agriculture today - december 2009 edition€¦ · 2 the land | thursday, december 3, 2009 superfine...

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ARE we warming and drying? A new long-term analysis ofconditions in south eastern Australia that affect soil moisture –the central driver of all agricultural productivity – says yes.

Available soil moisture under climate change will be significantlydrier than not only the long-term average since 1889, but alsoconsiderably drier than the driest 20-year period ever recorded since1889, says Yass superfine woolgrower, John Ive.

“It’s all about soil moisture – how much you have in the soil profileand how long it will last,” says Mr Ive, pictured sampling soil at“Talaheni” with his daughter, Carolynn.

His painstaking assessment underlinesthe potential for south eastern Australiato dry out.

■ Story p2-3

Wilting point

Photo: Ron Aggs

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2 THE LAND | Thursday, December 3, 2009● ● ● ●

SUPERFINE wool growerJohn Ive has developedover a decade a dailysoil water balance modelcalled Waterbank andcalibrated it toconditions on hisproperty, “Talaheni” nearYass.

With the samemeticulous commitmentto measurement thatdrove him to do dailysoil moisture tests forseveral years, and themotto “if you don’tmeasure it you can’tmanage it”, Mr Ive hasset Waterbank up to givea daily picture of soilmoisture and its lifeexpectancy if there is nofurther rain.

Waterbank partitionsdaily rain into runoff,evapo-transpiration,increase in soil storageand deep drainagesubject to prevailingconditions.

The weather inputs forWaterbank are dailyrainfall and evaporation.

“We measure rain onthe property and takeevaporation from theBureau of Meteorologywebsite in theknowledge that, in ourlandscape, dailyevaporation does notvary significantly overclose-by relatively similarareas,” said Mr Ive.

Waterbank has beenused on historical data

sets from 1889 to thepresent time which hasallowed a comparisonof previous droughts,periods of highrecharge and long-termtrends as examples(story p3).

He explains the keycomponents of themodel equivalent to dayto day monetary andfinancial terms that anyfarmer could relate to –just as an accountbalance equals incomeminus income tax,expenditure and wealthtax, then soil storageequals rainfall minusrunoff, evapo-transpiration and deepdrainage.

Decade of daily measurement

Manure, compost mix reduces nitrous oxide

AS WE learn more about soilfertility and the need fororganic matter, farmers are

increasingly applying animalmanures to supply nutrients andimprove soil health.

One readily available source isfeedlot manure – Australian feedlotsproduce more than 800,000 tonnesof the stuff every year.

It is a valuable resource,comprising 31 per cent carbon, and2.6pc nitrogen, but there is onedrawback.

Like all manures it emits thegreenhouse gas, nitrous oxide.

Queensland soil scientists havebeen looking at ways to reduce thenitrous oxide emissions from such avaluable soil amendment, and havefound that mixing the feedlotmanure with composted green wastehalves the emissions.

This could be a win-win forfarmers, feedlot operators and localgovernment councils which producemore than two millions tonnes ofgreen waste compost every year andare looking for outlets to take theproduct.

The Queensland work was done inthe laboratory using soil columns, soneeds to be further tested inpaddocks, but results to date arevery hopeful.

The researchers looked at theeffects of feed lot manure and green waste compost on black andgrey Vertosols, fertile clay soilswidely used for cropping in

northern NSW and Queensland.In the laboratory, these soils

emitted about 50 milligrams ofnitrous oxide per square metre over32 weeks, prior to any additions.

With the addition of green wastecompost, emissions were 50 to 100mg/sq m in that period, reflectingthe small amount of mineralnitrogen in the compost.

The compost can reduce nitrousoxide emissions because themicrobes in the soil are using all theavailable nitrogen to live on whilethey break down the carbon in thecompost.

With the addition of feedlotmanure, the soils emitted 270 to1260 mg/sq m, due to the high levelsof mineral nitrogen and microbialdecomposition of the manure.

The wide variation in emissions ispartly due to the soil type.

The grey Vertosol emitted much

more nitrous oxide than the blackVertosol.

When a mixture of manure andcompost was added to the soils,emissions were only 105 to 250mg/sq m, depending on the ratesof application and the soil type.

These are much lower levels thanmanure alone, and the researchersbelieve micro-organisms are usingthe nitrogen in the manure whilethey decompose the compost.

The laboratory findings are verypositive, but the researchersemphasise the need for fieldresearch.

The trials indicate that organicamendments with higher ligninconcentrations may further reduceemissions, but nitrous oxideemissions vary widely in the fielddepending on air temperature andmoisture, soil type and type oforganic residues.

The big differences in emissionsfrom the black and grey Vertosols in the laboratory show theimportance of site-specificapplication.

The paper, Nitrous oxide emissionsfrom feedlot manure and green wastecompost applied to Vertosols, byDalal, Gibson and Menzies, ispublished in the September 2009issue of Biology and Fertility of Soilsat www.springerlink.com/content/100400

Read this column online atwww.dpi.nsw.gov.au/aboutus/news/agriculture-today/december-2009/nitrous-oxide

New Minister’s first column: TonyKelly is the newly appointedMinister for Primary Industries. Healso hold the Lands portfolio. Hisfirst column in Agriculture Todayappears in this edition on p6.

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THE LAND | Thursday, December 3, 2009 3● ● ● ●

SCEPTIC? Believer? Here’s a long-term analysis by a meticulousfarmer of conditions in south

eastern Australia that affect availablesoil moisture – the single most impor-tant driver of agricultural productivi-ty.

Predictions of a global rise of twodegrees over time are nebulous,according to Conservation Agricul-ture and No-till Farming AssociationNSW Conservation Farmer of theYear, John Ive.

“That number barely illustrates theimplications of climate change forfarming – and would hardly cause you to roll up your sleeves,” Mr Ivesaid.

“However, the central factor affect-ing productivity is available soil mois-ture – how much you have in the soilprofile and how long it will last.”

Mr Ive believes available soil mois-ture is going to significantly decline inthe Yass district and probably southeastern Australia.

He has analysed records dating backmore than 100 years and projectionsto 2100.

“The effect on soil moisture underclimate change will be significantlydrier than not only the long termaverage since 1889, but also consider-ably drier than the driest 20 year peri-od ever recorded since 1889,” he said.

At “Talaheni”, where Mr Ive has

developed over the past decade a dailypicture of his property’s soil moisture,he expects it to fall considerably, witha significant increase in the amount oftime spent at or below permanentwilting point.

With a program he developed calledWaterbank, Mr Ive has conductedcomprehensive modelling, initiallyusing records for the 30 years he hasbeen at “Talaheni”, where averageyearly rainfall is 650 millimetres.

When Bernard Timbal of the Bureauof Meteorology made available datasets from ten international global cli-matic modelling agencies, includingCSIRO, with projections out to 2100,Mr Ive then analysed the implicationsfor “Talaheni”.

The agencies modelled future con-ventional variables like temperature,rainfall and evaporation under mean warming scenarios of 1.8degrees and 3.4 degrees for two 20year periods – 2046 to 2065 and 2081to 2100.

Mr Ive ran their data sets throughWaterbank, using his average upperlimit soil moisture holding capacity at“Talaheni” of 60 millimetres, creating7300 daily soil moisture values foreach agency’s data set for each 20 yearperiod.

For the period 2081 to 2100, he thendeduced an overall mean profile fromthe output of the ten models, all ofwhich showed a remarkably uniformand consistent trend, giving him considerable confidence in the analy-

sis. He is now doing the same for 2046to 2065.

To give real meaning to the impliedchanges, Mr Ive then primedWaterbank with historical dailyweather records from 1889 to thepresent.

“This suggested the climate changescenario will result in considerablylower average soil moisture,” he said.

For instance, taking seven millime-tres soil storage as permanent wiltingpoint (PWP) at “Talaheni”, the pro-portion of time conditions are at PWPor below will increase from the longterm average of 50 per cent to 62 percent.

To give this difference more rele-vance, he identified for the same dura-tion as the global climatic model datasets, the driest and wettest 20 yearperiods – in terms of soil moisture -from 1889 to 2009.

“The wettest 20 years, March 1983 toMarch 2003 has 45 per cent of time ator below PWP, the driest 20 year peri-od, September 1926 to September1946 has only 52 per cent of time at orbelow PWP, considerably less than the62 per cent expected under climatechange,” Mr Ive said.

For good measure, because recentmemory plays such a part in manyminds, Mr Ive compared the last 12months – a drought declared and tax-ing period – and found that only 51pcof the time was at or below PWP,almost coinciding with the long termaverage.

He will deliver briefings to theFederal Department Agriculture,Fisheries and Forestry this month andsubsequently to Industry andInvestment NSW.

Industry and Investment NSW agri-culture climate change programsleader, Kate Lorimer-Ward, says theresearch results are particularlyinsightful for every farmer, becausethe Ives are successful producers ofniche market superfine wool on mar-ginal country.

