Coast & Country News - September 2020

Gabrielle Walton’s family farm Summerhill is 400ha equally split between farmland and forests – including specialty timber species – in the hills of Papamoa, Western Bay of Plenty. Summerhill forest has been in the making since 1960. Today one of its aims is to provide a diverse range of timbers for the New Zealand marketplace. Learn more on pages 10-11. Photo: Mackenzie Dyer.

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Avocados PG 16-19

Sheep & Beef PG 22

Fertiliser PG 30-33

Maize, Cropping, Planting PG 34-39

Cartage & Earthworks PG 40-41

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COAST & COUNTRY NEWS

Striving for more Well, the Prime Minister has bumped the Election date back from this month to October 17, which I don’t think is a bad thing for primary sector voters.

www.coastandcountrynews.co.nz

Even before the Covid-19 community transmission cluster was identified in Auckland, political parties were only just starting to fire up their electioneering juggernauts.

So we hadn’t really seen many policy offerings for the agriculture and horticulture sectors. Still, the detail on primary sector policies seems a bit slim.

Hopefully now that we have an extra month to make our voting minds up, we’ll see more from parties on where they want policy to head in our sectors.

Industry groups are already gauging primary producer opinion on what the sector is looking for in political clout. DairyNZ has released its policy priorities – see page 29. I’m sure more groups will follow suit soon.

But we’re not all thinking about the election. Some are thinking about how we can create new export industries, or expand or improve our practices in our respective sectors.

Bay of Plenty-based investment company Te Whai Ao is working with Hamilton nanotechnology company Ligar to commercialise valuable bioactive molecules from hops, avocado, kiwifruit and hemp.

This could create a new Maori-led high value export sector. See page 3.

New Zealand’s biggest worm farm at Kawerau is about to expand after securing Provincial Growth Fund loan support, and signing up another Bay of Plenty council up to take its biowaste. See page 5.

Gypsum delivers Gold for Kiwi Orchardists

Meanwhile, the Walters family at Sandel Ridge Farm near Whakamaru is one of five Miraka farms that scored 100 per cent in the company’s farming excellence programme this year.

Find out why and how on pages 6-7. And it’s time to get rid of those old tripod overhead tanks if you have one.

See why on page 13.

Katikati Innovative Horticulture Trust has reached the halfway mark on its fundraising to construct a purpose-built facility in Katikati to train and educate people of all ages seeking employment in the horticultural industry. See page 21.

In the Waikato, Takapoto Estate farming manager Sam Le Cren is planning to extend the biological farming methods he’s implemented so far in the farming operation. See more on pages 38-39.

And this month SunMedia Ltd, which publishes Coast & Country News, is celebrating 20 years in business. Directors Brian and Claire Rogers say they’re honoured to have been reporting news on the agriculture and horticulture industries – which remain the backbone of New Zealand’s economy – for two decades.

“The main thing that we think has ensured Coast & Country News has served our readers well is we have not changed our focus from the start – which is to tell stories about what people are doing on and with the land. Our readers and advertising clients always give feedback that this is what they love about this publication.” Until next month, happy reading!

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Bioactives project to grow new export Developing a new Maori-led export sector is the drive behind a new Bay of Plenty initiative to extract and commercialise high value bioactive molecules from plantbased foods and horticulture for the global bioactive ingredient market.

This market is expected to be worth $51 billion by 2024 – prompting BOP-based Te Whai Ao Ltd to join forces with Hamilton-based nanotech business Ligar LP to develop a pipeline of high value bioactive molecules to capitalise on burgeoning consumer interest in bioactives and immunity-boosting supplements, alongside plant-based foods.

Last month, Te Whai Ao and Ligar signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaboratively plan and develop a new entity called The Refinery, a business and facility focussed on the largescale extraction and commercialisation of bioactives.

The Refinery Project stimulated an online launch of the Solutions Lab led

by Te Whai Ao. This is the first regional Federation of Maori Authorities’ memberled Innovation Solutions Lab – designed to provide Maori with new pathways into innovative enterprises and increase participation in the hitech sector.

Te Awanui Huka Pak and Te Whai Ao chief executive Te Horipo Karaitiana says bioactives from plant-based foods and horticulture present an opportunity to kickstart a new Maori-led export sector. “Bioactives from horticultural waste streams will open up sustainable opportunities for Maori to increase the value of primary sector exports.

“The initiative is a perfect fit for our innovation company Te Whai Ao, which is focussed on growing revenue by expanding and deepening the impact of horticultural activities, and growing capability and enterprise for Maori. This initiative has the potential to grow a new generation of great jobs for Maori.”

Knowledge and capability

“By partnering with Ligar we can combine their bioactive market knowledge, purification capability and processing know-how with Te Awanui’s capability in developing sustainable opportunities which safeguard and enhance the interests of the Taiao – our holistic environment including land, sea, air, water – and its people for future generations.”

The initial project focus is bioactive molecules present in biomass on Maori land. A detailed review of bioactive content of waste streams from avocado and kiwifruit production has already begun. Others will follow. Ligar managing director Aiden Tapping says its world-leading commercial scale purification systems can uniquely extract high value molecules or contaminants that may only be present at the part-perbillion level. “Our technology can turn horticultural waste streams into higher value products, very much

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Extracting and commercialising bioactive molecules from plant extracts could build a Maori-led export sector. in line with the Primary Sector Council and the Government’s ‘Fit For a Better World’ vision to accelerate the productivity, sustainability and inclusiveness of the primary sector, to deliver more value for all New Zealanders. This project will directly contribute to the goal of helping to lift export earnings by $10 billion per annum by 2030.”

The Refinery

Ligar’s Molecularly Imprinted Polymers, MIPs, are ‘smart’ materials that have ability to selectively capture and remove specific molecules or groups of molecules from fluids. Ligar makes MIPs in large volumes so they can be used efficiently at a commercial scale.

Ligar chief exploration officer Nigel Slaughter says the outcome of the bioactive research underway will be fed into The Refinery. “We will utilise Ligar’s novel extraction science to make high quality, ethical, bioactive extracts that are in demand around the world while embracing the Maori concept of Te Taiao, a respectful relationship with the natural world. We’re in the discovery phase looking at the bioactive molecules in kiwifruit and avocado that should be possible to extract using Ligar’s MIPs.” Te Whai Ao and Ligar are now seeking foundation partners for The Refinery in the BOP. “A key to the commercial success of the project is our ability to extract molecules at scale, so we need to invest in a purpose-built facility.”

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COAST & COUNTRY NEWS

Record results but challenges ahead

Deciding on how to approach halting illegal plantings of SunGold in China, while also working towards a reformatted taste programme back in New Zealand for the 2021 season, are some of Zespri’s ongoing challenges, according to CEO Dan Mathieson.

Delivering his speech at Zespri’s first fully virtual Annual Meeting last month via video recording from his Singapore base, Dan says while Zespri has much to celebrate “there remain some ongoing challenges as we look ahead”.

“Our understanding of the illegal plantings of SunGold in China has continued to evolve, and we now believe there could be as much as 4000ha planted there.

“Our focus remains halting the growth of these plantings and mitigating the impact on our brand and business, and we’ll continue to adopt a multi-faceted legal and political approach to protect our retail channels.”

Dan says it’s a highly complex situation.

“One potential option we’ve been advised to explore is whether there is a commercial opportunity in commercialising SunGold in China that generates returns for our industry and also mitigates the spread of unauthorised SunGold. No decisions have been made, nor will they be without fully engaging our NZ stakeholders and shareholders. And we’ll continue to speak with growers and the NZ and Chinese governments in the coming months.”

Taste programme

Dan says Zespri is also continuing to refine its approach to establishing a reformatted taste programme for the 2021 season. This stems from Eurofins Bay of Plenty dropping its dry matter testing service – the only one in the country – at harvest-time this year. This meant growers were not paid for taste profile of their fruit.

“Work on this programme is ongoing, driven by the Industry Advisory Council,

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with technical working groups developing proposals for the industry to consider.”

Dan says poor tasting fruit arriving in the market would quickly destroy the hardearned value of Zespri fruit. “We must have a taste system for the industry and we remain committed to a solution that enables us to continue to incentivise the besttasting fruit and drive greater value.”

Strong year

Opening the meeting, chairman Bruce Cameron said 2019/2020 had been another strong year for Zespri and NZ’s kiwifruit industry. “We’ve delivered excellent results by challenging ourselves to stand up and stand out. As an industry we’ve adapted, shared ideas and worked together to continue to operate safely throughout the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Collectively, we should be proud of our hard work, resilience and the way we finished the season. This has given us the best chance to succeed.

“I know this year has been incredibly challenging – it was for Zespri, for postharvest and for growers. But it’s also a year in which we’ve made decisions that will set us up for future success.

“That includes commercialising a new variety and launching our new brand.

Formally opening the new meeting wing of our head office, which is now a true hub for the industry. Showing real leadership on sustainability.”

Bruce says the financial year ending March 31, 2020, had produced record results for Zespri and the industry. “Our total operating revenue was $3.36 billion,

Illegal plantings in China remain a threat to NZ’s kiwifruit industry. up from $3.14 billion last year, with global revenue from fruit sales increasing by seven per cent to $3.14 billion in 2019/2020.

Good signals

Zespri delivered 164.4 million trays of kiwifruit to hundreds of millions of consumers worldwide. “These numbers are incredibly encouraging for the industry and the wider NZ economy during a time of so much economic uncertainty. And this success will ensure we’re well placed to weather any storms ahead.”

Bruce says while clearly risk remains with Covid-19 – “and we must remain cognisant of that” – Zespri is seeing good signals in the markets “and increased demand for fresh, healthy fruit like ours”.

“It’s also important we acknowledge that our success can’t be taken for granted. Our industry knows that more than most, because we face risk right across our supply chain – from orchards through to the evolving desires of our consumers.

“As a fast-growing industry, that includes a number of capacity constraints – in particular labour and post-harvest. Offshore, there’s the threat of losing market access, of competition and global economic uncertainty surrounding the impacts of Covid-19. And there are ongoing threats to our brand reputation as consumers look more closely at companies and how they do business. That last point in particular, reinforces the importance of continuing to meet industry compliance requirements and maintaining our own high standards so we remain an industry our consumers respect.”

COAST & COUNTRY NEWS

Page 5

Worm farm grows with PGF help Worm farm juggernaut Kawerau Ecocast is already New Zealand’s biggest worm farm and is about to get even bigger.

The worm farm on the outskirts of Kawerau already takes biosolids from most Bay of Plenty councils’ sewerage schemes – and, with a new contract from Tauranga City Council and a commercial loan from the Provincial Growth Fund, it is expected to grow to cover around 10 hectares of Maoriowned land.

Co-owner Tom McDowall says Ecocast began as a small business on his lifestyle block designed to fund his son’s tertiary education, but it had grown into a large, environmentally-friendly operation in which bio-solids were transformed into rich compost.

The new contract and a Provincial Growth Fund loan would allow the business to purchase equipment such as a new tractor and compost turner and employ double its current staff. “We didn’t expect that it would expand to be this big but as soon as we started, we could

see the potential,” says Tom. “We just constantly worked away at it.”

Biosolids from district councils and septic tank cleaning services are transported to the farm and fed to the worms along with pulp waste from the nearby Norske Skog paper mill.

Historically both the pulp waste and biosolids were sent to landfill but the worm farm provides a cheaper, and greener, alternative.

The incoming biosolids are dumped in a concrete pit then combined with wood fibre before being laid in windrows. “We did do a lot of experimentation with the biosolid and pulp mix to ensure we got the best ratio for the worms,” says Tom. “We are using simple tools to enhance nature’s own ability to deal with waste. This is an economical, environmentallyfriendly operation that has good value for councils and customers.”

The site processes between 30-50 tonnes of waste each day, with each tiger worm consuming its own weight in food every day.

The tiger worms naturally migrate between windrows to those with more food and are prolific breeders, however, Tom says they also seeded

the windrows with worms. It takes 12-18 months depending on the weather for the waste to be transformed.

It is then mixed with green waste into a rich compost that is sold through Plateau Compost.

Commercial properties like kiwifruit growers are the main compost purchasers.

Tom is not sure if the operation can be replicated elsewhere in NZ as the BOP, and Kawerau, have unique natural features. He says worm farms had to be able to source waste from tertiary wastewater treatment plants or oxidation ponds, be on highly permeable soil and in a place with low rainfall.

Rotorua Lakes Council was the first council to sign a contract with the business and delivers biosolids every day, around 10,000 tonnes

Tom McDowall.

each year. Tom expects Tauranga City Council will deliver 15,000 tonnes each year. While he’s proud the business offers a cost-effective alternative to landfill, Tom says the environmental factor is also incredibly important to him.

Rotorua Lakes three waters services manager Eric Cawte says the potential for positive environmental impact was the main factor in the council’s decision

to send its biowaste to Ecocast, as, at the time, it cost the same as sending it to landfill. However, after the Government increased waste levies, the council now saved around $390,000 a year on disposal. Read this story in full at: www. sunlive.co.nz/news/250126-kaweraus-wormfarm-expands.html Charlotte Jones, Local Democracy Reporter

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The worm farm covers several hectares of land just outside of Kawerau. All Photos: Troy Baker/ Whakatane Beacon.

Election day now moved to October 17 Those wanting to be elected to Parliament for the next three-year term now have until October 17 to sway voters following the Prime Minister delaying the General Election.

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Late last month, following an outbreak of Covid-19 community transmission that sent Auckland into Alert Level 3 and effectively stifling party campaigning, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced the election will now take place on October 17.

“The Electoral Commission, via the Ministry of Justice, has advised me that a safe and accessible election is achievable on this date [of October 17].

“This short delay gives the commission more time to prepare including freeing up facilities for early voting during school holidays,” says the Prime Minister.

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A vision to be leaders in best Once again Central North Island dairy processor Miraka has shown that their focus on sustainable farming practices is delivering returns.

Miraka dairy farmer Sarah Walters with Sandel Ridge’s 2020 calves.

Despite experiencing a challenging dry summer period, this year a record number of farms achieved a perfect score in the Te Ara Miraka farming excellence programme – which is underpinned by five value pillars – and were recognised at the iwi-owned organisation’s recent annual awards ceremony.

The Walters family at Sandel Ridge Farm, near Whakamaru, was one of the five Miraka farms that scored 100 per cent in the programme this year.

Pete and Sarah Walters have owned and run the 214 hectare farm, milking 550 cows, since 2015.

They’ve also owned the 210ha farm next door since 2018, and run the two farms as separate herds.

Pete and Sarah were brought up on dairy farms, both studied agriculture degrees at Massey, and as a couple they worked their way up the dairy ranks on family farms before they bought Sandel Ridge.

“It’s one of Miraka’s foundation farms and its location, size, easy contour, and proximity to family attracted us,” says Pete. “The Te Ara programme was being introduced for what would be our second season.”

“Our farm vision is to be leaders in best practice farming,” says Pete.

“We want to be performing at that level and Miraka incentivise well.” Farm scores in the programme contribute to the final milk price, with high-scoring farms receiving an additional financial incentive.

Within Miraka’s Five Pillars of People, Environment, Prosperity, Cows and Milk, some rules are mandatory, and some are incentivised. “If you look at the evidence of what the farms in the programme are achieving, the incentive carrot works very well,” says Pete.

...continued

Pete Walters with one of the family’s ex-calf club cows, which has just had her first calf.

