to overhauling diggers, loaders and graders, no two jobs are the same, but the ACL Smallbone team get a great sense of satisfaction in helping get every vehicle back on the road.

For many companies who have a fleet of vehicles, the ACL Smallbone workshop is an important strategic partner, and over the years ACL Smallbone (previously ACL Workshop) have built strong relationships with these customers.

Understanding the importance of time constraints and how to keep a fleet of vehicles moving, for some customers weekends are the only downtime for machinery, so to minimise disruption, maintenance by the ACL Smallbone team is scheduled around customer’s needs.

Whether you’ve got a small runabout vehicle used to pick up the groceries from town, a heavy freight vehicle clocking up the miles around the countryside, or a fleet of diggers and dump trucks, ACL Smallbone is your one stop shop for repairs and maintenance. They take extreme pride in their work and by using the latest technology and equipment available, ensure that their customers are getting the best possible level of service.

Book your car, truck, ute, motorhome or any vehicle for servicing, repairs, warrant or certificate of fitness, brake testing, panel and paint work or general maintenance by contacting the ACL Smallbone team on 03 308 7400. Or you can call into the Ashburton and Timaru workshops. However, should you get really stuck with a breakdown, give the emergency service team a call on their 24/7 number 0508 ACL WORK (225 967) ACL Smallbone 1 Range Street, Riverside Estate, Ashburton Tel 03 308 7400

84 Hilton Highway, Washdyke Timaru; Tel 03 683 9073 Freephone 0508 225 967 www.ashcon.co.nz

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50

AG CHEM

New solutions for forage brassica weeds and pests

Weed competition can have a significant detrimental effect on brassica yield from very early in the growing season. WORDS AND IMAGES SUPPLIED BY CORTEVA AGRISCIENCE

Corteva™ Agriscience has farmers covered with a suite of post emergence forage brassica herbicides that provide a solution for all situations and have made their mark as reliable and trusted options in this category.

Milestone™ Milestone is the newest forage brassica herbicide from Corteva Agriscience, approved for use in NZ in 2019 and replaces T-Max in this crop.

Milestone contains two active ingredients— aminopyralid at 60 g per litre and clopyralid at 276 grams per litre. Both are well-recognised and widely used, and there is no other formulation of this type registered for use in forage brassicas in NZ. The biggest benefit compared with T-Max is crop safety, this was a key focus during the development stage of the product.

In developing this new formulation, Corteva have been able to safen the product, which is fantastic. T-Max has a strong following, and works well, but it’s been known to cup crops and cause a growth check which can look pretty severe in the early stages of establishment.

Milestone has some very significant advantages in that respect, and through multiple crop safety trials proved its strength in this area.

Milestone is also the ultimate solution for hard to control weeds in forage brassica and its broad spectrum includes difficult weeds such as amaranthus, spurrey, water pepper, thistles and many more.

It’s a double strength formulation as well, so recommended rates are half that of T-Max, with some nice handling, mixing and storage benefits for everyone in the supply chain.

So where does Milestone fit?

In general terms, anyone who has been using T-Max up until now can make a straight upgrade to Milestone. Also, anyone who is looking for a product that delivers broad spectrum weed control in forage brassica, without impacting crop health will find Milestone is the perfect solution.

Brassica Pests When pests like diamondback moth, white butterfly, looper caterpillars or aphids threaten forage brassica crops, timing is critical.

Caterpillar pests can do significant damage to leaf area within a short space of time resulting in reduced yield potential. Aphids transmit plant viruses and their feeding points provide entry wounds for diseases which can severely damage plants or even kill large areas of forage brassica crops.

Ideally your first line of defense at this time of the season will be a population of beneficial insects, providing natural protection against white butterfly, diamondback moth caterpillars and aphids. Species such as brown lacewing, ladybird beetles, hoverfly, parasitic wasps, predatory mites and beetles will collectively play an important role in protecting your

brassica crop from pest flare ups and damage through until grazing. Monitor your crop closely for both pests and beneficial insects and if caterpillar and/or aphid populations do flare up and require treatment use insecticides with minimal impact on beneficial insects such as Sparta™ and Transform™ from Corteva Agriscience.

Sparta works by contact and ingestion to provide ‘best in class’ control of caterpillar pests in forage brassicas. Translaminar activity ensures good control of insects feeding on the underside of leaves. Transform is a contact and systemic insecticide that provides rapid knockdown and moves within the plant to protect new untreated growth, an important benefit during the main growth season. Transform’s high level of systemic and translaminar activity resists wash-off and provides extended aphid control for up to 21 days. This residual control provides ongoing protection from aphids re-infesting the crop.

Alone or in combination Sparta and Transform are ideal tools for control of key insect pests in forage brassicas. Both products have excellent environmental and toxicology profiles, providing a high level of safety for applicators.

New Zealand farmers rely heavily on aerial applications for effective pest control, whether it’s hill country or remote crops, and scenarios where wet ground conditions or tall crops cannot be covered by ground-based equipment. In these situations Transform and Sparta are two of only a few IPM friendly options registered for aerial applications, providing farmers and applicators an opportunity to move away from old SP & OP technology, to new chemistry that’s better for the crop, the environment and them.