Over the past decade, forerunneragencies of Industry and InvestmentNSW – NSW Agriculture and theDepartment of Primary Industries –have collaborated with the Ive familyto set up a variety of productivity tri-als on “Talaheni”.

As far back 1989 an economic analy-sis by Caroline Carlos of the formerSoil Conservation Service establishedthat effort directed at regaining pro-

ductivity on “Talaheni” had given anannual return on investment of 17 percent.

Reactions to his analysis among sup-portive and sceptical peers in theregion range from “speechless” to“wow – this is just what we need!”,according to Mr Ive.

Since the best answers beget more questions, he is always askinghimself what to do next with theenterprise.

Ms Lorimer-Ward says Industry andInvestment NSW will be eager toknow what he may discover on therole increased soil carbon could havein negating the effects of lower soilmoisture by increasing the soil profilewater holding capacity.

Other questions now to beaddressed include: What steps can betaken to reduce runoff – although thiswill have other implications both onand off farm? Can evapo-transpira-tion be reduced significantly by use ofmore water efficient plant systems?What pasture systems can tap deeperinto the soil profile to access larger soilstore?■ Contact John Ive, Yass, (02) 6258 2661, 0401 390 639,[email protected]

Conservation field day for Trangie

More time at or below wilting point

TRANGIE Agricultural ResearchCentre will host the 2010 NSWConservation Agriculture field day inFebruary.

Industry and Investment NSW, theConservation Agriculture and No-tillFarming Association (CANFA), Cen-tral West Farming Systems and River-ina-based FarmLink Research are part-ners running the popular annual event.

“The field day certainly continues tohit the mark with more than 1000 visi-tors attending this year’s event at ourTemora research station,” Trangieresearch station manager, Anne Mabey,said.

“We expect a similar turn out forTrangie as farmers continue to bedrawn to displays of the latest farmtechnology from controlled traffic andprecision agriculture equipment, sprayrigs to disc and tyne seeders.”

CANFA chief executive officer, NevilleGould, said the competition for the

best farmer-modi-fied machine,sponsored by TheLand, has also beena popular draw-card.

“We hope to seenext year’s compe-tition spark inter-est from farmersacross NSW,” MrGould said.

The field day in2008 was held atthe Industry andInvestment NSW research station atCondobolin.

The move to Trangie in 2010 contin-ues the organisers’ intention to movethe day as much as possible around theState to give farmers the best opportu-nity to see the latest technology.

The event will take place onThursday, February 18.

■ Contact Anne Mabey (02) 6880 8000, [email protected] or Neville Gould (02) 6845 1044, [email protected]

John Ive and daughter Carolynn measure the depth to the water table at one of 12 piezometers monitored weekly for nearly20 years. This piezometer is in an area reclaimed from acidity and salinity that now supports productive perennial pasture.

Ambrose Doolan outlined the attributes ofthe Vaderstad “Seed Hawk” planter to thecrowd at the successful 2009Conservation Agriculture field day atTemora.

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CARBON - How toSurvive and Profit

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For more informationPhone: (07) 3844 4595 Email: [email protected]

Carbon House has developed a one-day workshop for rural landholders onhow to survive and prosper in a carbon conscious world. Our experiencedpractitioners will explain how trading systems already operate overseas, whatour scheme will look like, what the likely impact on agriculture will be, howto prepare your farm, how to capitalise on the opportunities for renewableenergy and carbon capture and what risks to look out for. Just some of thetopics covered include soild carbon, bio-char, forestry projects and renewable energy.

The 2010 workshop fee of $750 is approved and fully reimbursable under theAustralian Government’s Farm Ready Program. Up to $500 is also availableto cover travel, accommodation and child care.


WHILE evidence existsthat some practices tendto increase soil carbon,

there is not yet enough informa-tion to generalise about theimpacts of different practices indifferent soil types.

The National Soil CarbonResearch Program (SCaRP) isunderway – the first of its kind tocomprehensively assess soil car-bon stocks in an extensive rangeof agricultural land uses aroundAustralia.

The program is encouragingdevelopment of solutions to helpproducers adapt and buildresilience to climate change.

Co-ordinated by CSIRO, theSCaRP aims to determine thepotential for agricultural manage-ment practices to influence soilcarbon in a variety of soil types,locations and agricultural sys-tems.

A secondary broad objective ofthe program is to identify land usepractices that improve soil health.

Research is occurring in allStates and soil sampling has start-ed (see story p6).

National projects support largecollaborations by the AustralianGovernment with a range oforganisations including research

providers, industry groups, uni-versities and State governments.

A number of the industry part-ners provide additional funds andin-kind support to individualresearch teams.

In NSW, the Primary IndustriesInnovation Centre (PIIC) is lead-ing a large project focused on thecentral and northern parts of theState, and Murray CatchmentManagement Authority is con-

ducting sampling in grazing andcropping systems at 200 locationsin the catchment.

The PIIC will assess soil carbonin 700 sites in northern and cen-tral NSW, from the tablelands tothe plains.

The project will sample soils inthe major agricultural land uses ineach region.

In addition, six PhD students,supervised by staff of the PIIC

joint venturers – Industry andInvestment NSW, NSW Depart-ment of Environment, ClimateChange and Water, and theUniversity of New England will do complementary localised stud-ies.

Sampling is underway in theMoree Plains district, in irrigatedcotton and dryland wheat cropsgrowing on heavy black soils(Vertosols).

In summer, sampling will moveto the Northern Tablelands whereimproved and native pastures willbe compared and contrasted.

From there, a number of other“land use by soil type” combina-tions will be sampled in seasonalblocks across NSW until comple-tion in 2011.

The PIIC project also aims todetermine the effect on soil car-bon content of a number of newor emerging land use practices.

For instance, pasture-cropping isa practice being trialled or adopt-ed by a number of landholders inthe Central West.

Orange district agronomist, DrWarwick Badgery, will lead a teamsampling pasture-cropping sites.

The project will also sample arange of practices undertaken by“carbon farmers”.

Determination of total carbonand other chemical characteristicsof soils sampled within the projectwill occur in a new, purpose-builtsoil carbon laboratory at theUniversity of New England, whilemore detailed analyses of carbonfractions will occur at the CSIROlaboratory in Adelaide.

Carbon fractionation analyseswill enable a feel for the amount

of carbon that could be readilylost from the system (the labilefraction), and that which is likelyto persist for a longer time.

SCaRP will make comparisonspossible between climatic zones,soil types and land uses to deter-mine which combinations storethe most carbon, and will identifythe management practices withgreatest potential to increase soilcarbon.

The program is supported byfunding from the AustralianGovernment Department of Agri-culture, Fisheries and Forestry inexcess of $9 million under its Climate Change ResearchProgram, and by the GrainsResearch and DevelopmentCorporation.■ Contact Melinda McHenry, (02) 6773 3929,[email protected] or Annette Cowie, (02) 6773 3924, annette.cowie@ une.edu.au ● The authors are based at the NationalCentre for Rural Greenhouse GasResearch in Armidale, a partnershipbetween the University of New Englandand Industry and Investment NSW.Professor Cowie is the director of thecentre and Dr McHenry is the SCaRPNSW project manager.

Collecting carbon clues

MELINDA McHENRYand ANNETTE COWIE

University of New England staff and students sample Vertosols in a dryland wheat crop near Moree.

Substantial levels of soil carbon can be storedunder certain fertilised pastures ... but there was

little evidence of carbon accumulating under zero-till cropping on the Liverpool Plains‘ ■ See p8

Nine hundredsoil sites forstudy in NSW

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For natural resourcemanagement advice and

information, please contact theBorder Rivers-Gwydir CMAin Inverell on 02 6728 8020or Moree on 02 6757 2550.

The Border Rivers-GwydirCMA is an organisation thatis keen to make sure it is clear about itspurpose and priorities. It is there to helppeople look after their land for futuregenerations.

The CMA team spends a lot of timeworking “inside the business” and felt that itwas time to step back and take a look atthe business from afar. Part of this processwas to review the Border Rivers-GwydirCMA Strategic Plan.

Strategic Planning, according to the onlineencyclopaedia Wikipedia, “is anorganisation’s process of defining itsdirection and making decisions onallocating its resources to pursue thisdirection, including its capital and people.”

The new Border Rivers-Gwydir CMAStrategic Plan focuses on buildingpartnerships with industry and individualsand is designed to demonstrate the benefitof our work to the community, environmentand agriculture.

One of the most significant challengesfacing communities in our region today isthe ability to respond to climate change.The review of the Border Rivers-GwydirCMA Strategic Plan is therefore timely aswe are concurrently working to understandthe likely impact of climate change on ourfarmers and communities so that we canadapt our resources to meet theirrequirements.

It is essential that our advice is current andrelevant so that we remain a valuablesource of natural resource managementinformation.