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During the interview the couple had with Miraka to see how they felt about the programme, they realised it was more Miraka interviewing them for their suitability.

“We were doing about 60 per cent of their book of criteria anyway, so it fitted with how we farm, and we were happy with the changes required, so we felt it was a good move for us,” says Sarah.

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practice continued...

Sarah completes the majority of the paperwork and uploads documents to the Miraka online portal. The annual audit by QCONZ consists of a two to threehour on-site visit.

In previous years Sandel Ridge has missed out on the 100 per cent score as their six-week calving rate wasn’t quite enough.

“Every farm gets an identical, detailed booklet of expectations for the next year and we love being pushed to do better, and have new challenges,” says Sarah.

Working with their land

The farm uses bore water for stock, and has no waterways to fence. Despite this, they’ve allowed a steeper 6ha to revert back to native bush.

The free-draining Taupo Ash over pumice soils can dry out in summer, with the 2019 season being very dry. The rye/clover/plantain grass mix did well but they are looking at diversifying the grass mix when re-planting is due.

“We adopt a ‘little and often’ approach programme to fertiliser application, doing five to six applications of sulphur, potassium and nitrogen over six months,” says Pete. The soil’s phosphorus content is very high so very little phosphate is applied.

Effluent flows through a stone trap into the 2.5 million litre lined pond, and is then pumped through an extensive pipework to irrigators, reaching 65ha of the farm. The pond never reaches capacity.

“We grow 11ha of turnips in summer, and 3ha of fodder beet for April/May milking,” says Pete.

“The cows get in-shed meal consisting of palm kernel, DDG and soy hull when they are in full lactation,” says Sarah.

All the Miraka farms received their first Carson Emissions Report in 2019, but its relevance was a little unclear to the Walters at that point. “We fell

The award-winning management team at Sandel Ridge – farm manager Michael Colipano and farm owners Pete and Sarah Walters. into the middle of Miraka’s supplier range for each of the three criteria, so that was a promising start,” says Pete. The couple are waiting for their 2020 report and that will start to make the required connections with their practices and their carbon emissions. “This is new ground for us, and we are keen to learn what we have to do to keep the emissions low,” says Sarah.

Miraka support

The Walters appreciate the inclusive culture of Miraka, the large support network of the other farms, and the Miraka management team who are always there for them.

“We know several farmers in the scheme, and we all meet up to do workshops and share ideas at the Miraka training day each year,” says Pete.

“The awards dinner has an almost family feel,” says Sarah.

Pete and Sarah feel a little like they are taking credit for the awards their farms have received, when they have “an awesome team” of two managers and four workers over the two farms, who really care about the business, the industry and best practices. “After all, we can’t milk 1000 cows on our own,” says Pete.

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Building ladders for fish A project involving landowners, including pastoral farmers and orchardists, which could result in both an abundance of whitebait for locals and recovery of ÿ sh numbers is planned for waterways in the Northern Tauranga Harbour region.

Uretara Estuary Managers chair and Project Parore member Lawrie Donald says the proposal is to remove migration barriers to indigenous ÿ sh species in all the streams in the area. ° is follows successful work carried out last year on the Te Mania, Te Rereatukahia, Uretara and Tahawai streams. “° e biggest threat to our indigenous ÿ sh species is not from the whitebait ÿ shers, but from manmade barriers which prevent them migrating up stream. “° e objective of this new proposal is to extend the project to include all the streams that enter the Tauranga Harbour north of the Matahui Peninsula.” ° e proposal is for a joint project between the community, Western Bay of Plenty District Council, Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Department of Conservation, Uretara Estuary Managers and Project Parore. Last year the Uretara Estuary Managers, as part of its ‘Hills to Ocean’ project, requested BOPRC carry out a study of ÿ sh migration in the four streams which discharge into the estuary near Katikati.”

Lawrie says following that study a contractor carried out remediation work on 43 impediments in the four streams, with almost immediate results.

“In one case, mussel ropes were installed at a ford, which appeared to be a complete barrier to migratory ÿ sh. ° e work was ÿ nished by 3pm.

“After dark at about 8pm we inspected the ropes to ÿ nd ÿ sh already climbing up and heading upstream. It was a great, instantaneous success.”

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Within hours of these ÿ sh ladders being installed, ÿ sh were seen climbing up and heading upstream, passing what had previously been a barrier to their migration. around the particular obstacle and may include ropes from mussel farms, ramps or ba˛ es. ° e idea is to enable the tiny ÿ sh to ‘climb’ or swim around a barrier and then rest in quiet water before making the next dash upstream.

Whitebait are the juveniles of six species of ÿ sh. Five are migratory galaxiids: inanga, banded kokopu, giant kokopu, koaro and shortjaw kokopu. ° e sixth species is common smelt.

Inanga begin life as eggs laid in vegetation beside streams in late-summer and autumn. When the eggs hatch, they are carried downstream as larvae and spend the next six months at sea. In the spring they migrate upstream as whitebait and grow into adult ÿ sh. ° at’s why, says Lawrie, removing barriers to their upstream migration – and ensuring there is habitat for them when they get there – is vital to restoring viable population numbers. “Helping more whitebait migrate upstream also helps another stream inhabitant – the fresh water mussel or kakahi, which uses ÿ sh to transport larvae upstream.”

When male kakahi release sperm into the water in summer, females inhale this, and the fertilised larvae (glochidia) are ejected. Using long sensory ÿ laments, the larvae latch on to gills and ÿ ns of ÿ sh, usually the koaro, which take them upstream where they drop o˝ to bury into sediment. At that stage they are less than 0.5mm but during 50 years can reach 10cm long.

Lawrie says the project’s objective is to ensure any migrating ÿ sh (whitebait) that enters through the Bowentown entrance can reach any stream and ÿ nd a home. “° ere is a need to educate landowners, the community about what a barrier to native ÿ sh looks like. Training will be made available to contractors who may be installing stream crossings for subdivision purposes. Advice and demonstrations to this group will hopefully avoid future barriers being constructed within streams in the local area.” Find out more at: https://www.uem.org.nz/projectparore

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‘Roving Kiwi’ is a new venture between trusted brands World Travellers Motueka and Southern Exposure Tours.

Southern Exposure Tours director Silvana Gottini says they’ve joined forces with World Travellers Motueka “to create a unique concept of hosted motorhome trails in

New Zealand”.

“Carefully crafted itineraries will get you o° the beaten track while experiencing warm local hospitality, like high country stations or even a marae stay. “˛ ese are not convoy tours! After a brieÿ ng from your host and armed with a comprehensive trip dossier, you’ll head o° each morning to

visit the sights that interest you along the way.”

At each day’s end everyone meets at the overnight stop, in time for Happy Hour.

Roving Kiwi o° ers the chance to enjoy comradery of a group

without the schedule of a coach tour, says Silvana. “Each day is yours to discover as you please.” Fully inclusive is the motorhome rental, many evening meals and sights along the way.

How to cruise NZ without motion sickness More than ever before, Kiwis in their carloads are getting behind the wheel to wind around our country’s rural back-roads or travel along our highways while we keep our bubble of five million safe.

And so many of us may be out of our comfort zone when it comes to long trips in the car. So here’s some tips for preventing motion sickness from the Health Navigator NZ website.

night before a trip. Anti-motion sickness medications are useful in some cases. And one study has found ginger taken before a journey can help limit motion sickness.

During the journey Avoid dehydration – have small sips of water to keep you hydrated. Sit in the

Before the journey

Before the journey, ensure you eat something – avoid travelling on an empty stomach. Eat light, soft, bland, low-fat and low-acid food. Avoid eating a heavy meal for dinner or breakfast. Also, avoid spicy or greasy foods. Don’t drink alcohol the

place with the least motion; the front seat of the car.

Don’t look at moving objects such as waves. Look forward at a ÿ xed point on the horizon. Breathe fresh air if you can.

Avoid strong smells from tobacco, food or fumes while travelling. Avoid reading or watching a video or movie.

Trying to sleep or rest with your eyes closed can help. And try using relaxation techniques such as listening to music while focusing on your breathing or carrying out a mental activity, such as counting backwards from 100.

Medications are most e° ective when taken to prevent motion sickness, before travelling or as soon as possible after symptoms begin.

More information is available at: https:// www.healthnavigator.org.nz/health-a-z/m/ motion-sickness/

ROVING ird B 0 rly 50 p KIWI Ea le $ unt pept Sa isco y 30 S B e s p o k e M o t o r h o m e T r a i l s D

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FOR INFORMATION & A FULL ITINERARY CONTACT Phil or Silvana Email: info@rovingkiwi.co.nz call 0800 643 652

Page 9

Page 10

FORESTRY

What makes Summerhill work so well?

Nestled in the Papamoa Hills is a balance between forest, farm and mountain bike tracks with jumps and all. Summerhill is 400ha of land equally split between farmland and forests – including specialty timber species Cypress, Victorian ash, Tasmanian Blackwood and Poplar.

It was officially opened to the public for recreation in 2014, when Summerhill owners Cloie and David Blackley unconditionally gifted 126ha to a charitable trust.

“While they’re well retired now, my parents still get a lot of pleasure from going into the forest, and seeing people enjoy it,” says their daughter and Summerhill Charitable Trust chair Gabrielle Walton.

“We all enjoy seeing that – it’s a lovely by-product of the forest.”

Gabrielle Walton holding Tasmanian Blackwood, grown in the Summerhill forest. All Photos: MacKenzie Dyer.

Shaking off ‘pine mentality’ Summerhill forest has been in the making since 1960, when Cloie and David decided to plant their steepest land in pine trees.

Today, pine is just one of the species grown at Summerhill. Gabrielle says growing a variety of trees is both good for the environment, forest health and the Summerhill Timbers forestry business, which she co-directs with her husband Andrew Walton.

“Our objective has always been to provide a diverse range of timbers for the NZ marketplace.”

Growing different species means the business benefits from both fast-growing trees like pine, high-value exotics, and natives that can take more than 50 years to mature. “We strongly believe in intergenerational planting – planting high value trees that span more than one generation to produce amazing timbers.”

Climate care

The environment is a top priority for Summerhill.

At the time of writing this, Summerhill Timbers is in the final stages of obtaining a Forest Stewardship

Certification, or FSC. “FSC shows potential customers that their wood is ethically sourced, by ensuring we comply with the law, have an adequate environment plan, and have transparent documentation.”

Gabrielle, who is a qualified landscape architect herself, says the Government’s recent Building for Climate Change bill, which will put a preference on low carbon emitting materials like timber, is a positive.

She hopes the bill encourages NZ building industries to use more NZ-grown timbers. “The range of timbers we grow at Summerhill are diverse in colour, features, durability...and can all be used in NZ buildings.

“The rich, dark colour of Tasmanian Blackwood makes beautiful furniture and Eucalyptus and Poplar are pale and strong. We grow a wonderful range of timbers in NZ – so why not buy local?”

Growing a home

Gabrielle and Andrew practice what they preach.

From Poplar walls to the Tasmanian Blackwood floors, their home is almost entirely constructed from Summerhill timber. “We worked with architect to get the balance right between the different timbers, and we’re really pleased with how it turned out.”

...continued

Summerhill Timbers’ forest.

FORESTRY

Page 11

Adding forestry and recreation to farming continued...

Working with Summerhill Timbers is a collaborative process. Architects and builders approach the business with a project idea, and they work together to find the right timber for the job. “We provided wood for Waikato University Tauranga’s atrium. The building has laminated Cypress timber ribs going up several stories, which accentuates the space and gives the warmth of wood.

When David and Cloie were sole owners of the land, they were constantly asked by people if they could walk through their property to the historic Papamoa Pa sites. Through the Summerhill charitable trust, walking

Summerhill balances farming and forestry against a backdrop of Mount Maunganui. tracks connecting the property and the regional park have been established. Mountain Bike Tauranga created several tracks throughout the forest, and is constantly adding more.

Continuous cover forestry

The forest and recreation work hand-in-hand, thanks to selective harvesting and Continuous Cover Forestry.

Recreational tracks create easy access for contractors to fell individually selected trees, and not clear felling keeps the stable.

Mountain Bike Tauranga’s track among the Poplar trees.

Inside Gabrielle and Andrew Walton’s home are Poplar walls and Tasmanian Blackwood floors.

CCF allows an ecosystem below the trees to establish itself, and perpetuate. “There’s still plenty of forest cover to reduce weeds and to provide a forest setting for the public.

“All the greenery on the forest floor, and the ecosystem that comes with it, has the opportunity to grow thanks to the shade provided by the trees – something that wouldn’t happen if we clear felled,” says Gabrielle.

And while Summerhill may have developed, the land is still used for its original occupation: farming.

The farm has 600 Coopworth and Romney sheep, and 80 breeding Angus cattle throughout 200ha. As well as growing good trees, Gabrielle says Summerhill’s loamy soil is great for grazing too. Hikers and bikers get the farm and forest experience side-by-side, against the backdrop of Mount Maunganui and the ocean. “The views are what drew Mum and Dad here in the first place. Adding forestry to the farm has been a wise land use decision. We’re certainly proud of what the farm has grown into.”

For more information about Summerhill Timbers, visit: www.summerhilltimbers.co.nz MacKenzie Dyer

RURAL HOMES & BUILDINGS

Page 12

Turning a hall into a home Ruairi and Vicky Kelly and their two young children have been living in the 112-year-old Thackray’s Hall in Manawaru for the last four years.

Both the building and management of the one-acre section is a project that suits the family’s goal of a zero-waste lifestyle well.

The hall dates back to 1908 and was built primarily for social events because back then there were no churches in the area – and nowhere for the community to gather.

Since then it’s been used as a drill hall for the Territorial Army, a bakery, a Post Office and was a shop run by Farmers Trading Company.

The Kellys are the third owners to live in it primarily as a residence, although Ruairi suspects people lived in the back part when it was a shop. The front part is their home.

The back part, called ‘The Backhouse’, which is Vicky’s mother’s maiden name, is set up as holiday accommodation.

Ruairi and Vicky, both from the UK, bought their first house in Te Aroha and the week after they’d finished remodelling it, they sold it.

But there were many redeeming qualities.

The orchard, which Ruairi estimates to be 40 years old, has amazing views of Mount Te Aroha; and the hall-turned-house and oneacre grounds offer space.

“We wanted somewhere that could be our home, where we could grow food for our family and share the space for community activities as well,” says Ruairi.

Fortunately, the 112-year-old building is structurally sound but plenty has been done to make the building fulfil the Kelly’s goals; and the couple wanted to do most of the work themselves.

“We’ve used an electrician for all electrical work and had a builder for things we couldn’t manage ourselves; for other big jobs, we’ve had friends come and help.”

The first two years, they lived in and worked

More space

“We wanted more space,” says Vicky. “The area was not going to be big enough for us when the children got bigger and we’d dug up the entire front lawn so we could have a vegetable garden big enough.”

They bought Thackray’s Hall the day it was advertised for sale. “Friends who lived across the road from it told us about it. Back then, it hadn’t been lived in for more than a year and there were nests and dead birds everywhere.”

on ‘The Backhouse’. “We needed to get the kids into warm rooms before we could do anything else. The ‘The Backhouse’ had been used as accommodation before so was a much easier starting point,” says Ruairi.

“We did minor renovations in the kitchen and replaced fixtures in the bathroom,” says Vicky.

Ruairi and Vicky Kelly enjoy a break from their busy lifestyle.