For more information contact your local Ruralco Representative.

ABOVE: Fathen treated vs untreated BELOW: Aphids BELOW LEFT: Fathen at ideal time to spray

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ARABLE

A community approach to understanding water quality In 2016, the East Ashburton farming community, concerned about reported levels of nitrate-N in wells in the area, set out to investigate further. They set up a project, funded and supported by the MPI Sustainable Farming Fund, farm sector groups, Silver Fern Farms, ECan and farmers, to monitor groundwater quality across the area. WORDS & IMAGES SUPPLIED BY FAR. Each of 51 randomly selected wells was sampled 14 times between March 2016 and June 2019 and the final results found an average nitrate-N concentration of 6.9 mg/L. Although this average is well below the maximum acceptable value (MAV) of 11.3mg/L, when nitrate-N concentrations reach half of MAV, or 5.65 mg/L, in a community water supply, any upward trends are still considered a concern and need to be closely monitored.

Key project findings: • The average nitrate-N concentration in water from the 51 wells sampled was 6.9 mg/L. • Fourteen wells recorded nitrate-N concentrations above MAV at some point during the sampling period. Of these, – three were above MAV on more than 50% of the sampling dates – two were deeper than 100m 54

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• Wells adjacent to the lower Ashburton and Rakaia Rivers had lower nitrate-N concentrations than wells further away from these rivers.

• Nitrate-N concentrations accumulated as groundwater moved through the catchment towards the coast.

• There has been a slight upward trend of nitrate-N concentration and there are some hot spot areas of particular concern.

The East Ashburton study area, which is bounded by the Rakaia River, SH1 and the Ashburton River, is primarily farmland, on gravelly alluvial plains overlaying tertiary sediments of braided river deposits and greywacke. Since the early 1990s, farming in the area has intensified dramatically, in part due to irrigation development and in part to the versatility of the land. This area makes an enormous contribution to the Ashburton district economy.

A general ‘rule of thumb’ suggests that surface water will respond to land use change within one-two years, whereas deeper wells reflect slower moving plumes. Depending on soil type and groundwater depth, nitrate-N can take several years or decades (sometimes even centuries) to reach groundwater.

Deeper groundwater generally has lower nitrate-N concentrations, but can still be impacted by human activities. This is evidenced by the fact that two of the 14 wells which recorded nitrate-N concentrations above MAV at some point during the sampling period were deeper than 100 m. Of the fourteen wells which recorded nitrate-N concentrations above MAV at some point during the sampling period, only three were considered consistently above MAV (i.e. over 50% of the sampling dates). The depth of these three wells ranged between 45 and 58 metres.

All well owners were advised of results from their wells after each round of testing.

is a financial cost, and may also result in N losses to groundwater and greenhouse gas emissions in the form of nitrous oxide (N2O).

Each crop has a characteristic demand for N and as the yield increases so does the demand for N. The industry-agreed good management practice (GMP) for nutrient management is to meet the crop’s demand for nutrients using the supply from the soil first, then topping up to the appropriate level with applied fertiliser.

Quick Test Mass Balance Tool & User Guide

The areas adjacent to the lower Ashburton and Rakaia are low-risk, as nitrate-N concentrations in groundwater are quite literally watered down by river recharge.

However, areas away from the main rivers have a greater proportion of land surface recharge and nitrate-N concentrations are higher. Groundwater in this catchment moves from the foothills to the coast. As it moves through the catchment, groundwater levels become shallower and nitrate-N concentrations accumulate. This highlights the fact mitigation strategies must be targeted across the whole catchment, not just in the high nitrate-N areas near the coast.

Overall, the East Ashburton Groundwater sampling project identified a slight upward trend of nitrate-N concentration over the duration of the project, and some hot spots of particular concern. The ECan wells monitored in the area over the duration of the study are likely higher as they target wells near the water table where nitrate is expected to be first detected (Table 1). The ECan monitored wells (where average depth = 48m) provide an indication of long-term trends in nitrate in the East Ashburton area.

The FAR data set (where average depth = 68m) has improved the understanding of the geographic spread and how nitrate concentrations vary with well depth.

There is a lot of debate nationally and within communities about the deterioration of groundwater quality and high nitrate-N

concentrations in wells. This issue is a concern for rural and urban dwellers alike.

The more robust and long-term information we can get, the more informed we can be in the process of finding the right balance in addressing the problem.

It is hoped that this project’s participatory approach will enable farmers to work alongside regulatory bodies to develop agreed outcomes to meet the environmental, economic and social needs of farmers and the broader community.

Nitrogen use efficiency Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) is a measure of how efficiently nitrogen is used by a crop.

Nitrogen use can never be 100% efficient, but applying more than a crop can use, will always be inefficient. Over-application

A nitrogen mass balance budget is a way of determining how much nitrogen fertiliser to apply to a crop to achieve its potential yield.

Developing budget requires estimates of the crop’s total demand for nitrogen and how much of this will be supplied by the soil.

Potential crop yield can be estimated based on previous years’ crops i.e. if your last five years of feed wheat have averaged 10 T, don’t set yourself a potential yield of 15 T; while soil available N requires testing for both immediately available N and potentially available N. Immediately available N is already in a form that plants can take up and is measured by the mineral N test. Potentially available N (sometimes referred to as ‘available N’) estimates what N will become available via mineralisation over the growing season and is measured by the anaerobically mineralisable N (AMN) test or the recently developed hot water extractable organic N (HWEON) test.