For more information on natural resourcemanagement in our region, please contactthe Border Rivers-Gwydir CMA in Inverell on02 6728 8020 or Moree on 02 6757 2550.

December 2009 BorderRivers-Gwydir CMAChairman’s Column

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FOURTH generation orchard-ist, Martin Corby, says he has“hit pay dirt” with a cherry

orchard he developed as part ofthe solution to gully erosion and alooming salinity problem.

Mr Corby faced an active gullymore than four metres deep insome sections with water repellent(hydrophobic) soils, low ground-cover and encroaching salinitywhen he purchased some land atRoyalla, just south of Canberra, 10years ago.

“The problem I was facing wasmanaging how water was movingthrough the landscape,” Mr Corbysaid.

To rehabilitate his land he startedby filling in the gully.

This not only controlled thesource of erosion but, moreimportantly, increased infiltrationon the slope above, where he hasnow established 2000 cherry trees.

“You could have buried a bobcatin the gully,” said Industry andInvestment NSW project officerand postgraduate researcher,Susan Orgill, who has been watch-ing Mr Corby’s progress.

He controlled salinity by usingmore water where it falls as rainand intercepting subsurface flow.

His third objective was toincrease the farm’s sustainabilityby building healthy topsoil, so heplanted cereal rye and subclover inthe non-irrigated inter-row as agreen manure crop, which he fre-quently mulches.

Mr Corby, who learnt the basicson his family orchard in Orange,also regularly applies sugar to thesoil to increase infiltration and hashad rapid success using rice huskmulch under the trees to retainmoisture.

Trees in the rice husk rows haveclearly larger leaves.

“You know you’ve hit pay dirtwhen you get leaves this size,” saidMr Corby.

“By retaining more moistureunder the trees and in the inter-row I have reduced my irrigationby 30 per cent.”

Like many farmers in the district,he also earns off-farm income.

This year he expects his trees willyield four tonnes per hectare –moderate but he is happy with it –given his successful remediation ofland and soil typical of the district.

“I really think small scale cherryorchards could provide landhold-ers an alternative for managingwater movement through thelandscape and building topsoil,whilst earning an income,” MrCorby said.

Susan Orgill praised his innova-tive approach.

“Not everyone confronted bygully erosion and salinity wouldthink the way Martin has,” shesaid.

“Soils in the area typically sufferfrom low levels of organic matterand are hydrophobic.

“Applying mulch and growinggreen manure crops adds impor-tant organic matter to the soil.

“It also seems that the sugar isfeeding the soil organisms andstimulating them to break downthe lattice of waxes which inhib-its water infiltration in the top-soil.”

Mr Corby said he had an “80-20rule – you should spend 80 percent of your time observing andthinking and 20pc doing”.■ Contact Susan Orgill,Queanbeyan, (02) 6298 8006,[email protected]

HOW long can extra virgin olive oilbe stored with confidence that itwill continue to taste great?

Tests exist to predict oil shelf lifebut new research at Wagga Wagga istaking the chemistry a step further.

Oxidation eventually produces offflavours and bad odours in oil andthe aim of the project is to identifyhow to extend oil stability so that thefruity olive oil flavour lasts longer.

“Now we are recording the reac-tions of a range of oils, analysing thefactors which cause oils to oxidise,”said Industry and Investment NSWprincipal research scientist, Dr RodMailer.

“We are exposing them to light,temperature and oxygen, all ofwhich cause oxidation.”

Dr Mailer said oils with high levelsof polyphenols and low levels ofpolyunsaturated fatty acids couldlast 18 months to two years.

“Some of these oils made fromyounger, early harvest olives have apungent, bitter flavour unpopularwith some consumers and, whileoils from older olives taste mellow,they may have a shorter shelf life,”he said.

The middle ground could be better shelf life in a product con-taining oil high in antioxidants witha stable fatty acid profile, blendedwith less pungent, softer oil to pro-duce a mellow, fruity taste.

Other crop management factors,including olive variety, harvest tech-niques and the amount of water

trees get during the growing season,also affect how long oil will last, DrMailer said.

“Water stressed trees producemore polyphenols, resulting in pun-gent, longer lasting oil.”

The Rural Industries Research andDevelopment Corporation is fund-ing the three-year project at theAustralian Oils Research Laboratory,at Wagga Wagga AgriculturalInstitute.

The laboratory is one of only twoAustralian laboratories accreditedby the International Olive OilCouncil to test for the authenticityof extra virgin olive oil.■ Contact Rod Mailer, WaggaWagga, (02) 6938 1818,[email protected]

Cherries pip erosion, salinity LEFT: Cherrytreesmulchedwith ricehusks in thisorchardhave clearlylarger leaves(right).

Royalla cherry orchardist Martin Corby’s topsoil is rich, moist and full of life after applications of rice husk mulch. Inpraise of his innovative style, Susan Orgill says few people facing gully erosion and salinity would hit on cherry treesas part of the solution.

Extending olive oil use-by date

Next time: Thenext edition ofAgriculture Today topublish on March 4,2010 will cover cropsand grains, beef andweeds.

Thanks to all readers,contributors andadvertisers for yoursupport in 2009.

You can readAgriculture Today onthe web and downloadthe full edition eachmonth.

Visit www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/agtoday for thisand recent editions.

Season’sGreetingsSeason’sGreetings

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SUSAN Orgill, E.H.Graham Centre postgrad-uate student and Industry

and Investment NSW projectofficer, is studying manage-ment practices with potentialfor high soil carbon sequestra-tion in southern NSW.

Ms Orgill is focusing on howcarbon sequestration in soilvaries with farming systemsand climate.

“We know the level of soilorganic carbon can vary withsoil type, land management andclimatic zone,” Ms Orgill said.

“We also know that carbonexists in various forms in oursoils which can determine itsresidence time.”

Ms Orgill’s research willestablish a total of 90 soil car-bon reference sites across threeclimatic zones in southernNSW.

The zones are low (receivingless than 350 millimetres ofannual rain), moderate (550-650mm) and high (800mm),and will be sampled accordingto the Australian Govern-ment’s National CarbonAccounting System samplingprotocols.

So far, Susan has sampled 52sites: 32 on the Monaro com-paring native and introducedperennial pastures, and 20 inthe Coleambally IrrigationArea comparing pastures andcrop-fallow rotations.

Soil samples are taken at reg-ular intervals down to 100centimetres and analysed for arange of chemical, physicaland biological properties –specifically the total mass ofcarbon and the amount of

readily oxidisable carbon,humus and char.

“It is estimated that agricul-tural soils under perennialpastures may be storing inexcess of 50 tonnes of carbonper hectare in the top metre ofthe soil profile, that’s approxi-mately 185 tonnes of carbondioxide equivalents,” she said.

Susan hopes that the datafrom these sites will improvethe accuracy of informationused to model carbon accu-

mulation across the root zoneand provide a better under-standing of the permanence ofcarbon sequestered in agricul-tural soils.

Funding for the sites sam-pled so far has come from theSouthern Rivers CMA andColeambally Environ-mentalCommittee.■ Contact Susan Orgill,Queanbeyan, (02) 6298 0806,[email protected]

Sampling starts

Perennial pastures grow a significant mass of roots in subsoil whichdirectly contribute to the level of organic carbon. This soil coresample shows density of native pasture roots at a depth of 70centimetres on the Monaro.

Offset market standardsSOIL carbon models, onceverified through the NationalSoil Carbon ResearchProgram, could be used inemissions trading schemes asa cost-effective means ofestimating soil carbonchange.

The information generatedby the national project will beused to improve the soilcarbon models in theNational Carbon AccountingSystem, developed by theDepartment of ClimateChange for Australia’sgreenhouse gas inventory.

The Australian Governmenthas recently declared thatagriculture will not be acovered sector under theproposed Carbon PollutionReduction Scheme, but that itwill be able to earn credit foroffsets.

The Federal politicalmeltdown of the past weekleft unclear what offsetswould be considered eligible.

The voluntary offset marketis another emissions tradingoption for soil carbon.

“The Australian Governmentis expected to soon releasedetails of a national carbonoffset standard, intended toprovide consistency andconsumer confidence in thevoluntary carbon market,” saiddirector of the National RuralCentre for Greenhouse GasResearch, Annette Cowie.

“Whether included in the

compliance or voluntarymarkets, the standard will beimportant to ensure thatabatement is real,” ProfessorCowie said.

“Mechanisms are requiredto deal with ‘leakage’, that is,emissions that arise elsewhereas a result of the offsetproject.”

For example, if a croppedpaddock is converted topasture, but another underpasture is converted to

cropping, there may be no netincrease in soil carbon.

The fact that soil carbon canbe lost, for instance if amanagement practice isdiscontinued, is anotherchallenge that must beovercome in order to includesoil carbon in emissionstrading; carbon pooling andbuffer concepts could bevaluable in managingimpermanent soil carbonincreases.