Charisma and history

But the family wanted to live in the front of Thackray’s Hall “where all the old character, charisma and history of the building was more apparent”.

With no load-bearing interior walls there was a massive space to work with. “We had to insulate it before doing anything else as it was very cold. The roof was particularly challenging as the tin roof was put directly onto original native hardwood sarking.

“We had to put in another ceiling to get space. It’s a shame not to have the native wood exposed, but it’s still up there.”

In the old kitchen the Kellys were pleasantly surprised to find plastic coating on the cupboard doors came off easily and there was Thackery’s Hall solid wood beneath. is 112 years old.

“Our goal is to

re-use and re-purpose products. I particularly wanted a wooden kitchen, so sourcing products from re-purpose centres suited us really well,” says Vicky.

“We put in a new oven, moved the kitchen cupboards into the centre so we have a big workspace for cooking and preserving produce. We put in a fireplace and done loads of painting.

“We’ve painted the whole interior white, which we love. It reflects the light and makes the place feel really spacious and open.”

They also re-wired the whole house. “Our bedroom is on the mezzanine floor above the living area and the children’s bedrooms were already partitioned off from the main hall area.”

The Kellys have achieved many of their goals, but there’s still plenty they want to do. They’re converting a ‘mud room’ into a second bedroom in the ‘The Backhouse’; and an apple orchard is planned for making cider.

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FARM VEHICLES, MACHINERY & EQUIPMENT

Page 13

Tripod overhead tanks need retiring Rural landowners who still have tripod overhead fuel tanks in use are being encouraged to talk with their fuel distributors promptly to find an alternative way to meet their delivery needs.

Johnny says FDISC – made up of fuel distributor company members – has been actively working with WorkSafe to form a strategy to retire tripod tanks in NZ. It’s believed anywhere from hundreds to thousands of tripod tanks are still in use – and being filled – nationwide.

The call comes after a fuel tanker driver Rust sustained serious injuries on a farm earlier “Many tanks are aged over 50 this year when a tripod overhead tank years old – they are made of steel collapsed while the driver was filling it.

– and no matter how well they’ve The specification for manufacturing tripod been maintained, rust is going (three-legged) fuel tanks was withdrawn to take hold and could in 1996 by the Department of weaken the structure.”

Labour (now WorkSafe) due to Johnny says the fuel the structures not meeting design distribution industry’s standards of the Hazardous focus in now on working Substances and New Organisms with clients to encourage Act (HSNO) 1996 – so no new them to find alternative tanks could be constructed. ways to store fuel, so they But tripod tank owners were can retire tripod tanks. permitted to continue using “These tanks are well existing tanks until they reached past modern design, the end of their working life – and health and safety but many are still in use across requirements of fuel tanks rural NZ today despite them today. So all FDISC not meeting HSNO design members are negotiating standards, and Health and Safety with customers, at Work Regulations (Hazardous Substances) 2017 legislation.

Many tripod overhead tanks are still in use. explaining the dangers of these tanks and giving them other options to receive fuel. And we’re doing Accidents this as an industry.”

Now New Zealand’s Fuel Distributers Industry Safety Committee is calling on people to retire their Seek other delivery option tripod tanks following a string of accidents involving Johhny says tripod tank owners are predominantly fuel delivery personnel attempting to fill the tanks.

FDISC member Jonny Ireland says the last incident rural-based who purchased the equipment years ago when it was commonplace to have large quantities of saw a tripod overhead tank collapse while a fuel fuel delivered to farms. tanker driver was filling it. “A leg collapsed under “They were cost-effective at the time and health and the driver and he fell back and landed on farm safety was looked at differently back then.” implements placed beside the tank. He sustained very serious injuries – and he’s not the first to do so.

And while familiarity and cost are barriers to “Most distributors have experienced staff being hurt retiring tanks, another is the supply of tanks. “This is in some form of accident relating to these tanks.” why we’ve approached retirement over time, because According to WorkSafe, the root cause of the there has to be enough tanks manufactured to replace collapse was significant corrosion (rust) on one of the them. Although a number of customers are elderly tank legs – and farm implements close to the tank farmers, and some no longer need fuel delivered as also contributed to the driver’s injuries. they don’t have a big farming operation anymore.

“To fuel these above-ground tripod tanks, fuel They can instead fuel up locally and pay via fuel delivery staff climb up a leg-ladder – if there is any card.” weakness in the overall structure of those tripod tank Johnny says tripod overhead tank owners need to legs, there is a risk to staff,” says Johnny. “Also, the get in touch with their fuel distributors now to seek footholds point upwards so if a person slips they can other fuel delivery options. “People need to look at incur damage by catching clothing or limbs.” this now rather than later. Because at some point fuel

distributors may not be able to fill these tanks.

We’d prefer to work with customers to find a solution.”

A WorkSafe spokesperson also warns that modifying tripod overhead fuel tanks is prohibited.

This is because when a tank design has had its certification cancelled, it cannot be altered, reconditioned, relocated or on-sold for fuel storage.

“Any modifications that modify the original design will make the tank non-compliant.

Worksafe is issuing prohibition notices on any tripod tank that has been found to be modified.”

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FARM VEHICLES, MACHINERY & EQUIPMENT

Page 14

Family tractor for nearly five decades Bill Reymer is the proud owner of a 1973 Massey Ferguson 148 tractor, which he restored himself.

The tractor belonged to his late father, John, and has been in the family for 48 years.

John Reymer Snr and his wife Betsy emigrated from Holland in 1952 and were dairy farmers and rural contractors in Tihiroa, Otorohanga District.

“I was around 20 when this tractor arrived on the farm,” says Bill. “The 148 was a brand new model, a super

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spec version of the older MF 135.

“Our one was manufactured in the UK in 1972, and arrived on the first shipment to New Zealand in 1973.”

The 148 spent most of its life mowing and baling for the Reymer family’s contracting business, plus general farm work.

“Somehow it managed to escape being traded in over the years,” says Bill.

John Snr passed away in 2008, and by 2014 the little Massey was sitting abandoned in a paddock,

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The MF Super Red bonnet of the late John and Rotagen Combo are registered pursuant to the ACVM Act 1997, Reymer Snr’s 1973 Massey Enerlect Ferguson 148 tractor Enerlect A9276, Rotagen Combo A9928 has signwriting commemorating his life.

All photos: Catherine Fry.

until Bill pulled it into one of the sheds in 2017.

A tractor enthusiast from a young age, Bill had served his mechanic apprenticeship working on tractors. He joined the Otorohanga Vintage Machinery Club later in life and now has a collection of 10 classic tractors. “My whole life has been spent around tractors. I reckon I’ve got diesel in my blood!”

Inspired by meticulous restorations he saw at the club, and with the 10th anniversary of his father’s passing approaching, Bill decided to tackle the MF 148’s restoration with a view to it being part of the celebrations. ...continued

EQUIPMENT

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FARM VEHICLES, MACHINERY & EQUIPMENT

Page 15

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Bill Reymer fully restored his late father’s 1973 Massey Ferguson 148 tractor.

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“It was a complete restoration with pretty much every part requiring an overhaul or replacement.

“I also wanted to achieve the rebuild using original parts wherever I could.”

Bill found original parts in various tractor enthusiast friends’ sheds around the Waikato, and some new replica parts from Waikato Tractors.

Others, including the seat cover, were imported from the UK. The spraypainting was carried out

by Bill’s son Michael, using original Massey Ferguson colours of Super Red and Stoneleigh Grey.

The tractor was finally completed

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in time to be shown at the opening of three of Bill’s sisters’ new café ‘Zenders’ in Newstead.

There was a big gathering of family on the December 5, 2018, when Sinterklaas is celebrated by the Dutch. Bill drove his father’s restored MF 148 to the party, and distributed gifts and sweets as is the tradition.

“Everyone was thrilled with the tractor, especially the signwriting on the bonnet commemorating Dad.” The tractor’s future also seems safe as Bill’s sons are keen, and the grandchildren are showing strong interest.

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AVOCADO

Page 16

Scholarship opportunity up for grabs For the third year, Avoco is excited to announce a scholarship opportunity for tertiary students in 2021.

To help promote understanding of New Zealand’s avocado industry, Avoco is offering final-year Bachelor degree students in key subjects a $5000 scholarship towards their study costs. The successful scholarship recipient will also have the opportunity to explore summer holiday work in a related field of study and receive mentoring and professional support from the Avoco community.

Avoco’s marketing and communications manager Steve Trickett says research and development will drive the industry’s growth so it is vital to support young people studying subjects that can extend their

own capabilities while providing the industry with future talent.

“In the last two years we’ve been delighted to support two fantastic scholars with their academic study and look forward to selecting another student after reviewing applications for next year’s scholarship.

“Efforts to promote careers within horticulture are starting to pay off with more young people looking to enter our industry with an appreciation for the role that science and research will play in our growth.

Prioritising efforts

“Avoco is prioritising efforts to improve the quality and post-arrival performance of avocados exported to Australia and Asia under our Avanza brand.

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support to a university student on Fruit quality is one of our industry’s the path to an exciting career in our biggest challenges so we must ensure industry.” that new graduates have a robust understanding of the science needed to How to apply find solutions.”

To be eligible for the scholarship, The areas Avoco would like the students must be entering their final avocado industry to further explore year of study for a Bachelor degree include issues related to alternative (or similar) at any New Zealand or irregular crop bearing, crop university in 2021. They estimation techniques, postmust be a NZ citizen harvest quality issues, pest or permanent resident and disease control with whose studies relate to a focus on consumer any of the following: and environmentallyfruit production, friendly options, entomology or and shipping plant protection, technologies biosecurity, that preserve the biochemistry or premium quality biological science, of export fruit and post-harvest extend their shelf life. technology and Avoco’s team, treatment, or new led by Quality and technologies relevant to export systems manager horticulture.

Danni van der Heijden, is To apply, students investigating these issues Danni van der Heijden must send their resume, along with industry body is looking forward a summary of tertiary NZ Avocado. to helping select the studies and results to date, Steve says Avoco has recipient of next year’s with a letter of application enjoyed terrific support Avoco scholarship. by email to Danni van der from avocado grower Heijden at: danni@avoco. communities, with its co.nz by October 23. scholarship scheme a way of sharing Applications should cover how an its success with people interested in a individual’s studies will benefit Avoco career in horticulture. and the avocado industry, examples “Our industry is expected to grow of leadership skills, any community significantly in years to come and the service roles, and/or sporting and demand for highly skilled researchers cultural activities and achievements and field technicians will only become to date, along with a vision for what greater.

“We’re confident that our scholarship the applicant wants to achieve in their career. will provide much-needed financial

New plantings keep coming Investment into new plantings in New Zealand’s avocado industry continues, with more than 120 new avocado properties registered in the 12-month period ending May 2020.

It takes a team effort Unity is our strength CC0820

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And, according to NZ Avocado, for the first time in a number of years there was no break in avocado supply during last season as growers held on to one crop while a new crop matured on trees, which avoided a spike in pricing that often accompanies lower supply but increasing demand.

NZ Avocado Growers’ Association Inc chair Tony Ponder says the industry is in a position of growth and development.

“The continued investment demonstrates real confidence in the NZ avocado industry,” says Tony.

“Many new growers are attracted to the industry because of the strong growth plans within the industry, and the confidence from the collaborative structured approach but also seek to produce a healthy product, while looking after the land.”

But there are still elements of uncertainty as the export season gets underway while the world manages Covid-19.

Australia presents good opportunity for 70-80 per cent of NZ’s export volume, with lower domestic production expected in 2020 out of Western Australia.

Demand in NZ’s eight export markets across Asia also look very good, but freight and import challenges will need to be overcome.

NZ Avocado CEO Jen Scoular says the new crop for the 2020-2021 season is looking very good, with an expected 10-15 per cent increase in volume.

“The drought will have put some stress on the trees, so many will have welcomed the recent rain.”

Jen says industries across NZ horticulture sector have collaborated to ensure horticulture plays a key role in NZ’s post-Covid-19 recovery. “Avocados are a part of this collective and are working with key government departments to deliver an industry-led, governmentenabled strategy.

“I’m excited by the potential of this new level of industry-government collaboration.”

AVOCADO

Page 17

The times, they are a changing We pride ourselves in New Zealand as being innovators.

The NZ horticulture industry is no exception to this reputation for innovation, with growers developing new and better techniques, constantly linking through to our sector’s research providers; for example Plant & Food Research. We are however living in extraordinary times, where the pre-Covid norms do not apply. But there is a perception that NZ will return to normal, given just a little time.

Even when the wage subsidy comes off, according to Treasury, unemployment will not go above around 10 per cent and is predicated to gradually ease to around six per cent by early-2022. All this is indicating the country will go back to normal or near normal.

Key difference

However, there are major economic and social changes that people haven’t thought through the consequences of yet. A key difference is international travel will, according to the chief executive of Qantas, not return to 50 per cent of pre-Covid levels until 2022. The consequences of limitations on international travel are: International tourism for the next few years will be nonexistent. International worker mobility around the world will be severely restricted. International education opportunities will be limited. Airfreight that relies mostly on international passenger flights will also be severely restricted (most freight is put in the hold of passenger jets).

The impact of the above on the NZ economy will be profound and long-lasting. This is because domestic tourism will never replace international tourism earnings. Similarly, online learning will never replace the income that having international students studying and living in NZ generates.

For horticulture, access to specialist and seasonal

offshore workers will be limited. Also, the lack of airfreight will mean up to triple the pre-Covid cost to charter planes to deliver time-sensitive pro-duce.

I think this will cause major and long-lasting changes to how our economy is structured. Discussion has largely been focused on what will happen when the wage subsidy comes off and how can we redeploy Kiwis who have lost their careers in tourism and international education? But this is not the main challenge we are to face.

Economic phase

I think in a post-Covid world NZ’s economic phase will be just as challenging as the health phase. I also think that by the end of this year, NZ will be facing major social and economic upheaval.

This all comes from international travel restrictions. Our focus so far has been on tourism and international education employees. The real effect is the impact across the whole economy.

Take horticulture as an example, where export crops like cherries and persimmons rely on airfreight. The cost implications will greatly increase growers’ costs and reduce their income to the extent that whether or not to export becomes a difficult decision.

The implication of not exporting is NZ will not earn valuable foreign exchange to help pay for NZ’s import and health needs. Even if these growers do export, there will be much less money to spend locally due to the higher costs. With skilled and seasonal labour, even if there is access across borders, the time and cost implications of quarantine will have a significant impact. Our current experience in getting these workers back to their home countries has not been easy, due to their governments’ legitimate concerns about the spread of Covid to their countries.

Not being able to return home has both social and financial costs for the workers and their employers.

Offshore workers are separated from their families for longer, and have to pay for rent and food when they are not earning, or earning much less than they were when undertaking seasonal work. This situation reduces their and their employers’ spending in their local communities.

This all adds up to less funding for innovation, research and development – at the very time when we need more funding to work out ways around these changes. The response falls to

joint efforts by both government and industry. The Government’s role is to set flexible policy settings to support industry, as this massive transformation takes place. Some examples are to permit all stranded offshore visa-holders to be able to work in any industry for all of 2021.This will need to be balanced against availability of NZers, but note that unemployment is predicated to drop to around six per cent by early2022. Read this column in full at: www.coastandcountrynews.co.nz

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AVOCADO

Page 18

Avocado harvesting for the 2020-2021 season has kicked off in the Bay of Plenty.