The amount of mineral N in the soil can change quickly over a short period of time, especially when crops are growing quickly.

This is where Quick N tests strips, which can be used at any point in the rotation to give a real-time snapshot of the mineral N levels in your soil come in handy.

Quick N test kits can be purchased from www.labsupply.co.nz and can be used in conjunction with the Quick Test Mass Balance Tool (QTMB) available on the FAR website www.far.org.nz (search Resources).

The QTMB Tool and User Guide explain how to measure the soil nitrogen supply with nitrate quick test strips and how to use the test-strip results to make an informed fertiliser decision for the crop.

AVERAGE NITRATE-N LEVELS ALL 51 RANDOMLY SELECTED WELLS

6.9 mg/L

10 HIGHEST RANDOMLY SELECTED WELLS

11.9 mg/L

10 LOWEST RANDOMLY SELECTED WELLS

1.5 mg/L

ELEVEN ECAN MONITORED WELLS

13.45 mg/L

TABLE 1: Nitrate-N averages from wells monitored in East Ashburton Groundwater area 2016-2019

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SHEEP & BEEF

New tool helps commercial sheep farmers source best-fit genetics IMAGE: The work is ongoing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from our pastoral sector and one of the more exciting developments is the identification of low methane genetics in sheep.

With ram buying season upon us, Beef + Lamb New Zealand Genetics has launched a new tool to help commercial farmers find the best rams for their operation.

WORDS BY DAN BRIER, BEEF + LAMB NEW ZEALAND’S GENERAL MANAGER FARMING EXCELLENCE

Dan Brier, B+LNZ’s General Manager Farming Excellence, says nProve will ultimately replace the old SIL tools FlockFinder and RamFinder and unlike SIL, which is primarily aimed at ram breeders, nProve is a tool that all commercial sheep farmers and ram breeders can use.

“It is essentially a web-based tool that helps commercial farmers identify breeders making progress in traits important to them.”

By using a series of buttons and slider scales, farmers can identify exactly what they want from their ram team and nProve will generate a list of breeders whose rams tick those boxes.

“Our tag line is ‘Discover genetics fit for your purpose’ and this is exactly what nProve does.”

Dan says nProve uses the wealth of objective data that stud breeders feed into the worldleading genetic engine and turns it into information that commercial farmers can use to drive the productivity and profitability of their sheep flocks.

It is free to use and there is no need to register.

“Feedback from farmers who have tried the tool has been really positive. They have found it easy to use and it is fun to have a play, tinkering with the sliders to prioritise different traits and experimenting to see which breeders nProve comes up with.”

He encourages farmers to engage with their breeders and discuss what they need from their genetics in their particular environment and farm system.

“Ram breeders should be at least a couple of generations ahead of their commercial clients and so they are well-placed to help their clients move in the direction they want to go.”

Dan says genetics are critical for sheep farmers operating in an increasingly complex environment.

“Farmers have to meet the needs of consumers both locally and internationally as well as maintain a social license to operate and comply to a raft of government regulations.”

Recent research by Dr Bradley Case at Auckland University of Technology (AUT) has shown that NZ sheep and beef farmers are close to being carbon neutral, due to the woody vegetation on their farms off-setting between 63% and 118% of their agricultural emissions.

“This study reinforces that NZ’s red meat is amongst the most sustainable in the world and it could potentially give our farmers and exporters a competitive advantage with our consumers.”

While this is great news for the sector, Dan says work is on-going to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from our pastoral sector and one of the more exciting developments is the identification of low methane genetics in sheep.

“This means Kiwi farmers are the first in the world with the ability to breed low methane sheep.”

A research breeding value for methane emissions was launched in November 2019 and was the outcome of a 10-year breeding programme funded by the Pastoral Greenhouse Gas Research Consortium (PGGRC) and the New Zealand Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Research Centre.

Scientists identified a 11% per unit of feed eaten difference in methane emissions between high and low emitting flocks, but most importantly, it appears there is a no difference in the health, productivity or profitability between low or high emitting sheep.

“In fact, there was more lean growth, carcass yield and wool production in the low methane sheep without any negative trade-offs. We also confirmed that methane emissons are heritable which is allowing a breeding value for the trait to be incorporated into SIL.” Stud breeders have been embracing the opportunity to measure the methane emissions in their stud animals through AgResearch’s portable accumulation chambers.

Each animal spends 50 minutes in the chambers twice within a 14-day interval. The resulting measurements are used to calculate a methane breeding value.

Breeders will pay for the measurements and for a short time, the Pastoral Greenhouse Gas Research Consortium (PGGRC) is providing a 50% cost off-set for eligible breeders.

PGgRc is encouraging stud breeders to take the opportunity to have their rams measured and to start making use of the breeding value.