Soil sampling as part of carbon research.

AS A farmer fromWellington and anadvocate for rural

and regional NSW, I lookforward to the challengesand opportunities thatcome with my newministerial duties as NSWMinister for PrimaryIndustries.

It’s been a little over twoweeks since taking on thisrole, in addition to beingMinister for Lands.

From the outset I havebeen impressed by thediversity of our primaryindustries sector and theenthusiasm of its people.

The State Governmenthas built a solid track-record for maintainingprosperous andsustainable primaryindustries and I will beworking hard with industryto ensure this traditioncontinues.

I have already visitedIndustry and InvestmentNSW headquarters inOrange and met with NSWFarmers Associationrepresentatives and otherstakeholder groups to hear

first-hand of the issuesaffecting the State’sprimary industries.

DroughtBY FAR the mostsignificant and critical ofthe issues is the ongoingdrought.

There is hardly a farmeror rural business thathasn’t been affected oneway or another by thisongoing dry.

The State Government

has committed more than$500 million in assistancemeasures since thedrought began and remainscommitted to helpingthrough a range ofassistance measures it hasin place.

The official droughtfigures released reveal 1.9per cent of NSW isconsidered satisfactory.This is down from 4.9pcand a horror situation.

The area of NSW battling drought is 73.6pc,a marked increase fromlast month (up from67.7pc).

And 24.5pc of NSW is

considered marginal (downfrom 27.4pc).

A range of assistancemeasures is in place tohelp ease the pain causedby this relentless dry and Iurge farmers and smallbusinesses to seek outwhat is available to them.

Assistance measuresinclude drought transportsubsidies, interest ratesubsidies, the specialconservation scheme,drought household

assistance, and businessdrought assistance.

Contact the RuralAssistance Authority forinformation 1800 678 593.

Industry and InvestmentNSW also has a team ofDrought Support workersto provide help.

If you don’t believe thatyou fit any of the criteriafor assistance and you areexperiencing difficultiesdue to the drought, please contact one of theDrought Support Workers –as they may still be able toassist you. Their contactdetails are atwww.dpi.nsw.gov.au.

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BLUEBERRY growers innorthern NSW are excitedthat their new practice of

mulching with woodchip fines canincrease their crop.

In comparison with woven blackplastic weedmat, woodchip mulchled to an 81 per cent higher berryyield on a grey silty loam and 66pchigher on a red clay loam.

There was no difference, howev-er, on two other trial sites, redloam or red silty loam.

Soil scientist at the Centre forTropical Horticulture in Alston-ville, Justine Cox, discovered thatthe woodchip mulch improved themore compacted soils, with areduction in compaction, increa-sed plant size and soil moisture.

“The range of soil types acteddifferently, where soils that wereloose and friable grew the largestplants with the highest berry yieldand showed no differencesbetween the mulches,” Ms Coxsaid.

“The poorer, more compactedsoils responded well to woodchipaddition, and over time the physi-cal properties improved.”

A strong relationship was discov-ered between plant size and berryyield.

The larger the plants were, themore berries they produced.

Yields of 6.5 to 9.6 tonnes perhectare were calculated from theexperimental plants in the 2008harvest.

During the final harvest round,berries were larger and heavier in

the woodchip plots for two of thethree soil types.

One of the invisible benefits ofthe woodchip was an increase inthe amount of blueberry roots.

“A thick mat of roots was alwaysfound growing at the mulch-soilinterface in the moist, decompos-ing woodchip environment.”Justine Cox said.

“This has enabled the blueberryplant to explore more space forwater and nutrients.”

The woodchip influenced theroot distribution all the way to thebase of the mound where the rootswere situated.

The effects of the woodchip wereseen to 40 centimetres depth inone soil type.

A warning with the use ofwoodchip was recommended,however, as the soil pH (calciumchloride) dropped substantially to a range between 3.85 and 4.3 after one year – this is too acidic

for optimum blueberry growth.Intervention was required with

liming to increase the pH.The final report which compre-

hensively covers the effects ofthe mulches on soil, including soil temperature, plant and roots,will be available to blueberrygrowers from HorticultureAustralia Ltd.■ Contact Justine Cox,Alstonville, (02) 6626 2400,[email protected]

Justine Cox excavating soil to uncover blueberry root distribution.

Picking blueberries at Berry Exchange, Corindi.

Woodchip mulch works well

MORE than 200 Hunter Valley andSouth Coast farmers have attendeda spring series of field days andworkshops promoting pasturemanagement for weed control.

“The more competitive the pas-ture the lower the weed burden inthe long run,” said Industry andInvestment NSW fireweed projectofficer, Craig Muir.

Beef livestock officer, Ian Black-wood, said improved pasture paidfor itself.

“With low producing pasturesyour options for beef enterprisesare limited and you will always be aprice taker,” Mr Blackwood told 130participants at one event at Tocal,staged as part of the NSW FireweedInitiative (pictured).

“By improving only 20 per cent ofyour land to ryegrass and whiteclover, the best winter competitorsagainst fireweed, you can not onlydouble your gross margin, but youroptions for fattening stock are far

greater, and this sets you up for fur-ther pasture improvement.”

Landholders discussed interimresults from herbicide trials on fire-weed, and while some mixesworked better than others, the mainmessage was clear – “herbicides areonly the first step to improving ormaintaining your pastures, and

shouldn’t be relied on long-term”.Mr Muir said Bromoxynil based

products consistently provide supe-rior control when used during win-ter.

“Regardless of what product youuse, it’s extremely important to getthe timing right, since the earlieryou spray the better the kill of fire-

weed and this allows for greaterseasonal pasture production,” hesaid.

As part of the day, Tocal districtagronomist, Neil Griffiths, showedfarmers how a run-down pasturepaddock can be improved in ashort time by the application oflime, poultry litter and adjustmentsto grazing management.

Further down the coast, 75 farm-ers from Berry and Milton dis-cussed fireweed and giantParramatta grass management attwo workshops organised throughthe Southern Councils GroupSmall Farms Network.

“Control of fireweed with sheepand goats was hotly discussed at theworkshops – many landholderswere pleased with the results theyhad seen on their own and others’properties,” Mr Muir said.■ Contact Craig Muir, Berry, (02) 4464 6009,[email protected]

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Next time: The first edition in the New Year ofAgriculture Today will publish on March 4, 2010.

It will cover crops and grains, beef and weeds.Thanks to all readers, contributors and advertisers

for your support in 2009 and season’s greetings.You can read Agriculture Today on the web and

download the full edition each month.Visit www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/agtoday for this and

recent editions.Selected stories are also archived back to the

first online edition in September 2005 – follow thelinks.

You can also read more Industry and InvestmentNSW news atwww.dpi.nsw.gov.au/aboutus/news/recent-news

Season’s GreetingsSeason’s Greetings

SUBSTANTIAL levels of carboncan be sequestered under cer-tain fertilised pastures, accord-

ing to a recent research paper.Findings that soil carbon accu-

mulated fairly rapidly under fer-tilised lucerne and grass pastureswas a positive surprise from theIndustry and Investment NSWproject.

Analysis of the top 40 centime-tres of cracking clay soils estab-lished on old cropping country onthe highly productive LiverpoolPlains found that, after pastureestablishment, soil carbon accu-mulated at the rate of about 600kilograms per hectare each yearduring five years.

“However, the research found little evidence of carbon accumu-lating under rain-fed zero-tillresponse cropping in the higherrainfall areas of the catchment,”said research leader, Rick Young.

The team at Tamworth Agricul-tural Institute had postulated, inthese quite carbon-depleted soils,carbon might accumulate underthe frequent summer and wintercropping characteristic of responsecropping in the catchment.

“However, results from a fieldexperiment between 1994 and2000 and observations made onfarm paddocks between 1998 and2007 did not support this idea,”Mr Young said.

This was in contrast to accumu-lation of carbon known to occurunder zero-till cropping in parts ofNorth America and Brazil, due todiverse combinations of factorswhich may include high in-croprainfall, cold winters, nitrogen fer-tilisation and year-round croppingthat included pulses.

Response cropping entails zerotillage, fertiliser addition and agreater frequency of croppingcompared with traditional prac-tices and in wet years will assist incontrolling water logging andsalinity on the Liverpool Plains.

Under this system crops areplanted when a predeterminedquantity of water is stored in thesoil profile.

Mr Young said there was some

evidence for carbon accumulationunder an experimental systemwhere a crop was grown almostevery summer and winter season,but this system was too intensiveto be either practical or profitablefor farmers to adopt.

“Our results are similar to thosefrom other work in Queensland,and at Condobolin and WaggaWagga,” he said.

“It appears the mild, semi-aridclimate of much of the inlandcropping country in easternAustralia is not conducive to accu-mulation of soil carbon undercontinuous rain-fed cropping.