And with quality top of mind for exporters this season, Just Avocados is making sure their growers are

reminded of best practice in the field and its impact on export packouts.

During a grower workshop held at Just Avocados’ Katikati packhouse in August, technical manager Erica Faber said that any damage caused to fruit during harvest affects fruit

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cosmetically and creates an entryway for pathogens, which can end up as postharvest rots and diseases.

“You have worked hard the whole season and put a lot of effort and investment into the fruit to ensure the best possible quality, your best packout and your best return, so you want to make sure you maintain that quality and that you don’t – at the last hurdle – negatively impact your packout by poor handling at harvest time.”

Just Avocados general manager of investor relations and supply, Andrew Cutfield, presented to growers that in poorly-supervised picking operations, nine to 12 per cent of total rejects seen are an outcome of handling during harvest and can be prevented.

“Export packout has such a massive impact on your bottom line because if export pays $25$28 per tray this year and local market pays $14, to invest a bit of time and or money to change something in your orchard or the way you are harvesting, you have a $10 per tray opportunity.

It is worth investigating and you will get higher returns out of it.”

“Peel handling, wet fruit or lenticel damage is mostly preventable if you’re sticking to the 5mm of rain rule and doing a roll test. Missing stems and bruising caused by inexperienced harvesters need to be rectified with education.”

Erica says a major cause of reduced packout is lenticel damage, which happens when there is rain preceding harvest and fruit has not fully dried out.

“During rain, the cells around the lenticels take in water and swell up, almost like a balloon blown up to the point of bursting. Any bump or abrasion is going to cause that balloon to burst and that’s exactly what happens with those cells around the lenticel, they burst during handling causing browning and further quality problems in market.

Lenticel damage

“Lenticel damage manifests over a couple of days.

At the end of a picking day you may have seen about two per cent damage. By the time it gets to the packline it can account for 20 per cent reduced packout.”

Common defects The NZ Avocado guideline is to avoid harvesting Quality and compliance manager Ashley Fraser if more than 5mm of rain has fallen in the last 24 says the common defects seen in the reject analyses hours. are wind rub, peel handling damage, wet fruit Erica cautions that if drying conditions have been damage, bruising and sometimes missing stems. poor with overcast skies, fruit may still be vulnerable “A lot of defects, apart from wind damage to a to damage and a roll test should be carried out to degree, are within your control. Pest damage can be check for lenticel damage. taken out if you have a good AvoGreen monitoring “If there has been heavy rain and the fruit cells programme in place and take action on those results. have absorbed a lot of water, it takes time for the fruit to respire and lose that moisture and for the cells to shrink back. You have got to wait until the fruit has not only dried off but has dried out.”

To improve drying time in your orchard, Erica recommends having an open canopy to allow air movement.

“Pruning is important and make sure your shelter belts are well trimmed and not too high causing shaded conditions in the orchard.”

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She also advises on the importance of being vigilant during harvest and catching poor practice before it becomes an issue. “You want to be aware of what is going on – if you’re picking over a couple of weeks or a couple of days, you want to nip it in the bud if damage is showing in the reject analysis.”

Just Avocados will contact a grower as their fruit is being packed if a preventable defect is particularly prevalent, giving the grower a chance to rectify during the pick or for the next pick.

Erica encourages growers to use previous reject analysis reports as a management tool going forward to the next season.

“Assessing your reject analysis or coming to the packhouse while your fruit is being graded and actually looking at that allows you to be more vigilant on the things you can certainly control.”

Just Avocados has created a video of tips for maintaining quality through harvest, which is available in the Just Avocados Growers Facebook group.

AVOCADO

Support flows after theft A Tauranga family is overwhelmed by support it has received from its community and is keen to press on with creating an avocado orchard after thieves stole their first plantings in mid-August.

Chris and Michelle Booth had planted 52 avocado trees on their 7000m2 Sapphire Drive property at Hairini, Tauranga – where their plan to build a home and develop an avocado/citrus orchard – straight after lockdown only to find 33 trees missing on August 14. “We’d only got consent from Tauranga City Council during lockdown to plant up to 100 trees as part of a commercial enterprise on our property, which is in a residential zone,” says Chris.

“I couldn’t believe the trees had only been in the ground a few months and this happens.”

Shortly afterwards a community member started a givealittle page to raise funds to replace the stolen

trees. Within four days it had raised more than $1600.

“That’s been incredible – we’re feeling so blessed by the community. We estimate the cost of the trees was about $1500 then there are fertilisers and things. And there’s increased security,” says Chris.

“I was thinking of implementing a few measures down the track when we had fruit. I never thought someone would look Michelle and Chris Booth, at the trees and decide to rip them in front of one of their out of the ground. So I’ll have to put avocado plantings. in place a few measures now.”

But the theft hasn’t put the family off building the orchard. “No, we think it is the best use of the property.”

The plan is to plant 100 trees – half avocados and half some sort of citrus – and sell fruit locally. “The idea is we have a small side business on our property, which works around our jobs that can help us financially and give our family a great lifestyle.

“And it’s not just about selling to the local market – we want to look at community gardens and things like that in future, which bring benefits to our community as well.”

Merle Cave

Feeding trees during a pandemic I write this column while the Auckland region is under the Covid-19 Alert Level 3 status, and the rest of New Zealand is in Level 2.

Who knows which way this will progress and by the time you read my column it will have happened.

So too we are fast heading through spring.

And spring, for us avocado growers, is about getting organised and actioning our winter plans. It’s about starting early and keeping up a good clip, a good pace, to ensure we get through to summer.

Spring is about getting the tree up and running and getting the growth going for next year, while relieving some stress on the trees to grow the remaining fruit.

Heavy crops with small fruit are a common picture in the Western Bay of Plenty. This could impact

our packouts and our market late in the season. Small exposed fruit needs to come off on you first round of picking.

Relieve the tree of its stress and grow the best fruit out. The trees will need time to achieve this and an early picking strategy should pay dividends this year.

AAL is pushing hard on nitrogen feeding – small and often is our strategy this year. Don’t overload the soils with a big single dose but consider small and more regular applications. Foliar feeding will be effective as well.

The markets are starting to show signs of a good year for growers, and while there may be a hiccup once the sales channels are full it will settle down into a good season. We just need to keep New Zealanders – and Australians – eating avocados during these Covid times.

Page 19

KIWIFRUIT

Page 20

Harnessing the value of waste kiwifruit The Western Bay of Plenty region is losing a valuable resource, which could enrich its soils or be processed for a high-value return and provide new employment opportunities, with every truckload of reject kiwifruit that is headed for Waikato dairy farms.

That’s the view of Katikati Taiao, which is hosting an Organic Waste Forum in Katikati on Tuesday, October 6, to discuss harnessing the value of waste kiwifruit – and other organic material – via an industrial process. The concept involves building a pilot-scale facility in Katikati and a steering group to steward the project is sought.

“We hope that an innovative,

community-led initiative will lead to a pilot project that adds value to a local waste stream, to benefit our economy and the environment including training and employment opportunities,” says one of the forum co-ordinators, Anne Billing.

“The Covid-19 pandemic is a reminder of how important it is to aim for a resilient, connected and caring community, so that no one gets left behind when challenging events such as this affect our community.”

Currently most of Western Bay of Plenty’s kiwifruit unsuitable for export is sent to the Waikato where it is used for animal feed.

However, Katikati Taiao chairman Paul O’Neil says if processed in Katikati, the fruit could form the basis of

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The idea of the Organic Waste Forum came out of the environmental stream of the Hearts and Minds

of Katikati research carried out by Katikati Taiao last year. It was to be held in March, but Covid-19 cancelled the event.

However, keynote speakers from the March event will take part in October, including Debbie O’Byrne, MBA, circular economy and organisational management specialist, who’ll join the event by live video link from Australia, allowing attendees to ask questions in real time.

Norm Boyle, CEO of Australian company Food Recycle, will take part via live video link to discuss his company’s patented process converting commercial food waste into high value products. Steve Erickson, of ‘Chaos Springs’, a regenerative farming and industrial composting specialist with 37 years’ experience organic farming, market gardening and commercial composting, in Utah and NZ, will address the forum.

Worm farms

Another speaker is Michael Quintern, founder and a director of MyNOKE, who is an expert in designing and establishing worm farms for various waste streams.

Tiki Bluegum, Katikati Taiao trustee and kaumatua and cultural advisor for Te Rereatukahia Marae, will open the forum.

As well as presenting pertinent information on science and technical feasibility, research, employment opportunities and funding pathways for a project, the forum will include an industry Q&A panel so those attending may ask questions.

“With expert speakers, this is a key educational opportunity for anyone involved in the kiwifruit industry and other stakeholders,” says Anne.

“We predict this project will be a local sustainability success story. One with quadruple bottom-line benefits; economic, social, environmental, and cultural. And it will be a great story to tell the international consumers of kiwifruit. By working together, we can add value and resilience to our region.” The Organic Waste Forum is on October 6 from 2.15pm-5.30pm at Katikati Community Centre.

RSVP to: katikatitaiaosecretary@gmail.com

For specifications, price and availability Tel: 021 270 2449 or email: admin@kiwipollen.com

My Name is Neil Woodward.

I am a director of Z-Contracting- we are family run business, our team consists of three, being myself, my son and my brother.

Our organisation has been established for over 18 years. I have been involved in applying crop protection programmes within the horticultal industry since 1966.

We specialise within the kiwi fruit industry, We have the equipment to spray orchards with our two Atom sprayers and one recently purchased Tracatom Formula tractor which is also available for mulching and mowing.

My Name is Neil Woodward.

I am a director of Z-Contracting- we are family run business, our team consists of three, being myself, my son and my brother.

Our organisation has been established for over 18 years. I have been involved in applying crop protection programmes within the horticultal industry since 1966.

We specialise within the kiwi fruit industry, We have the equipment to spray orchards with our two Atom sprayers and one recently purchased Tracatom Formula tractor which is also available for mulching and mowing.

Our Atoms are set up with radar speed sensors, this combined with fully automated sprayer controllers and three nozzle rings enhances application efficiency and accuracy.

We also use a quad bike for strip weed spray applications.

We hold all certificates needed to meet Globalgap compliance.

We look at all challenges to help ensure we protect your crop with excellence.

Our Atoms are set up with radar speed sensors, this combined with fully automated sprayer controllers and three nozzle rings enhances application efficiency and accuracy.

We also use a quad bike for strip weed spray applications.

We hold all certificates needed to meet Globalgap compliance.

We look at all challenges to help ensure we protect your crop with excellence.

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KIWIFRUIT

Page 21

Help Katikati build pathways into hort jobs “We all know one of the biggest challenges facing our industry’s future is a shortage of labour, which makes this project so important,” says Apata Suppliers Entity Limited’s director Paul O’Brien.

He’s talking about Katikati Innovative Horticulture Trust’s project to construct a purpose-built facility in Katikati to train and educate people of all ages seeking employment in the horticultural industry.

Fundraising has now reached the halfway mark, giving the trust behind the project the confidence to commission drawings and specification for the building. The centre of excellence, based at Katikati College, will bring together educational skills and training providers under one umbrella to offer pathways into horticulture.

But more support is needed. Paul is inviting other

to the Apata Suppliers Entity Ltd board, there was no hesitation – we all agreed such a facility is needed to ensure our industry has trained people to meet its growing future needs,” says Paul.

Katikati College’s innovative horticulture manager Hilary Johnson says they’re asking for everybody’s support. “The Katikati Community can do this, and every little bit helps. With

continued support, we’ll have plans drawn up and aim to begin construction early next year.”

Make a donation at: https://givealittle. co.nz/cause/innovative-horticulture-isthe-future Or visit:: https://sites.google. com/katikaticollege.school.nz/ innovativehorticultureatkatika/home

postharvest companies, and businesses involved in the industry’s service sectors – from beekeeping, to transport, to IT to irrigation and fertiliser supplies – to make donations to project after he and fellow growers, who supply fruit to Apata Group Ltd and Western Orchards Limited, donated $16,800 to KIHT. “When the proposal to make the donation was put

Turning pollinating into a one-man job Timing is everything when it comes to pollenating a kiwifruit orchard, so having PollenSmart on hand is a game-changer, according to The Wrangler Ltd director Wilco Klein-Ovink.

light dustings, creating a higher chance of coating each flower at the right time,” says Wilco.

“I used to apply wet pollen. It was slow, labour-intensive, and it meant pollen wasn’t in the air making the bees move.

“PollenSmart blows dry pollen about four metres from the machine, heightening bee PollenSmart, created activity. It’s a double whammy:

by The Wrangler Ltd, is you get pollen coverage from a towable machine that the machine, and the bees work distributes dry pollen harder for you.” through four blower The proof is in the kiwifruit. outlets.

Testimonies for PollenSmart No pollen is wasted – PollenSmart won Fieldays’ main report successful seasons, from PollenSmart’s vacuum draws-in innovation award, Launch NZ, increased yield to better-shaped pollen left floating in the air in 2016. fruit. and redistributes it. “Operating “Seeing the results has opened my eyes to the massive PollenSmart is as easy as driving a tractor through the gains that can be achieved through applying extra vines, turning orchard pollination into a one-man pollen in an efficient and timely manner,” says Bay of job,” says Wilco, who as a previous kiwifruit block Plenty grower David Horwood. owner himself knows the importance of effective, “I use PollenSmart to apply low rates of pollen five or efficient pollination. more times through the flowering season, spending less “Fruit flowers don’t open at the same time. With money on pollination and achieving better results.”

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Page 22

SHEEP & BEEF

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Sherrie and Mark Stokman feel they have a duty to provide the beef sector with cattle that are improving year-on-year with the help of modern genetics.

Yearling bulls rule the pastures at Stokman Angus Farm, and you don’t have to spend much time chatting with owners Mark and Sherrie Stokman to find out why.

“If you grow them well they’re a very profitable and valuable tool for the commercial beef farmer,” says Mark.

“We place a lot of emphasis on our cow herd, selecting for ease of calving, fertility traits, and we’re working on improving carcass traits without losing the great qualities of the Angus cow.

“We’re also trying to breed curve benders, keeping the calving ease and low birthweights, having above average 200-600 days growth, but still keeping a moderate size efficient cow.”

Stokmans look to every tool available to produce the best bulls with the most information for customers. They HD50K genomic every registered calf at birth and carcass scan every animal, even culls. “We want to have as much information as possible on every animal on the property,” says Mark.

“HD50k gives you more reliability

with your EBVs, and the more accurate, the better for everyone.”

Stokmans also fertility test every bull that goes through their sale, using the gold standard BBSE Bull Fertility Soundness Evaluation, done by Guy Haynes of Totally Vets Feilding. “This assures our customers the bulls are fertile, sound and ready to go. We use the best AI sires we can source, and we invest in good natural mating sires.

Our natural herd bulls are in the top five per cent and one per cent of the breed for Self Replacing and Angus Pure Index.”

On September 16, Stokmans will have 100 registered yearling Angus bulls for sale at the Waikite Valley farm, and 40 yearling Angus heifers out of the same sires as the bulls.

The sale begins 1pm at the salebarn.

This year bidders can purchase stock through the sale online at: https:// bidr.co.nz/home “This will benefit busy farmers, as they can look the bulls over ahead of time and bid on an animal online on sale day if they can’t make it.”

Stock on the Stokman farm.

CHICKENS & POULTRY

Page 23

Look for FeedSafeNZ logo for best quality feed As poultry and egg producers know, one of the most important reasons for sourcing top quality animal feed is to ensure the optimum health, wellbeing and productivity of their flocks.