Dan Brier Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s General Manager Farming Excellence

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WELLBEING

HEALTH & SAFETY

Canterbury’s rescue angels WHEN HE FELT THE EARTH MOVE BELOW HIM AS HE LAY WITH HIS LEG CRUSHED BETWEEN THE FARM UTE AND HIS MOTORBIKE, FAIRLIE FARMER ANDREW HURST FELT RELIEF DULL SOME OF THE PAIN SURGING THROUGH HIS BODY. WORDS BY RICHARD RENNIE

The shaking signalled the arrival of the Westpac Rescue Helicopter, and the saving of his leg.

For Andrew, a normal day on the farm had turned into disaster on a dime. It was only the skill, speed and care of the Rescue Helicopter that meant he will soon be close to walking normally again with both legs intact.

“I had come back from a bull auction and was driving my two-wheeler around the farm, everything seemed good, then before I knew it in a split second I was under the front of our farm Hilux I did not see coming from the other direction.”

The contact had been significant, leaving his right leg torn, twisted and badly broken.

As predicted by the local fire brigade, the chopper arrived to whisk him straight through to Christchurch hospital.

“I was told when I went into A & E I would probably lose my leg. But the surgeon managed to save it, and this was partly thanks to the skill of the Rescue Helicopters paramedics—they didn’t tourniquet it, kept the blood flowing which was a very skilled call to make.”

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It took 13 operations and intensive physio to get Andrew to where he is now, and it means that before Christmas he can expect to be walking close to normal again.

The accident has also meant the Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue Trust has an ardent ambassador, keen to raise funds for the worthy cause.

His first effort was an auction evening in Fairlie, and he managed to sell out the 300 tickets within a week and was left considering holding another event for those who missed out.

“Farming down here, we really are quite remote, and people here really appreciate the need for the Westpac Rescue Helicopter service and are keen to support it.”

After his accident Andrew made a point of visiting the base at Christchurch airport and thanking the staff. Tatsu, the paramedic who was first contact on the day greeted him with relieved astonishment.

“I shouted to him that ‘I still have it!’ He was so happy to know I still had my leg, he had literally held the two pieces of my leg in his hands.”

Christine Prince, CEO of Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue Trust said stories like Andrews existed all over the massive catchment the service covers.

She says all up the service covers a region with 600,000 people, across both coasts and a land area that accounts for one quarter of New Zealand’s total.

This is all with two Westpac Rescue Helicopters based at Christchurch, and one, sponsored by Roa Mining on the West Coast.

All up in 2019 the crew responded to over 900 missions with help from the community across the region.

“But like all charities, Covid-19 this year has hit us hard. We have lost those valuable weeks of fundraising.”

“The money we raise goes straight into the service to cover operational costs, equipment and training needs. We aim to raise about $6 million a year, there is very little spare, and we are blessed with a very good supporter base in the community. But of course, there is a greater need than ever for more,” says Christine.

She welcomes the move by Ruralco to offer members the opportunity to make a direct donation to the service through their Ruralco Card.

“It is only thanks to the support of rural communities who value the service we can do what we do, and this will be a very seamless way for Ruralco members to support us.”

Visit the site www.airresecue.co.nz

HEALTH

Caravan a haven for farmer health THE CORNER OF A SALEYARD IS NOT THE USUAL PLACE YOU WOULD EXPECT TO FIND A CARAVAN, BUT THEN THE GLOBALHQ HEALTH CARAVAN IS NOT PARKED UP THERE FOR A HOLIDAY VIEW AND A SEA BREEZE. WORDS BY RICHARD RENNIE

Affectionately known as “The Glob” GlobalHQ’s rural health caravan was the brainchild of Dean and Cushla Williamson, owners of rural publishing company GlobalHQ. Dean says the issue of rural health is something that had been playing more upon his mind, prompted in part by the increasing number of articles run in his own paper Farmers Weekly on health issues in rural communities.

“If you look at most New Zealand farms, the farmer is the most important person upon

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We wanted to put something in place for rural families to help them be more proactive about their health.

them, few farms can run if that person falls over and dies or gets sick.”

“We wanted to put something in place for rural families to help them be more proactive about their health, and have accessibility to a health care professional,” says Dean.

So, with that he and Cushla purchased an old caravan, refurbished it, and called on their talented GlobalHQ staff to design its standout paint job.

The Glob hit the road, and quickly built a profile at some popular sales venues around the lower North Island and Canterbury.

Staffed by long time rural doctor Sue Steven, farmers have flocked to the caravan to have a free basic health check, with many often finding they need a further consultation and advice from their GP about issues the checks have

found.

“There has also been a bit of good natured nudging come up with the checks. I went into the tea rooms at the Fielding saleyards and here were a bunch of farmers all comparing their check-up reports, you would never usually find farmers talking openly about their health,” says Dean.

Sue Fowlie, or “Dr Sue” as she’s often known also practices at Rakaia Medical Centre.

She says the caravan gives farmers a chance to be checked out in an environment they are comfortable with and offers the opportunity to get a conversation going on what their problems may be.

As the daughter of a beef farmer in Scotland, she is equally comfortable setting up at the sale yards and kicking conversations off with a few questions about the weather and stock prices.

“We are finding that with about a quarter of the farmers who come in require further consultation work with their GP, the most common issues are around blood pressure. We also ask about their family history, something they often don’t consider as they approach an age when maybe one of their parent’s suffered a heart attack or health condition.”