“This is most probably becausethe rate of accumulation of soilcarbon from crop residues is out-stripped by the loss of carbondioxide to the atmosphere fromthe respiration of soil inhabitants.”

Respiration by soil organismsoccurs as they feed on organic

matter, both when crops are pres-ent and during fallow periodsbetween crops, particularly whenthe soil is warm and moist.

Mr Young’s team suggested anoverall accumulation of carbonmight occur if healthy perennialpastures were grown over severalyears in rotation with zero-tilledcrops.

“Although we could not showsoil carbon accumulated underzero-tillage response croppingwith comprehensive fertiliser addi-tion on the Liverpool Plains, theincreased financial returns and soiland water conservation benefitsfrom these much-improved cropp-ing practices are now widely recog-nised,” he said.

The research paper, Accumulationof soil carbon under zero tillagecropping and perennial vegetationon the Liverpool Plains, easternAustralia, has been published in

the Australian Journal of SoilResearch.

“For carbon trading purposes,tree plantations are likely tosequester more carbon than anycropping system, even thoseincluding zero-till and economicadditions of nitrogen fertiliser,” MrYoung said.

Mr Young’s footnote beyond theresearch is that for purposes ofassessing viability for carbon trad-ing, analysis is usually conductedin the top 30cm of soil; trees growat economic levels for timber pro-duction when annual rainfall isabove 1000 millimetres; and previ-ous experiences suggest re-estab-lishment of pastures is only likelyto return carbon to the levels oforiginal native grassland.■ Contact Rick Young,Tamworth,[email protected] or (02) 6766 2092.

The trial site on R. and E. Duddy’s property, “Hudson”, studied for several years by a research team from TamworthAgricultural Institute.

CROPPING in Western Divisionfarming systems can still be con-sidered an economic and sustain-able option if conservation farm-ing techniques with stubble reten-tion and reduced soil disturbanceare adopted.

According to a recent project thatbenchmarked the effects of cropp-ing on soil condition in the West-

ern Catchment Management Auth-ority (CMA), routine soil testingshould also be undertaken to bestdetermine the amount of fertiliserrequired.

The project was conducted tounderstand the effects of croppingon the chemical and physical prop-erties of the soil, to assist land-holders to make decisions about

their management strate-gies.

There were 56 on thelighter red soils in theCobar, Coolabah andNymagee shires and 56 onthe heavier grey soils inthe Brewarrina andWalgett shires.

Using the RAMS (Res-ource Assessment andMonitoring System) data-base, 112 sites with vary-ing cropping histories,(some with none) wereselected for soil sampling.

Industry and Invest-

ment NSW project officer atTrangie, Ian Toole, said croppinghad decreased the structuralintegrity of the soils and increasedthe risk of surface layers to slaking.

“Cropping has marginally dec-reased the amount of soil organiccarbon in the top 30 centimetres ofthese soils, which increases the riskof structural instability,” he said.

“It has changed the chemicalproperties, increasing the soil pH,and slightly increasing soil nitro-gen in the grey soils while decreas-ing it in the red soils.”

During the last five years, therehas been increased adoption ofreduced tillage or no-till farming,stubble retention and crop rota-tion in the Western Division.

In other areas the adoption ofthese practices has halted orreversed soil degradation.

The Primary Industries divisionof Industry and Investment NSWcarried out the study, funded bythe Western CMA.■ Contact Ian Toole, Trangie,[email protected], or(02) 6880 8016.

Pasture surprise but nozero-till sequestration

Conservation cropping viable in Western Div

Soil sampling a cropping paddock near Lightning Ridge.

Photo: Ian Toole

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WHERE the hard, unstruc-tured soils of the PilligaForest give way on the west-

ern edge to some of the deepest redloam in north west NSW, travellerson the road from Coonamble areoften amazed at the height and bulkof lupin crops.

Here Terry and Robyn Haniganhave ridden the wave of this highvalue crop in recent years and wit-nessed soaring prices earlier this yearwhen exports fell from the mainworld market competitor, Chile.

On country suited to mixed farm-ing with wheat and barley crops, andlucerne and buffel grass pastures,albus lupins has a particular likingfor the soils.

The Hanigans have been growinglupins for many years on their farmin the Hollywood area, 60 kilometresnorth east of Coonamble, sellingthem for human consumption intoEgypt when prices are strong, butoften feeding some to their Anguscattle when prices are poor.

Keen to move soon to the new dis-ease resistant variety, Luxor, this yearthey planted 440 hectares of the vari-ety Ultra, with lupins followinglupins in some paddocks.

Mr Hanigan readily acknowledgesthat growing lupins on lupins is gen-erally not recommended, but in thiscase the tight rotation has been possible as the soils are not prone towaterlogging.

Albus lupins grown in waterloggedsoils are much more susceptible topleiochaeta root rot, the major dis-ease of the crop.

As well, winter and spring rain isgenerally fairly low, so diseases such

as sclerotinia stem rot are less of aproblem than in areas where in-croprain is high.

The crop also supplies its ownnitrogen needs, and secretes acids tomake phosphorus more available inthe soil.

The Hanigans accept a major com-promise with the tight rotation inrelation to weed control.

There are few broadleaf weed con-trol options in albus lupins, especial-ly for weeds such as thistles, Mexicanpoppy and spiny emex.

There are also limited grass weedcontrol options, and too much pressure can be placed on Group Afop and dim chemistries, which mayallow a build up of herbicide resistantryegrass and wild oats.

For this reason they have no doubtthey will continue rotating cereals,pulse crops and pastures on theirproperty, but lupins on lupins willcertainly be considered when priceslook strong, paddocks are clean andsubsoil moisture is good.

Mr Hanigan is adamant that sowingearly is the key to good crops.

Soil pits dug by Industry andInvestment NSW in the past haveshown crop roots extending downbeyond 1.8 metres on these soils, soearly sowing gives the roots time topenetrate deep into the subsoil.

Within the next two years they willtry planting new variety Luxor,bred by Industry and InvestmentNSW at Wagga Wagga.

Luxor has the advantage ofimproved pleiochaeta root rot resist-ance, seed without bitterness andhigher yield potential.

Luxor is slower to flower andmature than Ultra, so Mr Haniganwill aim to plant by mid-April, about10 days earlier than Ultra.

A major challenge with early plant-ing is that lupins do not tolerate deepsowing, unlike other pulses grown inthe region, like faba beans and chick-peas.

Moisture seeking can be done butcare needs to be taken to ensure nomore than 60 millimetres of soil clos-es back in above the seed.

After growing Ultra for many years,the Hanigans are excited aboutLuxor.

They are keen, though, to find outthe effects of different seed rates oncrop yields, weed competition andharvestability.

As well, they are hopeful futuredevelopments in integrated pest

management may limit the need tospray for Helicoverpa grubs, whichwould make the crop a truly lowinput option, and much more friend-ly to the high numbers of ladybirds inthe paddocks working in their favour.■ Contact Rohan Brill, Coonamble,0488 250 489,[email protected]

ROHAN BRILLCoonamble

THE influence of aspect on pasturegrowth as a result of climate changehas become noticeable on both theMonaro and Central Tablelands.

Rob Smith, a technical assistantwith the Primary Industries divisionof Industry and Investment NSW,has been monitoring on the Monarosince below average annual rain start-ed in 2000.

Mr Smith (pictured), who alsofarms “The Elbow”, Berridale, hasobserved with other landholders in

his area that pasture growth is nowgreater on south easterly tosouth westerly aspects.

“These aspects under pre-vious conditions were oftentoo wet and cold to producea reasonable body of feed,”Mr Smith said.

“We are now finding thatthese sites are no longer toowet but can retain adequatemoisture later in the season.

“This gives us opportunities to

maximise pasture growth on elevations towards 1000metres.

“These sites never used toproduce good feed untilOctober or November – weare now finding substantialgrowth from August and, ifsummer storms are favour-able, we can lock them upfrom February for winterfeed.”

Mr Smith said there was better sub

clover germination and growth andthat the southerly aspects were givingbetter phosphorus responses andreturns.

“Before 2000, in normal seasonswith reasonable soil depth, optimalpasture growths were achieved oneastern to north-east aspects undergood fertiliser regimes,” he said.

These observations could giveopportunities to landholders to fencethese favourable aspects, if they hadenough resources.

Mr Smith is one of a number ofIndustry and Investment NSW staffand its forerunner agencies whoworked on the early regeneration ofJohn Ive’s property,“Talaheni”, at Yass(story p3).

Industry and Investment NSWresearch agronomist, Belinda Hack-ney, has made similar observation onthe Central Tablelands.■ Contact Rob Smith,Queanbeyan, 0428 419 585,[email protected]

Pasture and aspect observations on the ranges

Ultra success en route to Luxor

Terry Hanigan has done well with Ultra lupins, grown in deep red loam on the western edge of the Pilliga Forest. Now heplans to sow the new disease resistant variety, Luxor.