But how do you know the animal feed you buy ticks the box for quality and safety? The New Zealand Feed Manufacturers Association is encouraging all farmers to look for the FeedSafeNZ mark to be sure the feed they buy is certified to contain what it says it does.

That way farmers can be assured they are buying the best quality feed and safeguarding the industry too, given it is one that is almost wholly reliant on manufactured stock feed.

The FeedSafeNZ programme is not new, having been introduced in 2015, but NZFMA executive director Michael Brooks says it

has never been more important to have independent, audited standards on our locally-manufactured animal feed.

“Anyone who feeds layer hens or poultry would be well advised to look for the FeedSafeNZ logo.

“For farmers, it’s crucial that the quality

and integrity of the food we produce in New Zealand remain uncompromised.

“FeedSafeNZ accreditation provides livestock owners the assurance that the feed they are purchasing is manufactured to the highest possible standard.”

To achieve FeedSafeNZ accreditation, feed

manufacturers are required to undergo annual site audits, which are conducted by the independent third party auditor, AsureQuality.

Only FeedSafeNZ-accredited sites are permitted to use the FeedSafeNZ logo on their packaging and other materials.

You can find a full list of all accredited animal feed producers – or check the brand you buy – by visiting https://www.nzfma.org.nz/feedsafe-nz/

Quality animal feed can help ensure optimum health, wellbeing and productivity of flocks.

Companies apply to merge to offer ‘better eggs’ The Commerce Commission is this month expected to release a decision on an application by three national egg producers seeking clearance to merge, to combine their egg production and wholesale supply.

The application, which has come from Heyden Farms Ltd, Henergy Cage-Free Ltd and Rasmusens Poultry Farms Ltd, may have a decision released from the commission on September 18.

Heyden Farms supplies caged eggs, barn laid eggs, and free range eggs from its production facilities in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty.

It sells its eggs under the Morning Harvest, Sure as Eggs and New Day Free Range brands, which are owned by the Independent Egg Producers Co-operative, of which

it is a shareholder. It also produces liquid eggs.

Henergy Cage-Free supplies barn laid eggs from its production facilities near Masterton and sells its eggs under its Henergy CageFree brand.

Rasmusens Poultry Farms Ltd supplies caged eggs and free range eggs from its production facilities near Whanganui and sells its eggs under the Morning Harvest and New Day brands as an IEP Co-op shareholder, as well as Rasmusens’ free range brand. It’s also involved in commercial sale of pullets.

In addition to branded eggs, Heyden Farms and Rasmusens Poultry Farms Ltd, via the IEP Co-op, and Henergy Cage-Free each supply eggs on a private label basis to supermarkets.

In the application, the companies say the proposed merger will

provide the merged entity with scale, balance sheet strength and access to cost-effective production that will allow it to invest and innovate in ways that drive efficiencies into its business.

“Over time, the benefits of these investments and efficiency gains can be shared with consumers through lower prices.”

Applicants also believe there is no realistic prospect the proposed merger will result in a substantial lessening of competition in NZ’s egg market due to egg-producers being price-takers; the exit of traditional caged eggs from the market come 2022; and the forecasted eventual phase out of colony eggs by major supermarkets, among other factors.

The Egg Producers Federation estimates 40 per cent of current production is via conventional

cage set-ups due to be phased out in two years.

If the merger goes ahead, the companies intend to merge the entirety of their coast&country-september.pdf operations into one entity called ‘Better Eggs Ltd’.

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13/08/20

12:07 PM

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Check the brand you feed is FeedSafe here www.nzfma.org.nz

COUNTRY LIVING

Page 24

Women grace the

FOOTWEAR

Flexibility, strength, grace and coordination are among the skills of a competent shearer and all were on display in a Katikati woolshed in August when two women stepped up to the boards.

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M • ore • L Leat pro • W eat her duc or her far ts a k & h mi va ad u Fo ntin ng b ilab e re g oo le to str & y h tra ts or ig mp de h r & ing lo w boo leg ts wo rk bo ot s

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Megan Wilson, who has been shearing on and off for 40 years, is a member of NZ shearing’s wellknown Wilson family. All Photos: Elaine Fisher. production, intermingled with crafts handed down through the generations within the culture of spinning, weaving and knitting. “Today more and more women are also shearing professionally.”

Next generation

That’s something which pleases Megan and she’s glad the next generation, including Jess and Abby, will find it a little easier to be accepted on the shearing boards.

“I think women like myself and others of my generation, who waited for a turn to shear, often at smoko, and felt they had to prove they could shear as well as men, have paved the way for this generation. I think we also influenced our male counterparts to see their daughters as shearers too.”

Rick Burke of Pukekauri Farms is keen to encourage Jess’ interest in shearing. “Shearers can earn good money and women bring a calmness ST1‐4000 SEPTIC TANK to the shed, which the animals sense.”

Wool is a product  4,000 litre capacity Megan believes is  Rugged HDPE construc�on undervalued, evidenced by the bales of unsold  Lightweight 275 kg wool filling the Pukekauri  Complete with effluent lter shed. Rick says prices are so low it’s not worth  Dimensions: L x W X H selling the wool and (3,550 x 1,150 x 2,113) removing it is for the $3,140.00 (plus GST) health and comfort of the sheep.

To Megan, who is a Cer�ed compliant AS/NZS1546.1 2008 member of New Zealand shearing’s well-known Technical: Steve Crockford steve@biorock.co.nz 021 926 364 Wilson family, the decline Sales: Geoff Jones‐Prichard geoff@biorock.co.nz 021 645 199 in the wool industry and its replacement in Email: info@biorock.co.nz www.biorock.co.nz

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At stand number one was Megan Wilson, who has been shearing on and off for 40 years. At stand number two, representing the next generation, was 22-year-old Jess Lusby. Wool handler in the all-female gang in the Pukekauri shed was Jess’ sister, 21-year-old Abby Lusby, who is also keen to learn more about shearing.

The trio worked their way calmly to remove the wool from 71 hoggets, some of which were a little skittish.

Handling animals, which at 60kg-75kg weigh almost as much or even more than herself is among the skills Jess is learning, under the mentorship of Megan and of her father, well-known Katikati shearer John Lusby.

“You need core strength and good hand-eye coordination. The agile response and ability to manage the movement of the animal to present the wool to the moving, flowing hand-piece takes a few seasons shearing to learn,” says Megan.

“It’s a good thing we are just doing a few sheep today.

In a shearing team situation, the expectation to shear numbers in a short amount of time to reduce cost is the added pressure,” says Megan.

She has an affinity with sheep and wool. “Shearing is not just about removing wool; it’s cultural too with roots which go back thousands of years.

“Women have always been part of the shearing culture, including the industry roles of wool-handling, woolclassing, judging competitions, wool marketing and

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shearing stands at Pukekauri farm continued...

garments, furnishing and carpets by synthetics is disappointing.

She believes in the quality of the natural, renewable fibre, which comes from animals that are easier on the landscape than many other livestock.

Shepherding career

Shepherd 22-year-old Jess Lusby is keen to further hone her shearing skills.

Jess is grateful for Megan’s mentoring and that of her father.

She sees the shearing skills as an advantage to her shepherding career. As well as learning on the job at Pukekauri Farm, She’s also completing Agri ITO qualifications in animal husbandry and farm management. “I also have my own heading dog ‘Gem’, which I am

training and hope to build a team of working dogs.”

Abby loves working with animals but it’s horses, rather than sheep, which she hopes will be part of her career path. She also works as a gardener, and had previously met Megan, who is a qualified landscape gardener, on projects.

Megan is no stranger to the farm. As owner of the company Earth Canvas Limited, she helped Pukekauri Farms owners John and Rick Burke with environmental plantings. She has also landscaped John’s urban garden at Mount Maunganui.

Alongside landscape design, shearing has played a crucial role in her life, helping Megan fund

the studies which led to her landscape qualifications including formal education from universities, technical institutes and waananga.

However, awareness of changes and response to those in the natural world, is, she says, in her experience, the

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Her ancestors, both Maori and European, have a history of not only shearing, but also planting, protecting and nurturing the environment so it’s hardly surprising she has followed the Elaine Fisher same path.

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LIFESTYLE FARMING

Covid-19 creates lifestyle opportunities Lifestyle blocks are seeing a resurgence in demand since the arrival of coronavirus to our shores.

People seem to be taking working from home to a whole new level as they escape the dense city living for the virusfree open air of the countryside.

We’ve recently seen sections from some rural subdivisions we are involved in selling out fast. We can’t seem to produce lifestyle blocks fast enough

to satisfy the market at present. The demand is not only from city folk wanting to move out, but from overseas residents searching for a ‘bolt hole’ in a relatively virus-free society.

Planning ahead

Recent talks with real estate agents across the region confirm they have seen increased demand since the first lockdown, from people wanting to take more control of their lives. It seems that, with all the uncertainty currently around us, people have put plans for

their future on fast-forward. People are looking for safety, some space for a good large vegetable garden, room for the kids to run around at home and space for a few animals destined for the freezer.

There are still opportunities to subdivide lifestyle blocks in some districts such as Waikato, Hauraki, Matamata-Piako, ThamesCoromandel and Western Bay of Plenty to name a few. However, opportunities are disappearing with ongoing changes to council planning rules, so urgent action is needed in some areas if you want to create one.

There are plans afoot, which will take away subdivision rights for many in the Waikato district and some councils have already made it much harder.

The most popular areas for a lifestyle block lie within a 30-minute drive of a well-serviced town or city, but some people are prepared to live much more remotely for various reasons.

Now rural internet has become more available and economical,

there is little reason to be hemmed in, within the city boundary, so I think we’ll see this current trend continue for some time to come.

Complex rules

In days gone by, you could often find an idyllic place in the countryside and approach the farmer to purchase a small slice of paradise.

These days there are only some properties that qualify to subdivide a lifestyle block off, and the rules regulating it are very complex.

However, using our experience

and knowledge of the rules, we can still achieve an outcome on many properties. This can be based on their size, zoning or ecological features such as streams, wetlands or bush that are worthy of protection; depending on which district you are located in.

If you feel you would like the opportunity to subdivide off a lifestyle block from the farm, feel free to call me to discuss your opportunities.

Brent Trail, managing director of Surveying Services, specialises in resource consent applications for subdivisions across the Waikato, Coromandel and Bay of Plenty. For further information, call 0800 268 632 or email: btrail@surveyingservices.co.nz

Preventative health plan for your farm There are many infectious diseases that can affect cattle and sheep in New Zealand for which fantastic vaccines have been made to prevent disease.

Vaccination is an important part of preventative medicine programme for both animal and human health. In some cases it can be helpful from a ‘one health’ community perspective. For example, leptospirosis, which can make people as well as livestock very ill.

Some of the most common conditions we recommend vaccinating for include:

disease in a range of livestock, it is also a zoonotic infection capable of causing serious disease in people who become exposed. Milking personnel and freezing workers are particularly at risk because it is spread in urine and handling kidneys at slaughter. As with clostridial disease, it is recommended to vaccinate pregnant dams around two months prior to calving/lambing to allow protection for newborn animals in the colostrum. Young calves and lambs can be vaccinated from four-six weeks of age.

Clostridial disease

Bovine Viral Diarrhoea

Also known as ‘blood poisoning’; for example, tetanus, pulpy kidney, black leg. These are environmental organisms that can be an important cause of death and wastage in both sheep, beef and dairy cattle. The cost to vaccinate is very low and the vaccines provide very good protection. It is ideal to vaccinate for this around one month prior to lambing/ calving to allow protection to be provided to the newborn animals in the colostrum. Young lambs and calves can be vaccinated from two-four weeks of age.

Also known as BVD, this is a highly infectious viral disease mainly seen in cattle but can also affect sheep. Symptoms can range from reproductive losses, such as abortions, through to diarrhoea in calves and ill thrift. BVD can cause significant economic and production losses in a herd situation and is the most significant viral disease to effect beef cattle in NZ. Control of BVD involves a combination of testing, biosecurity and vaccination.

Leptospirosis

This is a virus that damages the intestinal lining of newborns in their first month of life that causes calves to scour. Vaccination can be used in pregnant cows pre-calving to provide colostral protection to newborn calves against this severe and deadly viral infection. It is highly contagious and once established, can cause extensive losses on affected farms in young calves.

There are many other vaccines available for sheep and cattle that haven’t been covered in this article. Please consult with your vet to make a preventative health plan that is suited to your farm.

This bacterial infection is an important notifiable disease, with WorkSafe implications. As well as causing

Rotavirus

DAIRY

Page 27

Challenging MUN thinking Since the 1970s, New Zealand farmers have while milk production has been heavily reliant on synthetic nitrogen to increased.

Alan’s cows are producing grow their pasture. well, and his grass is growing

Cows excrete excess N

To remain healthy the cow must excrete the excess nitrogen through urine, which leaches straight into the soil, then waterways.

Not only that, but the cow uses so much energy to process the nitrogen via the liver that she simply does not have enough energy to produce high volumes of milk; she may only be producing 300kgMS. High Milk Urea Nitrogen is also often linked to high Somatic Cell Count, sore feet and high empty rates.

The issue of high Milk Urea Nitrogen can also be found on farms where farmers buy in high-protein feed. High protein feed is good, if it is needed, but many farmers only do half the job; without balancing correctly with carbohydrates and starch, cows’ systems are put under unnecessary stress.

Farmers with feed pads are able to remedy the problem of excess nitrogen by feeding supplements with high amounts of carbohydrates – such as maize silage – to ‘soak up’ the excess nitrogen and balance the levels in the cows’ bodies.

But to balance the system and decrease the levels of nitrogen in the cow via feed is a costly exercise.

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better than ever – despite They’ve been led to believe that heavy use of the fact that his Milk Urea synthetic nitrogen is the only way to boost pasture Nitrogen reading is half of growth and, as a result, milk production and what it was last season. This profitability.

MUN reduction is following Therefore, there is a widely-held belief among the same trend as the 60 per farmers that if they reduce synthetic nitrogen, cent reduction last season in they will lose milk production, grass growth and money.

But we are proving that we can help farmers reduce their use of synthetic nitrogen without a reduction in milk production or grass growth, by sliding them into a biological transformation.

A high Milk Urea Nitrogen reading has long been an indicator that the herd has potential to produce large volumes of milk.

Alan Law’s Milk Urea Nitrogen reading has fallen from an average of 26 However, there is a MUN two seasons ago to an average of 19.8 MUN last season. bit of a problem with this theory. When you put synthetic nitrogen on your pasture you may be making the grass grow, but you are also essentially putting poison into your cows.

synthetic nitrogen application.

This challenges the general thinking that a high Milk Urea Nitrogen reading is critical for milk production, and it is now our task to continue proving this point on other farms.

By having a balanced soil and enhanced biology, and pasture species delivering nitrogen naturally, there is a more efficient production of carbohydrates and less excess nitrogen to get rid of.

Balancing the feed naturally through photosynthesis means most excess nitrogen is removed from feed; feed is better quality and will require minimal balancing to get it right.

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Balance the soil

The alternative to this whole system is to balance the soil, so the microbiology thrives and encourages the natural production of nitrogen through photosynthesis.

Balanced soil grows grass that is naturally higher in carbohydrates, so a more balanced feed is going into the cow. Also, a balanced soil plus microbe enhancement will deliver nitrogen naturally to the pasture.