Sometimes further probing may highlight some mental health issues, often reflected by problems of sleeplessness. Sue can proudly point to a few “saves” from the caravan consultations, including identifying a farmer in Fielding who had a heart condition who went on to receive attention and preventative treatment. Importantly, she follows up on any farmers with further consults required to check they have followed through.

“And so far, there is no-one who has not.”

Glob manager and health expert Michelle Thompson said the caravan has removed the four

key obstacles farmers face when dealing with health issues. “They are access, time, cost and their own resistance to getting checked up. The Glob’s location means they are comfortable to drop in, it’s almost part of their workday if they are at the yards.”

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We want to be sure farmers’ health is getting the attention it deserves.

Covid-19 lockdown cut The Glob’s rural visits short, but the team are lining up venues for the new year.

“We will be looking forward to getting back out there—farming is more important than ever for New Zealand, and we want to be sure farmers’ health is getting the attention it deserves.”

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ON-FARM

FATIGUE & THIEVES:

Two things to be aware of this summer WORDS SUPPLIED BY FMG INSURANCE

FMG ADVISES FARMERS TO BE AWARE OF FATIGUE & THIEVES THIS SUMMER Quad bike and side-by-side accidents increase during the summer months as the extra sunlight and warmer weather means more jobs are squeezed into the day. The Canterbury and Otago regions are overrepresented in side-by-side rollover claims compared to other regions. Thieves are also making the most of the summer months when people are away by targeting rural properties.

Rural theft increases in January FMG’s claims data shows that January is when thieves set out to steal from rural properties, says FMG’s Manager Advice, Stephen Cantwell.

“January appears to be the month when thieves are most active. Not only are the number of claims higher in January but the average value of claims is 23% higher.”

Whether you’re on holiday or on the farm, there are actions you can take to help to deter thieves targeting your property.

“If you’re going away, get someone you trust to check in on your property. Ask them to clear your mailbox and entrances of all mail and if rubbish collections are operating in your area, ask them to put your rubbish out on your collection day. This approach is a good deterrent if thieves are scouting the area.

“You could install automatic timer or sensor lighting around your property including at both the front and rear of your house. Mount them high enough to prevent criminals from being able to remove the bulb or cover the sensor.”

Other tips include engraving valuable equipment—this makes it less desirable to thieves and easier to identify. It’s also a good idea to record details and serial numbers of high value assets on SNAP, a free online asset register created by the NZ Police at www.snap.org.nz.

If you’re staying on farm be mindful that thieves also target quad bikes—and particularly older bikes—at this time of year.

“Our experience is that older bikes are easier to sell off, which is what makes them so attractive to steal.”

FMG claims’ data shows that quads are often stolen when the keys are left inside. This goes for other vehicles too.

“This can happen even if you’re on farm and particularly if you’ve parked up to do some work and leave your bike unattended. We recommend keeping your keys on hand or out of sight, particularly when working in paddocks near public roads.”

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Fatigue is a leading cause of quad bike and side-by-side accidents Chances are over the summer months you’ll be tempted to do more work on farm given the extra sunlight and warmer weather.

FMG sees a higher amount of both quad bike and side-by-side claims during the summer months when more jobs are squeezed into the day which increases fatigue.

“Fatigue can increase the risk of having an accident,” says Stephen.

Te Kopuru farmer Chris Biddles experienced this firsthand when the quad bike accident that nearly cost his life was caused from fatigue. You can read about his experience on the Farmstrong website: farmstrong.co.nz/dangerously-tired.

FMG also suggests that farmers should be equally aware of the dangers of side-by-sides.

“Farmers are turning to side-by-sides as an alternative vehicle to quad bikes, over the past five years the amount of side-by-sides we’ve insured has doubled. Although they do come with their benefits, they don’t eliminate the risk of rollover.

“Canterbury and Otago regions are actually overrepresented in side-by-side rollover claims, meaning, that per side-by-side insured they are receiving more claims than the average compared to other regions in New Zealand,” says Stephen.

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DAIRY

Strategies for farmers to meet the nitrogen cap The new synthetic nitrogen (N) cap of 190kg N/ha coming into effect in July 2021 means all dairy farmers are required to record the amount of synthetic N fertiliser applied on farm, and where. This means many farmers will be considering how to make changes to meet the new requirements.

WORDS BY VIRGINIA SERRA, SELWYN HINDS PROJECT LEADER, DAIRYNZ

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between the 2.5 to 3 leaf stage of pasture and allow more grass growth. In Canterbury this is between 22–24 days during spring and summer. Where N applications follow grazing, increasing the round length reduces the total number of grazings and N applications per year.

HAVE A MONTHLY N FERTILISER PLAN AND MONITOR IT

Several farmers have been surprised at the amount of N they used over a year which was unplanned or monitored. To keep track of this, farmers can set an N budget and plan, to report N use by paddock.

ADDRESS FACTORS THAT MAY LIMIT PASTURE OR CLOVER GROWTH

Paddock scale soil tests successfully help identify factors including soil fertility, pH, weeds, irrigation, pasture species and drainage.

PASTURE WALKS

In Canterbury, I’ve been leading a project with farms in the Hinds and Selwyn catchments. The farmers are trialling options to reduce N loss, including examining and changing N fertiliser use.