Photo: Rohan Brill

TL1733054


Adoption ofconservation

HARDSETTING soils are those thatcollapse on wetting and set to a hard,featureless mass on drying.

They are widespread in NSW, rangingfrom Deniliquin, Wagga Wagga,Griffith, Forbes, Nyngan, north to partsof the Pilliga and around Inverell.

Hardsetting soil is difficult or impossi-ble to cultivate until it is rewetted.

It is not merely crusted, but insteadthe whole depth of topsoil sets hard.

Consequently, there is a restrictedtime during which such soils may betilled, difficulty in producing a goodtilth, constraints to seedling emergence,and constraints to root growth.

A hardset soil has low infiltration andmuch of the rain runs off.

Not all hardsetting soils are red; nei-ther are all red soils hardsetting.

The particle size range and lack oforganic matter (not the colour) deter-mine the behaviour.

For a soil to hardset, two things musthappen.

Firstly, the soil must collapse (slump)on wetting and lose any open structureit may have.

Secondly, as the soil dries, it must notcrack and restore an open structure, butinstead set into a featureless mass.

How does a soil set?As a soil dries, the remaining water

films retreat towards the points of con-tact between particles.

As the water retreats, it draws looseparticles with it to form bridgesbetween sand grains.

Low organic matter content is a fea-ture of a hardsetting soil.

The soil contains too little organicmatter to maintain a structure that isstable on wetting, and there is nothingto prevent the soil from slumping.

Also, there is too little organic matterto weaken the bridges that formbetween sand grains.

Another feature is low clay content(otherwise it would crack).

A high content of sand and silt, withjust a little clay is a recipe for hardsetting.

Such a particle size range is just madefor interpacking (see illustration).

In addition, if the clay is dispersive, itenhances the tendency to hardset.

Mulches can reduce runoff and ero-sion, diminish raindrop impact andprevent the surface soil from drying outcompletely.

Keeping soil slightly moist allows it todevelop some stability through “age-hardening”, possibly due to microbialactivity.

To till or not?Farmers face a dilemma with hardset-

ting soils.Excessive tillage is often the cause of

hardsetting by reducing soil organicmatter to the point where other inher-ent properties prevail.

On the other hand, once hardsettingbecomes manifest, some form of tillageis required to form a seedbed.

Management of the whole rotation,including when to till, when to crop,and when to graze or not is a key tomanagement.

Cultivation enhances seedling vigouron hard-setting soils.

However, subsequent slumpingdestroys the soil’s large pores.

There is the need to improve soil struc-ture before attempting direct drilling.

It may help to create a rough surfacebefore no-till starts.

This could be done by scooping smallhollows into the surface, or formingridges and furrows, perhaps dam thefurrows every few metres.

Direct drilling a crop into soil restoredby pasture would be an excellent start toa no-till cropping phase.

If direct drilling is possible, it will helpto maintain good soil structure by notburying the improved soil surface.

During pasture phases, livestockshould be removed for brief periodswhen the soil is wet, or they will com-pact the soil and undo the good effectsof pasture.

Moreover, grazing crop stubble may be a luxury fragile soils cannot support.■ Contact Ian Daniells, Tamworth,(02) 6763 1163.

Managing the foiblesof hardsetting soils

A NEW Primefact, Biochar basics,has been released by the PrimaryIndustries division of Industry andInvestment NSW.

The Department is engaged in anumber of projects to assess thebenefits of adding biochar to thesoil.

The new publication coversfundamental information about thesubstance, which has potential todeliver soil carbon storage.

Increasing enquiries aboutbiochar prompted development of

the Primefact, said the author andsoil advisory officer, AbigailJenkins.

“People have heard about it butare unaware that not all biocharsare the same,” Ms Jenkins said.

”Many agricultural by-productsand wastes can be charred.”

The factsheet containsinformation describing whatbiochar is, its likely agronomicbenefits and how it may be usefulin climate change mitigation.

“People, especially landholders,

are very keen on both the productand the technology, as they cansee a way to turn what used to bethought of as waste materials intoa useful soil amendment,” MsJenkins said. ■ For more information on theassessment projects in progress, goto www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/research/topics/biochar or visitwww.dpi.nsw.gov.au/agriculture/resources/soils/soil-carbon/biochar-basics for the Biochar basicsPrimefact.

Biochar basics – get the Primefact

IAN DANIELSTamworth

AN INTERESTING debatehas been going on latelybetween research and

advisory camps aboutadoption of conservationfarming techniques.

Research into the use ofminimum tillage and precisionagriculture has been going onfor more than 30 years and hasestablished many practicesthat have economic, social andenvironmental advantages forproduction.

Adoption of much of thisresearch has been slow inmany areas and scientists arewondering why use of theseresearch findings has not beenmore complete.

Adoption of innovations bylandholders is a dynamiclearning process that dependson a range of personal, social,cultural and economic factors,as well as on characteristics ofthe innovation itself.

It occurs when landholdersperceive that the innovation inquestion will enhance theachievement of their personalgoals.

Innovations are more likely tobe adopted when they have ahigh “relative advantage” orperceived superiority to theidea or practice that was usedbefore, and when they are easyto test and learn about beforeadoption.

Non-adoption or lowadoption of a number ofconservation practices isreadily explicable in terms oftheir failure to provide arelative advantage (particularlyin economic terms) or a range of difficulties thatlandholders may have triallingthem.

The slow adoption was not todo with lack of knowledge ofthe processes, but rather thehigh cost of swapping to theappropriate tillage equipment,handling the stubble loads atsowing and use of thisequipment in steep and rockypaddocks.

Farmers found that it washard to try these practiceswithout spending largeamounts of capital.

However most have shownthat they are keen to adoptconservation farming to fit inwith their individual practicewhen they can afford toupgrade equipment.

Hence the process of changehas been more gradual.

Soil message sticking: Thenumber of southern NSW farmersattending Healthy Soils, HealthyLandscapes workshops across theMurrumbidgee, Murray and LachlanCatchment Management Authorities’regions shows messages aboutmanaging available soil moisture arehitting the mark.

More than 1500 farmers haveattended so far.

The workshops help participants torecognise the amount of readilyavailable water that can be held

for crops, to understand the impactsof soil nutrition and soil constraintson water use, and to makeestimations of crop water useefficiency.

Participants collect soil tests fromthe topsoil (0-10 centimetres) andfrom below the topsoil (10-20cm) and results are being added to adatabase of more than 7000 soilsampling sites from across the threecatchments.■ Contact Simon Speirs, 0428 647 787.

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TREES “just falling into thecanyon” were the last straw forDonna Layton, watching gully

erosion progress at a frightening rateon her Nymboida beef grazing prop-erty.

“It was important to stabilise thesite or the erosion would keep grow-ing,” she said.

Not sure at first where to get help,with a $10,000 grant from Soil ErosionSolutions and technical assistancefrom Soil Services (the NSWDepartment of Lands), she has trans-formed the canyon into a stable flowline.

The soils at the site are sodic, as aremany in the area, so gypsum wasused to reduce the risk of dispersionand the project failing once it rained.

Donna firstly excluded all her stockfrom the paddock for their safety andto allow the site time to heal.

Stock will be excluded permanentlyfrom the gully.

The project involved reshaping thegully head, lining it with rock andconstructing diversion banks todirect water into the gully via thenow protected rock flume.

The flume was constructed of rockup to 500 millimetres in diameter

and underlain with geotextile to pre-vent undermining of the rock pave-ment.

The diversion banks are “back pushbanks” – in construction there wasminimal disturbance to the soil onthe uphill side and therefore less ofan erosion risk where the water nowflows on its way to the flume.

The site is now a different place, “apleasure to look at and walk down”,said Donna, and no longer a threat tolivestock or infrastructure.

Gully stabilisation will reduce thesediment load to local waterways andprevent the gully from becoming wider.■ Visit www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/

agriculture/resources/soils/erosion/saving-soil for more about erosioncontrol techniques in the bookSaving Soil.

Another tricky gully problem solved

ABOVE: The eroded gully head onDonna Layton’s Nymboida beef grazingproperty before remediation.

RIGHT: The completed rock flume andreshaped gully.

A QUICK once-a-year soil healthchecklist developed by North Coastfarmers for their own use has been agreat catalyst for self education.

The original “soil card” not onlyspawned a subset used by coffee,macadamia, and vegetable growersand perennial horticulturists, it was amotivator in the formation of theregion’s Soilcare organisation, whichnow runs a biennial expo.

Between 300 and 400 peopleattended the 2009 expo this month atWollongbar Agricultural Institute.

A group of dairy farmers and macadamia, avocado and coffeegrowers first borrowed the NorthernRivers Soil Health Card from aUnited States Department ofAgriculture model.