Not only that, but the less synthetic nitrogen applied to the grass, the less nitrogen entering the cow in the first place – and the lower the Milk Urea Nitrogen reading.

When this balancing is performed correctly, milk production will not be negatively affected.

Without the stress of processing excess nitrogen, the cow now has the energy to produce larger volumes of milk; this would suggest milk quality is also better.

On the Total Replacement Therapy demonstration farm, Alan Law’s Milk Urea Nitrogen reading has fallen from an average of 26 MUN two seasons ago to an average of 19.8 MUN last season, an average reduction of 24 per cent. It is tracking at another 10 per cent less for this season, at around 16-18 MUN,

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Advantages of summer clover That permanent grazed pasture plants require a steady supply of nitrogen for optimum performance is not in question.

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Nitrogen is usually supplied in one of two ways, either in the form of urea, or from the atmosphere fixed by bacteria on the roots of clovers, lucerne, and other legumes.

Without an ongoing supply of nitrogen low fertility grasses steadily encroach and eventually dominate.

Annual production declines to 8 tonne DM/ha or less and farming becomes uneconomic.

At least in the short-term raising more money against increasing land values can no longer be relied on. Already banks are starting to play hard ball and when interest rates increase the ability to borrow more will just get tougher.

During the last 40 years annual pasture production has declined from a top of 18,000kg/ha to around 14,000kg with the gap, in many cases, filled with low cost palm kernel extract.

The fundamental issue of declining pasture yield requires addressing for both individual farmers and the wider community. Higher incomes are required and the only viable way of achieving that is to grow more pasture at the same or lower cost.

A 30 per cent increase in annual production is achievable for most within a three-year period and increasing numbers of farmers are finding that it’s easier than they first thought.

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Clover has a number of advantages over other grasses during the main growing season.

In our view, clover will replace urea as the primary provider of nitrogen for pasture plants; particularly as environmental regulations steadily tighten.

Because clovers fix nitrogen in response to declining plant available levels, supply and demand is balanced and the amount lost to groundwater is significantly reduced.

Clovers in pastures come into their own as soil temperatures reach 20 degrees Celsius, often early in November, and given regular rainfall or irrigation provide a mat of highly nutritious feed during summer and early autumn.

Clover has a number of advantages over grasses during the main growing season. It’s higher in calcium than grasses and therefore the preferred feed for lactating and fast growing animals.

It’s also more readily digested and therefore animals are able to eat more, grow faster and produce more milk than is possible on a grass or multi species dominated pasture.

Lamb growth is unsurpassed on clover dominant pastures and earlier lambs nearly always receive a premium.

To promote clover, it is necessary to lift plant available soil calcium levels to above those required for grasses.

Experience over many years shows a soil pH of 6.2-6.3 works best.

Interestingly, it’s also the pH at which earthworms and other beneficial soil dwellers operate efficiently.

Meat tenderness is correlated to its pH, which in turn is dependent on the pH of the feed being consumed and the soil that it is growing on.

No downside

There is no downside to clover dominant pastures during summer. A dense mat helps protect the soil surface from moisture loss and minimises weed growth.

Any unwanted plants are readily consumed by stock as they devour long strong stemmed clover with thumb nail sized leaves or larger.

Clover seed may be added to spring or autumn fertiliser to ensure the latest and greatest, however we’re yet to find a situation where clover hasn’t come to the fore when conditions and management have been favourable.

The key to vigorous clover during summer is not applying nitrogen from September onwards. Applied nitrogen encourages the growth of more upright species that then limit the amount of sun-light, moisture, and available nutrient.

Functional Fertiliser products, along with the knowledge and experience of their people are ideally placed to provide the resources necessary to ensure clover growth during summer is maximised. For more information, call Peter on 0800 843 809.

DAIRY

Page 29

DairyNZ voices its policy priorities DairyNZ has released10 policy priorities for the 2020 election – now on October 17 – and its ‘The View from the Cow Shed’ report, giving policymakers insight from the farm, says DairyNZ chief executive Dr Tim Mackle.

“This election we wanted to give voice to dairy farmers’ concerns and priorities to help politicians better understand the issues impacting on farmers. So, we surveyed our dairy farmers,” says Tim. “Our dairy farmers are world-leaders in the production of sustainable, emission efficient and nutritious dairy, but we still have a significant farmer confidence and wellbeing issue in this country that pre-dates Covid-19.”

The View from the Cow Shed survey shows key trends include challenges with mental health, technology and government regulation. “It was really encouraging to see 94 per cent of farmers reported they were proud to be working in the dairy industry at the moment,” says Tim. “But...62 per cent of farmers said they or someone on their farm had experienced mental health issues in the last year with an uncertain regulatory framework identified as one of the main contributing causes...[And] 50 per cent of farmers said they don’t have access to broadband internet they need and 52 per cent don’t have adequate mobile reception on-farm.”

Tim says when asked about their community’s outlook during the next three years, 64 per cent of farmers expect things to decline.

Tim says the farmer survey has informed DairyNZ’s policy priorities for the next government,.

DairyNZ’s policy priorities:

1. Invest in R&D for our primary sector to unlock more value and volume.

2. Set a clear strategy for science funding that is appropriately resourced to support farmers to reduce their environmental footprint while increasing profit.

3. Work with the sector to meet workforce needs through training and recruitment of Kiwis, as well as skilled migrant workers.

4. Invest in rural broadband and improved mobile coverage to better connect our rural communities with New Zealand and the world.

5. Develop a national water storage strategy and invest in water storage to increase water supply in times of drought, enable land-use flexibility and unlock economic potential.

6. Develop and enforce a world-leading biosecurity system that is properly resourced, learns from our M. bovis experience and ensures everyone plays their part.

7. Reform the Resource Management Act to reduce compliance costs for farmers, increase efficiency and drive better environmental outcomes.

8. Partner with farmers and support them to play their part to meet new environmental standards.

9. Ensure targets for water quality improvements are fair and equitable, clear, scientifically robust and have pragmatic timeframes for implementation.

10. Review methane targets in the Zero Carbon Act to ensure they are firmly grounded in science and align our international and domestic targets by applying a split gas approach to our Paris commitment and carbon budgets.

See the full survey report at www.dairynz.co.nz

FERTILISER

Page 30

Comparing some phosphate blends For the last three years phosphate trials have been conducted by Bernard Lilburn owner of Mt. View Store, near Bulls. Products compared were Sechura RPR, (SR), with sulphur added; Superphosphate (SP); Dicalcic super (D); a Kiwi Fertiliser Blend (KFB); and Control (C).

The results in order were: Kiwi Fertiliser blend, Sechura RPR, Control, Dicalcic and last was Superphosphate. Using control as the benchmark, this resulted in kg/dm/ha; KFB = +9152, SR = +8817, C = 0, D = -1629 and SP = -3488. Each year

on average in kg/ha, Sechura RPR outproduced super by 4102 and Dicalcic by 2939. The Kiwi Fertiliser blend outperformed super by 4213, and Dicalcic by 3594. Kiwi Fertiliser also import and market Sechura RPR.

Stock health

We know from on-farm comparisons between Sechura and superphosphate that stock health is better when Sechura RPR is used and animal health costs are much reduced. An example with sheep is that only 25 per cent of hoggets needed dagging when run on land fertilised with Sechura RPR, while 75 per cent of hoggets needed dagging when superphosphate was used. This difference can be further widened by on-farm management practices. On properties using our soil fertility programme, animal drenches are not usual or regular and veterinary intervention is rare.

Diseases such as facial eczema are almost totally absent. I have used Sechura RPR when phosphate is required, which is not often, and I have not drenched my own stock for more than 20 years. They fatten up extremely well without any chemicals. My stock agent often comments: “the stock always weigh heavier than they look”.

Nurture microbiology

Acidic products, such as superphosphate, trend towards the anaerobic, (non-oxygen loving) disease-forming microorganism end of the spectrum. Alkaline products trend towards supporting the aerobic, (oxygen loving) non-disease forming, healthier side of the equation that needs to be encouraged to increase and nurture microbiology. It is always a mystery to me why phosphate rock is treated with sulphuric acid to become superphosphate which is applied to the land where the applied P is available for about six weeks, after which time it reverts to a more unavailable (almost locked up) form than it was before acid treatment. Bad habits are hard to break. I know of properties that have

not had phosphate applied for 15 years. They are not short of phosphate.

More recently there have been other phosphate trials carried out near Taumarunui for the 12 months ending July 20, 2020. These results show a similar pattern, albeit at a lower level. In order from best to least dry matter, the results were Sechura RPR with Sulphur 90, 9907kg; Superphosphate, 9884 kg; Replenish, 9744kg; Triple Plus, 9704kg; DCP18/S90, 9306; Triple Super/S90, 8879; Algerian RPR/S90, 8759; Granular Egyptian RPR/S90, 8233; Control 7365. I do question that when phosphate is being trialled, why doesn’t the control get sulphur as well? This is typical of many trials.

Oversights

These ‘oversights’ also happened with the so-called ‘national series’ where Superphosphate that contains sulphur, came out on top when compared with Sechura RPR featured above.

No sulphur was added to the Sechura RPR, which should have invalidated the entire six-year trial. The trials were not invalidated so superphosphate could ‘win’. The claim was that Sechura RPR had to be mixed with other P sources when it was not true.

Disclaimer – these are the opinions of Brett Petersen, of Kiwi Fertiliser. Any decisions made should not be based on this article alone and appropriate professional assistance should be sought. Freephone Kiwi Fertiliser on 0800 549 433.

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New cadmium guide An expansive guide to managing cadmium has recently been made available on the Fertiliser Association of New Zealand website, following an update of the Cadmium Management Strategy last year that focusses on education.

a concern. While this is managed by not selling offal from ruminant animals older than two years, ineffective cadmium management can lead to levels that exceed Food Standards Australia New Zealand regulations being found in younger stock.

The guide says soil testing for cadmium, pH, organic matter and Olsen P provide valuable information for monitoring and managing cadmium accumulation in plants.

Eight fact sheets, tailored to Other cadmium management farmers and growers, collate tips include not grazing seven years of research on pastures top-dressed with how to manage cadmium: a phosphorus fertiliser for naturally occurring heavy 21 days or until 25mm metal that builds up in of rain has fallen, and soil following long-term reducing the risk of phosphate fertiliser use. stock ingesting soil by “Cadmium avoiding over-grazing concentrations are still and feeding out relatively low in most on bare ground.

New Zealand soils, and “The CMG well below levels that encourages farmers affect human health or and growers to the environment,” says use this practical Cadmium Management information to help make Group chair Dr Gerald Rys. decisions about cadmium “However, it’s recognised management on their that soil cadmium needs to be property.

It is a useful resource managed now and into the future for their farm management toolkit,” to ensure that our food remains safe says Gerald. and sustainable.

Keeping cadmium levels low “We urge farmers and growers “The updated strategy provides is the goal of new Cadmium to include soil cadmium tests an agreed ongoing approach Management Group resources. as part of their routine nutrient to managing cadmium in NZ management programme, and to agricultural soils. It also provides a basis for work closely with their fertiliser representatives and government agencies, regional councils, and the crop advisers to determine the best approach.” farming and fertiliser sectors to work together.”

To access the new cadmium management resources, The fact sheet for livestock farmers was created in visit: www.fertiliser.org.nz/Site/news/articles/ collaboration with DairyNZ, Beef + Lamb NZ, the managing-cadmium-in-new-zealand-fact-sheets Ministry for Primary Industries and FANZ. MacKenzie Dyer It highlights a build-up of cadmium in offal as

Page 31

Freshwater funding rounds to open Iwi, local government, community groups, landowners and nongovernment organisations are being invited to apply for the next round of The Freshwater Improvement Fund, which aims to support management of New Zealand’s lakes, rivers, streams, groundwater and wetlands.

The Ministry for the Environment has announced the next application rounds for funding are September 7-21, which will prioritise investment-ready projects; then January 27-February 10, 2021, to allow applicants more time to spend developing their proposals.

The funding is part of the $1.3 billion Jobs for Nature environmental funding programme, which is intended to run for four years and is part of the Covid-19 recovery package.

Funding is for projects such as reduction of sediment eroding from the land; wetland construction and restoration; stream reinstatements; estuary protection and restoration; and restoration of fish passage.

To find out more information on how to apply, see: https://www.mfe. govt.nz/more/funding/freshwaterimprovement-fund

a Req uest le ! p m a s f re e

Page 32

Warning for orchard staff Bay of Plenty avocado and kiwifruit orchardists are being urged to ‘look up’ before they pick fruit, prune, build artificial shelterbelts or raise canopies, because power lines can kill.

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Electricity lines company Powerco has launched a new safety initiative highlighting the ‘4-metre danger zone’ safety message for people working in orchards with power lines overhead.

Powerco general manager health and safety Julie McAvoy says her company wants orchard workers to stay safe.

“When working and using equipment in and around orchards, please look up before you work and stay at least 4 metres away from power lines.”

And she reminds eh industry that this ‘safe distance’ extends to 8.5m if building shelterbelts or raising canopies.

Part of the pushing the message will be a safety message played over the airwaves in the Bay of Plenty, and an animated video on Powerco’s Facebook page.

Julie says horticultural workers have some of the highest rates of injury and death from power lines. “This is because orchards often have overhead power lines near or running through them, so there’s significant risk of workers or equipment accidentally touching the lines.

“You don’t even need to touch a line to be in danger – electricity can jump the

gap through the air to your equipment and to you. Every line must be treated as live – always!” says Julie.

Rules to keep safe

She says following the rules below can ensure everyone working in the orchard goes home safely.

• Always keep at least 4 metres away from overhead power lines.

• Do not touch or work on any tree or vine that is touching or near power lines.

• Look up and know where power lines are before raising platforms of hydraladas, cherry pickers, elevating work platforms or dump truck beds, and chose a route where power lines are high enough to give a least 4m clearance.

• Lower lifting equipment before moving near lines.

• Do not use wires to train vines along the same path as overhead power lines. A broken wire flicking upwards can come into contact with nearby lines with potential fatal results.

The ‘look up’ message also applies when building structures in the orchard, such as artificial shelterbelts or raising canopies

– when you must be at least 8.5 metres clear of electrical equipment.

By law, orchardists and builders must follow these regulations that govern safety when building near overhead power lines. For more information about keeping safe in the orchard, visit: powerco.co.nz/ safety/safety-in-orchards/

Covid-19 signals to us not to let life slip by Remember when you were three and you wanted to be a farmer? Now you are five and off to school, telling everybody that you want to stay home and help dad on the farm.

You are now eight and have got your first calf at calf club and clean up the dairy section on the day.

You are now 10 and your parents are splitting up and your head is smashed in little pieces on the ground.

It is the worst thing that’s ever happened to you; except now you are 15 and you can see it was the best thing.

You are now 16 and making plans to be a farmer but resisting studying hard at school. You are 17 and have fallen in love; then you’re 18, leaving school and your first love, and it hurts.

You are now 20, working crazy hours on a dairy farm. You’ve been playing a lot of rugby and at 21 you’ve fallen madly in love and want to marry.

Now you are 23 and you’re 10 feet tall and starting to tell the boss what to do.

You borrow to buy cows and leave a farm and you have a kid on the way because you’re now 25.

You are 35, have paid the herd off and

Dad helps you to buy your first farm.

You’re 45 already and a recession has bitten you and you learn fast how to manage your cash better.