The findings show some farmers have reduced fertiliser applications with little impact on pasture growth and profit. This project has helped understand strategies for farmers to meet the new nitrogen cap requirements.

Planning for changes Before making changes, it’s important to work out how much synthetic N fertiliser was applied last year and in what areas, to help understand the current situation.

Together with a farm advisor, we recommend reviewing your current N use strategy to see how it can be more efficient. This includes looking at whether applications were completed as planned, reviewing application rates and fertiliser types. Considering how you will manage pasture and feed is also critical.

After reviewing your strategy, work on a plan to meet the new N cap and implement a system to keep track of future applications.

LOWER N APPLICATION RATES AND AVOID WASTAGE

Limit applications to no more than 40 kg N/ha in early spring and then to 0.8 kg N/ ha per day of round length. N applications are most beneficial to fill a genuine feed deficit—such as in early spring. In areas where effluent is applied, fertiliser applications can be reduced. To avoid wastage, avoid applying N fertiliser before a significant rain or drainage event.

Regular pasture walks can help assess a genuine feed deficit. In late autumn, pasture response can be slow while N loss risk is higher due to potential rainfall, so N applications can be reduced. When pasture growth is high, you may be able to skip a few paddocks from routine N applications.

CONSIDER COATED UREA

This reduces volatilisation (the conversion of N in urea to ammonia gas). Using coated urea in the right conditions can reduce N applications by up to 10 percent, while growing the same amount of pasture.

You can read more about the nitrogen cap online at dairynz.co.nz/nitrogen-cap.

INCREASING GRAZING ROUND LENGTHS

This will help ensure grazing occurs

ABOVE: Dairy NZ workshop on nitrogen cap

Options to reduce nitrogen fertiliser The project has shown that farmers have reduced N fertiliser application rates through a range of strategies. Not all strategies may suit your farm, so it’s best to talk through options with a trusted advisor.

ALLOW TIME TO SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE N FERTILISER USE

If you need to make a significant reduction to meet the cap, it’s best to start now and reduce fertiliser use gradually. It’s also important to allow time for clover to reestablish, so that the additional fixed N is available for growth.

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AG CHEM

Forage brassica insect control Last season, Exirel® Insecticide from agricultural sciences company FMC, was approved for helicopter application, offering farmers an aerial Integrated Pest Management (IPM) compatible option and greater flexibility when spraying forage brassicas across NZ. WORDS AND IMAGES SUPPLIED BY FMC

This season, FMC Area Business Manager Nick George is pleased to share the new Exirel® Insecticide label claim approved for European leaf miner control in fodder beet.

Exirel® is a Group 28 diamide insecticide containing the single active ingredient cyantraniliprole which is used to control sucking and chewing insect pests. “European leaf miner is very susceptible to Exirel® so it is great to be able to use it in fodder beet this season,” said Nick.

In other Forage brassica crops Exirel® is very effective on caterpillars such as cabbage white butterfly and diamond back moth, while also offering good suppression of aphids.

Exirel® has a superior fit within an IPM program through its selectivity to transient beneficial insects such as parasitic wasps, hoverflies, lacewings, ladybirds, damselflies and resident beetles, mites, and spiders.

“We want to leave these beneficial insects alone so they can carry on working for us 24/7 by preying on and parasitising insect pests,” said Nick.

Over recent years FMC has worked closely with distributor technical field teams to improve knowledge of IPM as an approach to optimise insect pest control within forage brassicas. The Ruralco On-Farm Account Managers and some store staff have been part of this recently with pre-season training on IPM and insecticide use.

“The pre-season training involved three parts” said Nick. “Exirel® product training, understanding IPM and how to bring Exirel® + IPM together. This is followed up with in-field training and support during the season.”

Familiarisation with the product Exirel® included looking at its innovative mode of action that ensures pests stop feeding rapidly to minimise damage to the crop. Translaminar

activity and local translocation allow Exirel to reach further into the crop canopy to control insects that were not immediately targeted by the spray application.

IPM includes using three insect pest control methods together in a compatible way; the combination of which can provide a better outcome than any one method on its own. The three methods include biological control (beneficial insects), cultural control (management techniques) and chemical control (IPM friendly insecticides).

Understanding insect pests and beneficial species at each crop stage means a plan can be implemented from establishment through to late crop stages. Broad spectrum insecticides still have their place at early establishment of the crop when beneficial insect populations are minimal. This allows best use of selective Group 28 insecticides (Exirel®) during mid/late stages of the crop to reduce risks associated with Group 28 resistance.

“Exirel® is the perfect fit for an IPM approach because it uses only one active ingredient, cyantraniliprole, minimising resistance and the risk to beneficial insect species within the crop,” said Nick.

Once the crop is established, apply Exirel® at the first sign of pest pressure to minimise pest impact on yield and to reduce the spread of insect transmitted disease, while at the same time helping the establishment of beneficial populations. Have a plan for each crop stage, monitor the crop and apply the right active ingredient for the pest and beneficial species present.

Continue to monitor the crop throughout the season for signs of beneficial activity such as mummified aphids and parasitised caterpillars, along with overall reductions in pest populations. Your Ruralco On-Farm Account Manager will be able to help with this.