The concept enables growers toscore themselves poor, fair or good ineach of 10 tests that provide extrainformation to complement a stan-

dard chemical soil test, to see if man-agement practices are working forone site over a period of time.

Tests on the soil card include per-centage of groundcover, infiltration,soil structural stability, diversity ofsoil organisms, root health and devel-opment, earthworm numbers andpH.

Creating the cards ignited a passionfor more information in many land-holders, according to soil advisoryofficer at Wollongbar, Abigail Jenkins.

“This led, in some part, to the cre-ation of the region’s single purposefocused landcare group, Soilcare.”

Ms Jenkins said Soilcare memberslike Ian and Beth Hotson, backed byfunding from the Northern RiversCatchment Management Authority(NRCMA), were pursuing their ownsoil projects.

“Using the card has made us muchmore aware of the importance of soil

health as a major consideration,” IanHotson said.

Soilcare members are also currentlycollaborating with Industry andInvestment NSW in a biochar trial.

Since inception, the NRCMA hasfunded the expo, which has nowdrawn wider sponsorship.

This year’s expo guest speaker, BobShaffer, spoke about the importanceof looking at how the whole systemon any farm works.

“The health of your soil and yourfarming system is more than chemi-cal tests or physical tests or biologicaltests in isolation,” he said.

“Use all sorts of indicators, includ-ing your senses, when assessing howyour system is working.

“The power of observations cannotbe underestimated.”■ Contact Abigail Jenkins,Wollongbar, (02) 6626 1357,[email protected]

Health card plants Soilcare seed

A TAFE class using the soil card to monitor soil conditions.

755 Browns Creek Rd Blayneywww.anlscape.com.au

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SHEEP and goat abattoirs, profes-sional sheep and goat feedlots, andgoat depots face new NationalLivestock Identification System(NLIS) requirements in January.

From January 1, 2010 a movementrecord of each mob they purchasemust be uploaded to the database.

NSW saleyards made a successfulstart to recording sheep and goatmob movements on the NLIS data-base in September.

“Saleyard operators, agents andsaleyard software providers can becongratulated on the effort they havemade on mob-based movementrecording for sheep and goats sincethis level of recording was intro-duced,” said industry leader of sheep-meat development with Industry

and Investment NSW, Ashley White.So far, 24 saleyards have uploaded

data recorded on the National VendorDeclaration (NVD) associated withsheep movements through saleyards.

This means about 200,000 sheepeach week are being transferred onthe database and the average mobsize transacted through NSW sale-yards is about 120 sheep.

“This enhancement to NLIS willgreatly improve tracing in the eventof an exotic disease outbreak andhelp retain crucial export markets,”Mr White said.

From July 2010, producers will berequired to upload all movements onthe NLIS database including proper-ty to property movements.

Producers with computers can easi-

ly do this themselves, or arrange forsomebody else, such as a stock agent,to do it on their behalf.

Mr White said it was now moreimportant than ever for producers ofsheep and goats to complete themovement document correctly.

“The information is not onlyrequired by the purchaser, it is alsouploaded to the database,” he said.

“Producers simply need to fill intheir livestock movement documents

diligently, which includes listing alltag PIC numbers on the NVD orapplying a pink post breeder tag.”

Feral goats being sold direct toslaughter or to a depot are stillexempt from being ear tagged, butpeople sending the goats must supplyan NVD.

All abattoirs, goat depot and feedlotoperators need to create an accountwith NLIS (at no cost), so they canstart uploading in January.

Movements can be recorded onto thedatabase or saved into the correct for-mat on a spreadsheet and uploaded.

Commercial software may be avail-able, and companies such as feedlotsthat transfer large numbers of sheepshould talk to their software provider.■ Contact the NLIS Helpdesk, 1800 654 743, or visitwww.nlis.com.au for details on howto create an account and recordmob-based movements.

New NLIS forsheep, goats

Movement records for sheep and goats must be uploaded to the national database by abattoirs, professional sheep and goatfeedlots and goat depots from January 1 and by producers from July, 2010.

BUYERS of restockercalves oftencomment that lots of

male calves are notcastrated properly.

In many cases it is notpossible to recover from this initial failedattempt and the animalsfinish up as what arecommonly referred to as“stags”.

For producers runningsmall herds it is most likelythat lack of skill and/orpractice, or choice ofcastration method, canlead to the job beingperformed badly.

Recently a colleague ofmine, Brett Littler, reviewedthe various methodsavailable and produced theexcellent overview below.

A number of methods areavailable and all have theirpros and cons.

Basically they fall intothree categories.

Elastic bands –recommended for use oncalves under three weeksold but can be used onolder calves.

It is illegal to castrate ananimal more than sixmonths old.● Bloodless, easy toperform.● Lesions may form abovethe band site and persistfor a long time.● Wounds heal moreslowly than those fromsurgical castration.● Potential to misstesticles.● Band may break.● Can be used in wetconditions.● Public concern aboutwelfare of banding oldercalves.● Lower post applicationweight gain compared tosurgical castration.

Burdizzo — can beunreliable in the hands ofnon-skilled operators.● Bloodless.● Slow to perform andrequires expertise.● Unreliable when doneincorrectly.● Equipment may be

ineffective after long termuse.

Surgical — should alwaysbe done with a sterile,sharp knife or scalpel by askilled operator.● Not bloodless, bleedingis a risk.● Sure castration astesticles are removed.● Risks of infection.● Surgical wounds healmore quickly than thosefrom rubber bands.● Not recommended inwet, muddy conditions.

Castration is considered anecessary managementpractice for cattle.

Although younger cattleexhibit less pain, stress,and distress in response to the procedure, allmethods of castrationinduce pain andphysiological stress inanimals of all ages.

Regardless of whichmethod is selected, it isimportant to do the jobcorrectly.

Properly castrated calves can bring a premiumin the restocker market andstags are a problem foreverybody.

Delicate operations

INCREASING the Bos indicuscontent of the herd is anoption for northern NSW beefproducers wanting to adapt toclimate change.

Climate change is now mak-ing adaptation practices rele-vant to a new geographicalgroup of producers, in addi-tion to many in northernNSW who have already alteredcourse, says beef livestock offi-cer, Todd Andrews.

A review of meteorologicaldata from 1957 to 2009 forareas adjacent to the coastalfringe of northern NSW indi-cates that the summer seasonis increasing in length.

“The onset of the first frostday has been delayed over thattime by up to 35 days, whilethe onset of the first 28degrees Celsius day hasoccurred up to 49 days earli-er,” Mr Andrews said.

“Additionally, winter rainfall

has also decreased, generally ata faster rate than at other timesof the year.”

He and fellow beef livestockofficer, Brett Littler, last weekpresented a paper during theclimate change and variabilitysession of a conference ofIndustry and Investment NSWsheep and beef program staffin Orange.

They told departmental colleagues who are also factor-ing climate strategies into theirextension advice that in thiscase, the changes favour anincrease in the abundance anddistribution of tropical grass-es, including several importantweeds.

Additionally, an increase inthe abundance and severity ofpests and diseases that spreadsouth from the tropics eachsummer is likely.

In relation to the make up ofa herd, Mr Andrews says

Brahman cattle are adapted toutilising tropical pastures andtolerating heat stress, pests anddiseases.

Well documented researchshows Brahman infused cowscan increase gross margins byat least 10 per cent on mediumquality pastures.

A second option is for pro-ducers to use the additionalpasture produced by tropicalgrasses, by supplementingwith either protein or non-protein nitrogen.

Supplements increase drymatter intake, thus increasinglivestock production, but alsoprovide additional pasturemanagement strategies.

“Producers can conserve theadditional summer growth,”Mr Andrews said.

■ Contact Todd Andrews,Scone, (02) 6544 4904,[email protected]

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THE flies and sheep may have beenfamiliar but livestock sales byauction and precision sheep

management were new concepts for 15Inner Mongolian farmers during arecent study tour of Central WestNSW.

Industry and Investment NSW prin-cipal research scientist and OrangeAgricultural Institute (OAI) researchdirector, David Michalk, said the tourwas part of an educational package forChinese graziers.

“Industry and Investment NSW andCharles Sturt University have devel-oped the package to deliver tools whichcan help lift production efficiency anddeliver improved environmental out-comes by reducing stocking rates,” DrMichalk said.

“Some of their farms are on poorersoils in the desert steppes andimproved grassland and livestock man-agement is a central component of the

training package to help address landdegradation.”

Dr Michalk said precision sheepmanagement (PSM), which focused onindividual sheep, would allow farmersto target the more productive animalsand get rid of poor performers.

“In simple terms it’s about doingmore with less – if these farmers canboost production efficiency whilereducing stocking rates there’s clearlygoing to be an economic, environmen-tal and social benefit,” he said.

“Typically these sheepmeat and woolproducers work small family farmsranging from 20 to 800 hectares with200 to 600 sheep and as the Chinesemove to a market economy it’s impor-tant for them to focus on the quality oftheir produce.”