You hit 50 and wonder how everybody else is sane because you’re having a mid-life crisis – you think you’re going crazy but you manage to hang onto everything with the skin of your teeth.

Now you are 60 and on the Drainage Board and not as fit as you were; then you’re 64 and wondering what happened?

Now you are 65 and sitting up in the Heart Unit having a stent installed and you realise you’re not immortal.

Read this column in full at: https://www. coastandcountrynews.co.nz These are the opinions of Don Fraser of Fraser Farm Finance. Any decisions made should not be based on this article alone and appropriate professional assistance should be sought. Don Fraser is principal of Fraser Farm Finance and a consultant to the farming industry consultant.

Contact him on 021 777 675.

FERTILISER

Talking regenerative agriculture Regenerative agriculture is being touted by organisations such as Greenpeace as the future of farming because conventional farming – it claims – is unsustainable and environmentally damaging, and the Government is looking at funding research examining regenerative agricultural techniques.

Last month Peter Barrett, owner of Linnburn Station in the dry Maniapoto region of Otago where typically only 400mm of rain falls each year, and Jono Frew, an ex-agricultural spray contractor from Otago, conducted a series of meetings throughout the country.

I attended one of these meetings, where they promoted their version of regenerative agriculture. Their system is based on a wide plethora of plant species – 16 or more – and lax grazing techniques to help build root biomass and leaving plenty of plant residual above ground to photosynthesise. These plant residuals are then treaded into the soil by grazing livestock to create a thatch layer, which soil micro-organisms break down and turn into humus. All of this happens without the use of chemicals and synthetic fertilisers.

Red flags

Soil scientists Doug Edmeades and Jacqueline Rowarth have argued that NZ farmers have been doing regenerative agriculture for many decades. And if we consider what Zimbabwean ecologist Alan Savoury calls ‘regenerative agriculture’, as a means to stop desertification in Africa, they are probably right. Savoury advocates rotational grazing of areas by livestock where animals are moved on before overgrazing, and where dung and urine are returned to the soil and uneaten stem material and seedheads are treaded into the soil.

For me there were some red flags with the Barrett/Frew roadshow as what may work in the dry Maniatoto will not necessarily work in other parts of the country. For a start, a lot of the

South Island has quite good natural fertility – a fact I learned back in 1996 at the NZ Grasslands Association Conference in Nelson, where we visited a drystock farm that had Olsen P figures in the 50s, yet hadn’t applied any phosphatic fertilisers.

Also at Clarendon in South Otago there is a disused phosphate mine as it is an extension of the Chatham Rise. In the Maniatoto the soils lack organic matter, not phosphate, so any practice that builds carbon in the soil is going to be good, as soil organic matter will increase water holding capacity as well as more biological life.

BOP/Waikato soils In the BOP/Waikato region most of our soils have good organic matter levels, but are naturally lacking phosphate. At Ballantrae Research Station in the Manawatu a long-term phosphate trial showed much more humus and soil life was prevalent at high rates of fertiliser compared to where none had been applied; and, after 35 years treatment, pasture productivity was 250 per cent higher than the unfertilised area. A phosphate trial I’ve been running for the last 12 months at Taumarunui has shown a 25 per cent increase in pasture productivity to just 45kg of P/ha in a single year. So it is not a ‘one size fits all’, and when I heard that our soils had enough phosphate to last 200 years, I thought these guys don’t know what they are talking about.

Pumice soils are essentially glass (silicon dioxide) and need almost everything, and raw peat soils leak phosphate like a sieve and it doesn’t hang around unless you use insoluble sources like RPR. Potassium, sulphur, boron and nitrogen too don’t hang around and need to be regularly replaced.

Economics

When asked about the economics from their regenerative agricultural system, they could not give any figures on increased profitability. But I have no doubt there is some merit in planting multiple species and lax grazing in such a dry environment. But for places where there is regular rainfall or irrigation, and where soils are naturally infertile like most of the North Island, to tell people they don’t need fertiliser is not helpful.

If you just have biology but no chemistry, plants will not grow. Whereas if you just have chemistry and no biology, they will grow as we see in hydroponic systems.

Soil scientist Dr William Albrecht, a man whose approach to soils I try and follow, observed that: “Food is fabricated soil fertility”.

The opposite of ‘regenerative’ is ‘degenerative’. If you do not maintain fertility, you will have degenerative agriculture. But changing grazing management practices and introducing other plant species for drought challenged years is certainly worth considering.

Disclaimer – these are the opinions of independent agronomy and soil fertility consultant Robin Boom, of Agronomic Advisory Services. Any decisions made should not be based on this article alone and appropriate professional assistance should be sought. Robin Boom, CPAg, is a member of the Institute of Professional Soil Scientists. Ph: 027 444 8764.

Email: agronomics@xtra.co.nz

Page 33

Robin Boom

CPAg MBSPC

Independent Agronomy & Soil Fertility Consultant

Page 34

MAIZE, CROPPING & SPRING PLANTING

Mild weather and preparing for maize Lately, the weather has been a mixed bag. A about plants sprouting and buds shooting on vines early. And while it may be tempting to bit cold, fine, wet and dry.

We’re still behind in rainfall; so far we’ve only seen two-thirds of our usual rainfall for the year. I drove around some swamp paddocks recently and didn’t need to use 4WD, which is unusual for this time of year. For August water tables are low and some drains don’t have any water in them. That’s unusual too.

Weather forecasters talk of a possible change to a La Nina pattern then back to neutral; that would bring a wet spring-early summer then would turn dry again.

If we don’t get a La Nina, we’re in for another dry summer.

It’s certainly drier out there than normal for this time of year and it’s milder too. People are talking

HELIWORX WAIKATO LTD

plant maize early you always have the risk of a late frost. That would knock tops of the maize; it could still possibly grow through it, but the plant wouldn’t yield as well.

We’ll monitor to see if we plant maize early but we’ve still got to get grass off paddocks yet.

While August has been a good month, sometimes September can have a sting in its tail.

In saying that I went through Thames/Hauraki Plains early-August and saw silage stacks being made, which is very unseasonal. So the mild winter has not done much pasture damage and regrowth looks good. Being dry, farmers have also enjoyed a dry calving, which makes a huge difference to animal welfare and staff as well.

There’s still enquiries for feed, and a small shortage of grass around in some areas. We’ll gear up to plant maize by spraying out earlySeptember. It comes around quick, so everyone needs to select paddocks for on-farm maize and crops if they haven’t already. In autumn they should have sprayed them out and put in annuals. If not, they need to prepare now. Paddocks that haven’t done well in winter or sacrifice paddocks should be targeted as maize is good at soaking up nitrogen, utilising the nutrients; it does good on effluent paddocks too. Get chicory or turnips in early so they can establish before it could turn dry.

Contractor staff shortage

OWNER | CHIEF PILOT

I’ve had a few calls about pukekos picking holes in silage stack covers, causing damage and wastage. You can put shade cloth over tyres to stop them. I suggest doing this before wastage occurs.

There’s talk about many contractors relying on overseas staff for the cropping season, which they currently cannot get into NZ. We’ve got in overseas staff for contracting before but no longer do so.

I know of many who do rely on these staff for cropping, which begins September, and I imagine they’ll be struggling to find experienced and qualified staff. Hopefully people returning to NZ will take up the vacancies; or those who’ve lost jobs through Covid. Maybe some have grown up on a farm or have rural experience – but you still need appropriate vehicle licences and training to drive this machinery.

We used to start newcomers on smaller gear like mowers, rakes, to see how they went as operators, and gave them training. Then they’d have to be signed off on health and safety requirements; you can’t just put people on machines and say: ‘Seeya later’.

Drivers have to be capable and used to operating the equipment, which is high technology and worth a lot of money. Classroom training is good, but out in the field is where you gain experience, which comes with time. I think BOP will be okay for contracting staff because people like to live here; marginal areas might struggle to attract people.

Covid-19

As for getting crops in – it may not happen as fast as before. So booking in and ordering early is crucial so contractors can plan workloads better. I contracted staff from another company to get through my pressure point – they weren’t busy so it worked for all concerned. Maybe we could farm staff out to the south if we start cropping earlier and get our workload done first? With Covid-19 community transmission, everyone needs to practise social distancing and track movements. Get visitors to fill out visitor books or have the QR code to scan.

Lastly, an environmental court case fined a Winton farming company and its manager more than $80,000 collectively for an effluent spill. The Judge said there was pressure on the farm’s effluent storage and the offending was unintentional but careless in a number of ways. However, if you intentionally break out of a Covid-19 quarantine facility in NZ, you get fined $4000 – despite the fact you could cost NZ billions in containing an outbreak and businesses and the economy losing revenue due to lockdown restrictions and people staying home and spending less. You wonder where this balances out?

As always, we’re here to help with supplementary feed requirements – give us a call and remember: proper planning prevents pitiful performance!

MAIZE, CROPPING & SPRING PLANTING

Page 35

Lessons from last summer’s dry The summer of 2020 dished up an extended dry that had dairy farmers across the regions pressured into how to best manage feed shortages and at the same time squeeze out a little extra production without jeopardising cow condition.

Getting the right combination of planting date and hybrid maturity will help ensure you get the most from your maize crop.

Tirau farmer Kevin Taylor summed the season up by acknowledging the fact that maize was simply his saviour. Kevin has grown VP577 for four consecutive years. Timely planting, along with a crop yield of around 24 tonne DM per hectare, Kevin says ensured

he could milk longer and maintain cow condition in one of the more extended dry periods that he can remember.

VP Maxx account manager Barry Smallridge says lessons learned from last summer need to be a friendly reminder as part of planning for best results this season.

“The importance of selecting the right maize hybrid maturity option and planting time to maximise the opportunity of the crop to pollinate under an ideal environment – prior to the hot dry summer conditions – cannot be overstated.

Barry says the period two weeks before silking through to two weeks after pollination is the most critical in terms of impact of drought on maize crop yield. “During this period, the number of kernels per cob – which is the key determinant of grain yield – is being determined.

“Maize plant water demand is highest during pollination. Insufficient moisture and/or high temperatures during pollination can result in incomplete pollination or abortion of existing kernels which results in less kernels, and consequently lower yields.” Barry says drought and high temperatures will either dry the silks, causing poor pollen germination and pollen tube growth or cause the kernels to compete for limited resources, resulting in abortion of tip kernels. Depending on the severity of the drought or moisture stress, yield losses as high as five per cent a

Agrichemicals supplies healthy amid Covid-19 woes Farmers and growers can rest assured that agrichemicals are in strong supply for the 2020-2021 season – even as we move between Covid-19 alert levels – according to industry association Agcarm.

Agcarm chief executive Mark Ross says the need for animal medicines and pesticides to keep animals and plants healthy is more important

than ever to ensure an abundant, healthy food supply.

And he insists that stocks will not run out. “We’re not going to run out of pesticides or animal medicines. The manufacturers of these products are well prepared, sourcing materials months in advance. Availability of products to meet grower and farmer demand

for this season is very strong, so please don’t panic buy,” says Ross.

“At worst, your favourite brand may not be available for a while – but the active ingredient will be.

And, Ross says animal health and crop protection manufacturers are relying on shipping to transport goods to prevent price hikes for the end consumer.

day can occur if stress occurs during pollination. “So, in summary, getting the right combination of planting date

and hybrid maturity will help ensure you get the most from your maize crop this season.”

Page 36

MAIZE, CROPPING & SPRING PLANTING

Roustabout 840 your safened solution ®

Step 2. Pre-emergence control Waiting a few weeks to control weeds after emergence can reduce maize yields by up to 20%. Apply Roustabout ® 840 soon after planting.

• Up to 10 weeks pre-emergence weed control • Controls a wide spectrum of annual grasses and broadleaf weeds • Contains a safener to protect your crop when conditions are less than ideal • Tank-mix with Nu-Trazine™ 900DF or Flowable Atrazine 500 to enhance control

ONF204542NF

For more information talk to your Nufarm Territory Manager or visit us at nufarm.co.nz

®

Roustabout is a registered trademark of Nufarm Limited. ™ Nu-Trazine is a trademark of Nufarm Limited.

Always consult the product label before use.

MAIZE, CROPPING & SPRING PLANTING

Do it right, spray it once!

Farmers preparing paddocks for spring sowing have a new choice of high performance herbicides this season, and it’s been developed specifically for New Zealand conditions.

That’s great news for anyone who has ever struggled to find the right time to spray during a busy time of year, when the weather is often unpredictable, says Nufarm territory manager Richard Bell.

When applied as recommended with Pulse® Penetrant, CRUCIAL®, from Nufarm, carries a commercial performance guarantee of 15 minutes rainfastness.

“This sets a new standard in terms of flexibility and knowing the job is done properly – even when conditions are on the edge and challenging.”

Richard says those who’ve tried the new formulation in autumn have already welcomed its reliability and performance.

“The peace of mind I get from having full confidence in spraying CRUCIAL, knowing that it will do the job, means everything to me. No one has time to be going back and spraying twice,” says one user from Taranaki.

The new herbicide is the only formulation in the world that combines three glyphosate salts – potassium, monomethylamine and ammonium, says Richard.

“It has a high load of active ingredient (600 g/litre), meaning more weed killing power per litre, using less product per ha, and the on-board triple surfactant 26.5 x 18cm mix ensures glyphosate molecules

penetrate and spread through the plant quickly. “The result is fast uptake of the product and excellent efficacy against target weeds.”

CRUCIAL’s rapid kill has impressed in the Waikato, where another user says it means he can get back into paddocks sooner.

“We’ve also noticed, at around a week after spraying, we can cultivate paddocks more easily and this allows us to cultivate more area in a day when compared to other glyphosates. The roots seem to be dead and break up more easily.”

Chris says the new herbicide pours easily, won’t foam and tank mixes very well with other products. It comes in a range of pack sizes, from the all-new OHS 15 litre pack, all the way up to the larger 640L and 1000L pod options.

“The importance of a good pre-plant spray programme can’t be overlooked when it comes to getting the very best out of your investment in fertiliser, seed and paddock preparation ahead of spring sowing,” says Chris.

A thorough kill of existing grass and grass weeds is a vital step in successful spring pasture renewal, especially where

low-value grass species such as browntop or twitch have contributed to the paddock in question being selected for renewal in the first place.

“By then it’s too late to remedy the problem, and instead of productive, profitable new pasture farmers can find themselves facing the loss of quality and persistence faster than expected.”

The same applies when the paddock is being prepared for crop. Grass and other poorly controlled weeds can become re-established and will quickly compete with the newly sown crop.

To find out more about CRUCIAL, contact your local Nufarm territory manager today or visit: Nufarm.co.nz/ discovercrucial ®CRUCIAL is a registered trademark of Nufarm Australia Ltd. ®Pulse is a registered trademark of Nufarm Technologies USA Pty Ltd.

FAR maize research to change The newly-published 2019/2020 Maize Hybrid Evaluation booklet marks the end of the six-year project, with the Foundation for Arable Research now aiming to allocate resources to other activities with a maize focus.

CEO Alison Stewart says FAR’s move away from the project is linked to grower and industry feedback, which suggested other areas of maize research could gain greater returns on levy investment. “We did not take this decision lightly and genuinely believe FAR can provide greater benefit to maize growers by allocating our resources to other activities such as environmental and farm systems research.” FAR will now appoint a Waikatobased senior maize researcher “who will lead and further develop FAR’s maize research portfolio”.

Maize Hybrid Performance Trials groups are now deciding the future role and format of the MPT programme, and how they engage in the broader FAR maize research programme.