Understanding IPM and knowing your insects, along with the selective insecticide Exirel® can provide a higher yielding, lower cost and more sustainable forage brassica crop.

Talk to your local Ruralco On-Farm Account Manager about the use of Exirel® + IPM in your forage brassica crop this season.

FMC and Exirel are registered trademarks of FMC Corporation or an affiliate. © 2020 FMC Corporation. All rights reserved.

IMAGE: Hoverfly larva feeding on an aphid

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All prices include GST.

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NUTRITION

The forgotton weaning Another calf rearing season is drawing to a close and I’m sure you’ll be pleased to see the calf sheds empty out. WORDS AND IMAGES SUPPLIED BY RUMINATE. Overall we do a great job rearing calves in New Zealand, setting them up well for future growth and performance. It is common place though to hear about that post weaning check and for calves to struggle for a period of time on a grass only diet.

We all know grass is a great resource but it doesn’t provide a balanced diet on its own, especially for young developing ruminants.

These calves go through major transitions in their first few months of life. Nutritionally they transition from milk to meal and then from meal to grass. We do an excellent job of that first transition and now there are new options to assist with the second transition onto grass only and avoid that post weaning check.

WEANER Forage Balancer is formulated for NZ conditions and designed to support calves through that second feed transition supporting high performance by filling in the nutrition gaps in grass.

Mineral, trace element and vitamin deficiencies combined with a shortage of carbohydrates mean your calves simply can’t extract the full value from your grass.

WEANER Forage Balancer is a simple to use and cost-effective solution to keep your calves healthy and growing post weaning.

Field studies in NZ consistently deliver an increase in liveweight gain of greater than 200g per day when compared to a grass only diet.

Avoid another year of that frustrating weaning check with WEANER Forage Balancer and Optimise your Animal.

For more information on Weaner Forage Balancer contact your local Ruralco Representative.

WEANER Forage Balancer is a loose, free choice product to be fed at 100g per calf, per day. It’s simple to use, palatable, water resistant and cost effective.

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PORK

The importance of groundcover management for pig farms Groundcover management is important for outdoor pig farms from a nutritional, health and environmental perspective. WORDS & IMAGES SUPPLIED BY NZ PORK

“Groundcover captures and uses deposited nutrients and reduces nutrient losses and run-off,” says Hannah Ritchie, Senior Environmental Advisor at NZ Pork.

“Ideally, an outdoor pig farmer should use species that grow well on their land and provide nutritional value for their pigs.

“Establishing and maintaining groundcover on pig production areas can be complex and challenging. Heavy treading, grazing and a lack of irrigation on pig production paddocks can all contribute to a lack of cover, particularly in winter and summer.”

New Zealand pig farmers had the opportunity to learn more about groundcover options on their farms at a workshop organised by NZ Pork, and sponsored by AGMARDT, at the Lincoln Events Centre last month.

They were provided with information from a range of subject-matter experts on establishing and managing appropriate pasture groundcover species for pigs, opportunities for alternative forage ingredients/crops in pig diets and implementation of good management practices.

Establishment of groundcover is the first challenge for many farmers.

Professor Derrick Moot of Lincoln University explained that establishment is largely dependent on the ability to rest paddocks following sowing.

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In research trials in which paddocks were stocked from sowing, groundcover measurements never exceeded 12%, compared with an average cover of 65% in paddocks where pigs were excluded for 57 days after sowing. Set stocking vs rotational grazing practices also affected maintenance of groundcover. After successful grass establishment, ground cover was suboptimal under set stocking.

Farmers also heard from Professor Leo Condron, Lincoln University, about nutrient management. Pig manure, much like other animal manure, contains nitrogen and phosphorus.

The productivity of pasture and crops is largely determined by the inputs and cycling of nitrogen and phosphorus; pasture and crops will respond to increasing quantities of nitrogen and phosphorus, up to agronomic optima determined by a combination of factors including plant type, species, variety and environmental conditions (sunlight, temperature, and rainfall/irrigation).

From an environmental perspective, areas best suited to pig production generally have free-draining soils, which also have the greatest risk of nutrient leaching into ground water. Lack of groundcover can increase the risk of nutrient loss from the piggery production area.

So how do farmers maintain adequate groundcover?

“There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach”, says Dr Kirsty Chidgey, animal welfare scientist at NZ Pork.

“Each farmer will have to consider a range of factors, including selecting the most suitable species based on farm system, climate and soil type. And as well as environmental considerations, there are also nutritive requirements and health impacts to consider.”

Professor Patrick Morel, Massey University, discussed the nutritive values of different groundcover species. Pasture growth provides a small but significant contribution to nutrition of the sow and so can reduce maintenance feed costs and could reduce the cost of production on outdoor farms.

A project funded by the Ministry for Primary Industries is currently underway to investigate alternative feedstuffs for pigs, including a nutritive analysis of other potential groundcover species such as chicory, plantain, red clover, fodder beet, white clover and lucerne.

Once the results are known, farmers can factor in nutritive analysis when selecting a groundcover species, which will not only provide the best alternative feed source for the pigs, but can also be used to formulate diets to mitigate nitrogen excretion of outdoor grazing pigs.