INTRODUCING ORION’S MAIZE CHEMICAL RANGE

RELIABLE, AFFORDABLE AND AVAILABLE www.orionagriscience.co.nz For more information contact Orion Agriscience Ltd. Freephone: 0800 674 6627 or contact your Local Territory Manager: Northland, Auckland Waikato, B.O.P, King Country Gisborne, Marlborough, Nelson Southern North Island

Greg Chalmers Graeme Robb Bruce Gemmell Tony Polkinghorne

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Mid/Northern Canterbury & West Coast Southern South Island

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Page 37

Page 38

MAIZE, CROPPING & SPRING PLANTING

Biological farming methods in practice Takapoto Estate’s farming manager Sam Le Cren was delighted to accept a position that aligned with his views on biological farming.

Since 2017 he’s been farming to those values, and running the Angus stud that benefits from them.

The Takapoto home farm is around 130 hectares of ash over clay soils, which change to pumice and sand where the estate borders Lake Karapiro. A further 280ha of neighbouring land is also leased, wintering 6200 stock units in total. The home farm had been converted from dairy to drystock in 2012.

“We run around 60 commercial Angus cows, 230 rising one and 650 rising two dairy grazers on the lease block,” says Sam. “The pedigree Angus are on the home farm, with approximately 100 registered and 20 commercial cows, 86 rising two heifers with 50 in-calf, 40 rising two finishing steers, 40 beef grazers, and six sire bulls. Plus, 50 yearling bulls are sold at the end of September in an on-farm auction.

“We have stringent biosecurity measures on the farm to keep dairy and Angus cattle separate, and are confident about the source of our dairy grazers.”

Sam uses 150 Coopworth cross sheep to “graze the areas that the cattle can’t go”.

With 12ha of deer-fenced paddocks, the farm runs around 60 European Red Deer, which is quite heavy stocking, but Sam hopes to expand the deer-fenced area in the future.

Where it all starts

“Biological farming is all about the soil, that’s where it all starts and that drives production,” says Sam. “Good soil health promotes healthy pastures, which in turn gives healthy well-nourished animals.”

Sam uses a diverse pasture mix of around seven different species; a complimentary mix of herbs, grasses and legumes.

“Each species draws different nutrients from the soil; and when offered variety an animal will pick and choose, instinctively knowing what their body needs.”

Coopworth cross sheep grazing a paddock of drought-resistant chicory, with further paddocks still available in the background. Photos: Catherine Fry.

...continued

MAIZE, CROPPING & SPRING PLANTING

Page 39

Farming manager at Takapoto Angus, Sam Le Cren, with some of the herd in a chicory paddock.

continued...

Current pasture mixes include red, white and annual clovers; chicory and plantain; fescue, rye, brome and cocksfoot. The chicory, plantain, cocksfoot and brome perform better under drought conditions.

Cows and sheep will happily eat dock at times when they feel they need it.

Sam doesn’t broadacre spray routinely, preferring to pull out or spot spray whenever possible. After the cows have been through a paddock, if the thistles and dock are particularly bad they are treated with a weedwiper towed at thistle height.

Issues with stinking mayweed persisting in some paddocks have required boom spraying.

“We can’t compromise the whole farm and the good work we have put in with the soils.”

Soil testing and fertilisers

Sam works closely with Russell Snodgrass from the fertiliser company Abron, digging holes to look at the soil profile, root mass and health, soil porosity, and worm population. Yearly soil testing is carried out, coupled with herbage testing of the legumes and grasses.

“The herbage testing provides a useful analysis of what is actually being accessed from the soil, compared to what is in the soil.”

An appropriate fertiliser blend is made up each year.

It normally contains Calci life (composted humic

acid and biological stimulants), lime, magnesium, potassium, selenium, cobalt and ag salt. The latter four are general deficiencies in New Zealand soils.

“I also provide salt licks for the animals,” says Sam. The farm produces 1200 large rounds of baleage and 200 large rounds of hay. “The baleage is lower in protein than most and digests slower, keeping the animal fuller longer.

“The hay is digested even slower and is used for calving cows, as it’s warm and dry when eaten.”

Summer crops include 20ha of chicory, and next year Sam is planning a diverse mixed species crop. In winter 10ha of a mixed species is grown.

The Angus herd is healthy, well-conditioned, and content. “If the feed is good, and the animal is healthy and content, you don’t get any major health issues.”

Sam drenches when needed up to one-year-old, and no adult animals are drenched.

“Going forward I’m looking to breed Angus cattle that are above breed average in all traits, and structurally sound.”

The long term goal for the Angus herd is to have 200 registered cows. As the herd builds, some of the dairy grazers will be phased out.

Sam plans to extend the biological farming methods to the lease block, and is looking forward to seeing the results.

Catherine Fry

European red deer at Takapoto Estate.

a iN &

SEED DrESSi

ID G E CRSEEDS

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qua lity paSturE SEED

CARTAGE & EARTHWORKS

Page 40

Farming and mining in harmony

OceanaGold’s Cassie Craig checking water levels as part of the health, safety and environment team.

Mining and farming don’t seem like a likely pair – one relies on what’s on the land, and the other extracts from beneath it.

But OceanaGold Waihi is proving the two can work in harmony. The company own three blocks of farmland around their Waihi processing plant totalling 220ha, which is leased to and managed by three neighbouring farmers.

“We’re proud of the way we’ve managed to make the mine, farms and storage ponds function together, which we’ve been doing, and improving, since going underground in 2004,” says OceanaGold site project manager Kevin Storer. “With the help of our neighbouring farmers, we have beautiful land surrounding us.”

Cows and explosions

okay but farming isn’t our profession, so we’re really happy with the decision.”

In total, the three farms graze 830 cows on OceanaGold’s blocks – mostly dairy, with 60 drystock.

About 48ha of OceanaGold’s south block is constructed from extracted rock from their open pit operation. The mounds are called Tailings Storage Facilities, or TSFs. “The mine construction material isn’t harmful in any way, it’s just normal rock out of the ground. You can’t tell the difference between the land on south block and the adjoining farmland,” says Kevin.

Both TSF mounds have been rehabilitated with topsoil, sown with grass seed and converted into

The farms’ daily operations are unaffected by what happens below, says Kevin. Being beneath a town of 4527 people, OceanaGold Waihi is used to mining in a way that creates minimal effects above ground.

This is achieved by carefully calculated placement of explosive charges, which detonate a microsecond apart and break the Cows grazing in the South Block, constructed from extracted rock. rock with minimal vibration on the surface. farmland, with a significant area dedicated to riparian Usually, the most impact felt above ground can be planting. “Within three months of sowing everything’s compared to a truck passing a house, so farming can green, and by the next season it’s being farmed. continue as normal.

“The South block is quite steep, so the farmer At the end of the 2017 season, OceanaGold signed running it tends to only graze young heifers up there.” an agreement with three neighbouring farmers, making them the managers of one OceanaGold Clean water block each – an extension to their own farms.

The mine has one operational TSF pond that stores Prior to this, OceanaGold leased the land, and was tailings and excess water from the mining process, responsible for the maintenance. “Our neighbours and rainfall. Water is sent from the pond to an onsite treatment plant, before being discharged into the are great farmers. The land is always incredibly well ...continued Ohinemuri River. kept,” says Kevin. “Maintaining it ourselves worked

ADDLINE TRANSPORT LTD

CARTAGE & EARTHWORKS

A cow grazing with the processing plant just over the hill.

continued...

The mine’s second TSF, named TSF2, was decommissioned in 2006. “The water in TSF2 is high enough quality to run directly into the waterways with no processing required.”

The active tailings pond is regularly tested.

“Anomalies rarely happen, and if they do it’s usually just a matter of adjusting the PH levels – no different to what you’d do on a normal farm.

“People’s perception is that the pond is full of toxic material. There are trace elements of different minerals in there, but these are removed at the treatment plant.”

The water treatment plant’s polishing pond – the final stage before the water is discharged into the river – is clean enough to swim in. And people do.

OceanaGold host a winter swimming event, called the Walrus Swim, every year. Fittingly, the winners receive a Walrus trophy. “It’s not just clean water for a mine – it’s considered clean by national standards,” says Kevin.

Bringing in the birds

The area around the two TSFs has attracted breeding pairs of endangered New Zealand Dotterels. It’s believed to be the only inland Dotterel breeding site in the North Island.

“There are plenty of ducks and swans too, even on the active tailings pond. If you go there during duck season, it’s covered in them.”

As well as water testing, OceanaGold’s health, safety

OceanaGold site project manager Kevin Storer. and environment team do regular sampling on all sites, and independent tests are carried out. All data is reported to Waikato Regional Council.

“We get annual soil test reports from the farmers and run our own extensive sample and testing regime,” says Kevin. “We manage trends through our database to ensure we’re not negatively affecting our surrounding environment.”

In the early days, OceanaGold worked with Massey University to complete yearly soil testing. “The university helped ensure the converted farmland was to standard, which created an opportunity for students to engage in the process.”

If OceanaGold’s proposed Project Quattro is approved, constructing another TSF will be permitted. Once mined, OceanaGold will stick to the same process, using leftover rock to construct farmland. “Leaving behind usable land, when the mining is over, is part of our duty of care.”

MacKenzie Dyer

Page 41

COAST & COUNTRY NEWS

Page 42

classified listings curriculum vitae

CV’s THAT STAND OUT. A C.V. For You can provide you with a personal and professional touch. Check out samples on www.facebook.com/acvforyou or Ph/text on 021 27 27 912.

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wanted

LIST YOUR COMMUNITY EVENT HERE!

email your listing to: merle@sunmedia.co.nz with ‘Rural Event’ in the subject line.

Sept 4 Morrinsville Daffodil Show, 11.30am-3.30pm, Presbyterian Church Hall, Canada St. Gold coin. Ph Margaret 027 788 6149.

Sept 5 Crop Swap, 10am-11am, 14 Jocelyn St, Katikati.

Veges, fruit, seeds, baking, books, eggs, etc all welcome. Ph 07 549 4522.

Sept 5-6 Plant Sales, 10am-3pm, Hamilton Gardens.

professional services

Sept 6

Sept 13

Tauranga Camellia Show, Bob Owens Retirement Village, Bethlehem, Tauranga.

Rotorua & Waikato Botanical Societies Field Trip, Dickeys Flat (near Waihi). Moderate grade.

Ph Graeme/Gael 07 570 3123.

Seabirds in NZ, talk by Sandy Bartle former curator of birds at Te Papa, 7pm, Pepper Tree Restaurant, Coromandel township, free.

Sept 12 Propagation of Spring Seeds, 9.30am-2.30pm, Whakamarama (near Tauranga). See: tinyurl. com/y6vm379z

Sept 12-13 National Daffodil Show, Hamilton Gardens, 1.304pm (Sat); 10am-3.30pm (Sun). Ph 021 760 545.

Sept 19 Cherry Blossom Festival, 10am-2pm, Greerton, Tauranga. See greertonvillage.org.nz

Illume Festival, Coromandel township, free family fun. See: illumefest.co.nz

Sept 20

Sept 26

Cambridge Community Gardens Open Day, 10am-4pm, includes workshops on worm farming, composting and no-dig gardening.

Register at: tinyurl.com/ y3arp465

Sept 24 Waikato Horticultural

Oct 4

Tree & Plant Sale, 8am-noon, Governor’s Green, Hamilton Gardens (Gate 2). Cash only.

Oct 3 Crop Swap, 10am-11am, 14 Jocelyn St, Katikati. Veges, fruit, seeds, baking, books, eggs, etc.

Ph 07 549 4522.

The organisation behind a cookbook created in the Waikato during Covid-19 lockdown to raise money to help put food on the table for the region’s most vulnerable is now receiving international praise.

Clivia Display, Te Puna Quarry Park (near Tauranga), free.

Ph 07 552 0661.

Rotorua Botanical Society Field Trip, Matawai Conservation Area (near Opotiki). Moderate grade. Ph Mike 07 315 7160.

keeping the welfare of our community at the heart of everything they do”.

More than 40 restaurants and cafes contributed recipes to the cookbook, and more than $10,000 has been raised towards Momentum Waikato and Wise Group’s community kitchen.

The large commercial kitchen set up at Claudelands Event Centre produced more than 457,514 individual meals during its 10 weeks of operation.

One-stop shop

‘The Mighty Waikato Cookbook’ can still be purchased for a donation and downloaded.

“It was definitely not an objective we set out to achieve when we embarked on this mission,” says Nicola.

“The cookbook came out of the Waikato region’s response to Covid19 as a way to celebrate some of our favourite food establishments while they were forced to close and raise money to help pay for meals and food parcels for those who needed help.

“It also provided a way for people to help in the response; one of the most frequently-asked questions through our social media channels.

Community-led

Phone 07 928 3042

Plant Sales, 10am-3pm, Hamilton Gardens.

Whangamata Fibre Frolic, 10am-3pm, Memorial Hall, Whangamata. See: tinyurl.com/y5c39kvw

Cookbook success is served international awards

professional services

or email sophie@sunmedia.co.nz

Oct 3-4

Sept 25-26

Waikato Civil Defence Emergency Management has won two awards in the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards for its ‘The Mighty Waikato Cookbook’.

The cookbook has won awards for Food Books Fighting Covid and Sustainable Books categories and will now compete for ‘Best in the World’ in those categories at a ceremony in 2021.

The Gourmand Awards have been compared to the ‘Oscars’ for film, with the likes of chefs Jamie Oliver, Paul Hollywood, Michael Roux and, Kiwis Josh Emett, Nadia Lim and Michael Van de Elzen past winners.

Waikato CDEM group public information manager Nicola Chrisp says the awards certainly came as a surprise to the team behind the book.

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“It was a fantastic community-led initiative – and I bet no one can say they’ve created an award-winning cookbook from scratch to design in two weeks flat.”

Nicola says at a time when the country is facing the possibility of a resurgence of Covid-19, this is a nice reminder “that many hands across many agencies have worked tirelessly

Momentum Waikato chief executive Kelvyn Eglinton says funders in the Waikato came together immediately to help provide a one-stop shop for the provision of food and winter essentials for vulnerable families and people.

“It was great seeing Waikato CDEM churn out that fundraising cookbook so quickly, and the many communities of the Waikato step up to play a role in providing a response or donating money or time. This generosity is a core value of the Waikato, and it’s been recognised in a fighting Covid category of a cookbook award. Who would have thought?”

Secret sauce

Wise Group operations manager Erana Severne agrees a collective effort was the ‘secret sauce’ in delivering a successful local response during lockdown. “Innovative projects, resources and tools were developed to benefit individuals, whanau and the community. As we now face a possible resurgence of Covid-19 this powerful collective approach will be key in our ongoing work to support local people.”

The Mighty Waikato Cookbook can still be bought for a donation and downloaded at: mightywaikatocookbook.co.nz. Donations are pay what you can, from as little as $5 to as much as you feel you can give.

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COAST & COUNTRY NEWS

Right: Aubrey feeding her calf ‘Black Eye’ a feijoa in Te Awamutu. He acts like he’s a dog and comes running when Aubrey calls him.

Rosie, aged 3, with her Aunty Julie’s horse ‘Oscar’ in Patumahoe.

Tommy, aged 18 months, checking out his Uncle and Aunt’s digger in Rotorua.

Kathryn, aged 12, chilling with ‘Bramble’ the pet Rusa deer in Reporoa.