Farmers also heard from Dr Bruce Welch, industry veterinarian, on the potential health impacts of different groundcover options.

Dr Welch presented some observations that may suggest a link between the most commonly used groundcover species on outdoor pig farms, perennial ryegrass, and a possible impact on health and reproduction including seasonal infertility. One hypothesis is that physiological effects of certain endophytes contained in perennial ryegrass are contributing to subfertility in pigs.

“The workshop was a great opportunity for outdoor pig farmers to hear from expert speakers on a range of topics,” says Kirsty “New Zealand outdoor pig farmers stand to benefit from more in-depth experience and understanding of which pasture species and combinations will maximise their own situation while avoiding environmental, health and productivity issues.”

The workshop was sponsored by AGMARDT.

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Supported by Ruralco Tinwald Pony Club Annual Show

Coronation Target Rifle Club Coronation Championship

1

2

3

Mayfield & Districts Lions Club Mayfield Mt Somers School Speech Competition 1

1. Holly Coulter, Lucy Bennett 2. Hannah Bennett, Ella Rickard 3. Ruby Breading

Tour to Mayo Charity Cycling Event

1. Georgia Greenslade, Jordan Protheroe and Quin Austin

2

1

1. Tour to Mayo participants at Burwood Hospital upon completion of the tour 2. Clayton Howard, making his way up the first major climb of the inland route

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Co-op News Planning a Christmas function for your staff?

Check out our website for a list of local restaurants where you can use your Ruralco Card and save.

Dates for your diary 25–28 December

THE RURALCO DINING GUIDE

Gift & Homeware late night shopping

Christmas Day and Boxing Day Holiday All Ruralco Stores will be closed from Friday 24 December and reopening Tuesday 29 December

1–4 January New Year Holidays All Ruralco stores will be closed from Friday 1 January and reopening on Tuesday 5 January If you have any emergency requirements, the duty manager can be contacted on 03 307 5100 or 027 487 6865.

10 & 17 December Ruralco Gift & Homeware Ashburton is open for late night shopping until 7pm.

Come in and see the team for all your Christmas Shopping, gift hampers and complimentary gift wrapping for all presents purchased in store.

Environmental changes to Real Farmer In response to members requests, we have made the environmental change to non-laminate covers and compostable flow wrap for our seasonal Real Farmer.

Need the perfect gift for the whole team this Christmas?

New Ruralco Suppliers

Get Christmas all wrapped up with Ruralco’s Gift Hamper range.

Order online at ruralco.co.nz

SOUTH ISLAND

Ashburton

Donate with your Ruralco Card You can now make donations to the Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue Trust using your Ruralco Card by the following methods: • Online at www.airrescue.co.nz • Online at www.ruralco.co.nz • Physically at a Ruralco Store

Keep your dairy farm going this Christmas We’re here to make your farming life easier, so we have created an order form for all things dairy to help you identify any last-minute supplies you need to prevent you getting caught short over the Christmas break.

Delivered direct to you, your orders will be on farm between of 17–24 December.

Get your form in store, fill out the online form at www.ruralco.co.nz/ dairyorderform, or talk to us directly on 0800 787 256.

Ruralco Pasture Packs T-ploid RenovatorPack Pack D End GREAT VALUE

ain Ecot The Pack E VATIVNCE A INNO ORM PERF

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ryla ura nd P ack

MAXIMUM PRODUCTION ®ULT IMA PERFTE DRYL ORM AND ER

D Pa ip ck

PERRELIA FO BL RM E AN CE

Ruralco’s Ultimate Pasture Packs provide you with the right mix necessary to produce ultimate results and ultimate pastures. Get your copy of the guide today from the Ruralco team or visit: www.ruralco.co.nz/pasturepacks for more information.

Allenton Liquor Store Up to 1.5% discount Ashburton Eco Park Up to 10% discount Regency Motel Ashburton Up to 10% discount The Bottle O East Street Up to 1.5% discount

Omarama The Wrinkly Rams Up to 5% discount

Sefton Easy Flow Drainage Up to 10% discount

Timaru

Bush Inn Court Motel Up to 12% discount

Ezykonect Rural Broadband Up to 10% discount Henry’s Liquor Store Up to 1.5% discount Hydraulink South Canterbury 10% discount Unichem Highfield Mall Pharmacy Up to 10% discount

Cromwell

Twizel

Vetlife Cromwell Up to 8% discount

Templeton Construction Up to 10% discount

Christchurch

Cust The Lads Small Farm Services Up to 5% discount

Fairlie M J Donnelly Up to 5% discount

Gore Michael Kelly Auto Electrical Up to 3% discount

Greymouth Speights Alehouse Greymouth Up to 5% discount

Mapua Four Square Mapua Convenience

Nelson Abel Tasman Sailing Adventures Up to 5% discount

NORTH ISLAND

Auckland Harvey Norman Glen Innes Up to 15% discount Warkworth Menswear Up to 5% discount

Gisborne APL Fuelstop Gisborne 12¢ per litre discount

Mangaweka APL Fuelstop Mangaweka 12¢ per litre discount

Maramarua APL Fuelstop Maramarua 12¢ per litre discount

Stratford Stratford Four Square Convenience

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