A visit to the Central TablelandsLivestock Exchange near Carcoar wasan eye-opener for the farmers, who areused to sale by undisclosed agreementsrather than an open auction.

The group also attended formal lec-tures and experienced hands-on agri-

cultural activities at OAI, theEverGraze site at Panuara, local farmsand agribusinesses.

The training program was funded bythe Australian Centre for InternationalAgricultural Research and Chineseagencies.

PSM systems have been developed byIndustry and Investment NSW as partof its contribution to the Co-operativeResearch Centre for Sheep IndustryInnovation.■ Contact Dr David Michalk, Orange,(02) 6391 3830.

Mongolianfarmers seeAussie ways

BERNADETTE YORKOrange

ABOVE: Industry and Investment NSWlivestock officer, Jane Mason, showsfarmers from Inner Mongolia how to skirta fleece, observed by Professor ZhaoMengli from the Inner MongoliaAgriculture University and livestockofficer, Col Langford.

FARMERS have been alertedhot weather and falling waterlevels can lead to the growth ofalgal blooms in dams, causingpollution and affecting animalhealth.

Industry and InvestmentNSW agronomist, Bob Thomp-son, said the key to preventingalgal blooms was to reduce thevolume of nutrients enteringdams.

“Just 0.01 milligram of phos-phate per litre can stimulatealgal growth – farmers need tokeep an eye on their dams,tanks and troughs and kill off algaeearly to protect stock,” Mr Thompsonsaid.

“Ferric alum can be used as a preven-tative treatment to reduce the availabil-ity of phosphorus, but it won’t domuch once an algal bloom occurs.

“High levels of algae may have a seri-ous impact on animal health and cancause stock deaths.

“We recommend stock be prevented

from accessing dams with algal bloomsespecially if farmers suspect dams haveblue-green algae.”

Simazine herbicide is the only chemicalregistered for use on blue-green algae.

Effective treatment requires the correct dosage of simazine for the vol-ume of water.

The NSW Office of Water formula tocalculate dam volume in cubic metres(m3) can be used.

Volume (m3) = 0.4 x SurfaceArea x Depth – 0.4 takes intoaccount the slope of damwalls and may vary depend-ing on the dam.

Water remains toxic for atleast three weeks after beingtreated with simazine andshould not be used for irriga-tion or stock in that time.

Farmers must read andcomply fully with the permitissued by the AustralianPesticides and VeterinaryMedicines for simazine beforeusing the chemical.

Permit number PER10994 (expiresNovember 9, 2013) for the use ofsimazine in dams, tanks and troughs isavailable at http://permits.apvma.gov.au/PER10994.PDF.

■ Contact your local Industry andInvestment NSW livestock orirrigation officer or visitwww.dpi.nsw.gov.au/agriculture/resources/water/quality/publications/blue-green-algae

Early action curbs algae in dams

The key to preventing algal blooms is to reduce nutrients.

GRASSGRO simulation modelling hasassessed a range of sheep breeding andmanagement structures for theirpotential to alter methane emissionsand intensity at a whole of enterpriselevel.

“Management options modelledinclude choice of lambing time, joiningmaidens as lambs, and productionfeeding to finish lambs,” said Coomasheep and wool livestock officer, DougAlcock.

“The potential for using animalbreeding was also tested and modelparameters altered to representimprovement in traits such as fecundi-ty, live weight gain, net feed intake andmethane output directly.

“The intensity of emissions could bereduced in all areas studied except lambjoining.”

However, when stocking rates are atthe sustainable economic optimum, thechoice of enterprise or managementhas little influence on absolute emis-sions.

Mr Alcock says if at some point graz-ing industries are charged directly fortheir carbon emissions, the optimalstocking rate and absolute emissionswould continue largely unaffected bythe unit cost of emissions althoughoverall enterprise profitability would beaffected.

“If the goal is to generate the best pos-sible long term economic return, a gra-zier would continue to use the sameamount of pasture, producing aboutthe same level of emissions – until thecarbon price either makes the sheepenterprise unprofitable, or an alterna-tive enterprise more profitable,” he said.

The exception is breeding animalswith higher live weight gain, lowermethane output per unit of intake, oranimals which are more feed efficient.

In this case modelling showed modestreductions between four per cent and10pc in absolute emissions were possi-ble.

However, progress using current tech-nologies toward genotypes with therequired characteristics would be slowand would compromise progress inother production traits with economicvalue.

Industry and Investment NSW con-ducted the simulation for the SheepCRC and the Federal Department ofClimate Change.■ Contact Doug Alcock, Cooma,(02) 6452 3411,[email protected]

Sheep methane management

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A RECENTLY released deci-sion support system can helphoney producers managebusiness.

MiniHoneyMoney enablesproducers to easily monitortheir yearly cost of produc-tion, focusing on criticalaspects of their business.

MiniHoneyMoney is a sim-ple Microsoft Excel spread-sheet with only one page ofdata entry that shows what ithas cost to make a kilogram ofhoney or maintain a hive for ayear.

The system, developed by

Industry and InvestmentNSW, also allows producers toaccount for the value of theirown labour and depreciationin analysing business perform-ance.

These two factors are oftenforgotten by many businessowners, but are important inget a true indication of busi-ness profit.

Producers can quickly see theimpact of a range of costs ontheir bottom line.

As data is entered, the out-come is calculated and updat-ed on the same page.

The required data is easilyobtained from productionrecords and cashbook orfinancial statements from anaccountant.

Data generated by Mini-HoneyMoney is also compati-ble with the comparativeanalysis system, BenchMarkBiz,which enables a group of co-operating producers to com-pare their analyses and tointerrogate their productionsystems and costs in moredetail.

MiniHoneyMoney can bedownloaded from the honeybee management section ofwww.dpi.nsw.gov.au or byemail from [email protected]

NSW honey producers whodo not have access toMicrosoft Excel can fax theirinformation and a completedreport will be returned by faxor email.■ Contact Greg Mills, (02) 6750 6312.

FIVE old, dried up orangesrolling around in the boot ofa car have cost a Griffithman a $200 on-the-spot fine.

He was one of 14 peopleissued with penalty noticesat a Sandigo road block thatchecked 209 vehicles.

Further random roadblocks are planned, saysregulatory specialist withIndustry and InvestmentNSW, Dean Whitehead.

He said it was a commonmisconception that fruit flyonly infested fruits such asoranges, but these little pestshad much broader tastes.

“This means fruiting

vegetables such as capsicum,chilli, eggplant and tomato,and tropical fruits such asavocado, passionfruit,mango and pawpaw, cannotbe taken into the Fruit FlyExclusion Zone,” MrWhitehead said.

He said travellers should bediligent in checking theirvehicles for fruit fly hostsand act responsibly beforethey enter the Fruit FlyExclusion Zone.

“By not checking, they areputting the region’s prizedhorticultural industry at riskof Queensland Fruit Fly –one of the world’s worst

pests of edible fruit,” he said.

Large areas of NSW, suchas the Riverina, are part ofthe long-established FruitFly Exclusion Zone, alongwith northern Victoria andeastern South Australia.

“A significant proportionof Australia’s fruit andvegetable growers are locatedin this Zone, and anoutbreak could cost localcommunities manythousands of dollars toeradicate, plus the loss ofincome on their harvest,” MrWhitehead said.

– SARAH CHESTER

Stung for five old oranges

Focus on honey money

INDUSTRY and InvestmentNSW scientist at HarshRaman, has co-authored aresearch paper recently ratedby The Crop Science Society ofAmerica as one of the fourmost outstanding of the year.

Recognition for Analysis ofthe Lr34/Yr18 RustResistance Region inWheat Germplasm isbased on scientificmerit and innovation.

The research involvedan international teamof 11 researchers whoinvestigated a geneoriginally detected inan Italian wheat variety thathas conferred resistance tomultiple plant diseases formore than a century.

Mr Raman (pictured) based

at Wagga Wagga AgriculturalInstitute, said their workinvolved testing a molecularmarker to see if the markercould identify the gene in awide range of types ofwheat.

“Every time the marker wasdetected, the multi-ple resistance genewas also present,”he said.

Institute director,John Oliver, saidthis informationwould make it easi-er, faster, and lessexpensive to breed

wheat varieties with this gene.“The gene codes for resist-

ance to Lr34 strain of leaf rustand the Yr18 strain of striperust.

“This Lr34/Yr18 gene hasproved to be an extraordinari-ly robust gene for resistanceover many years and is stillvery important source ofresistance for Australian wheatvarieties,” he said.

Mr Oliver said selecting forthe gene was expensive andslow because it could only bedetected in the field.

“Inexpensive greenhousescreenings of many thousandsof seedlings cannot be usedbecause the resistance con-ferred by the gene is onlyeffective in adult plant stages.

“Mr Raman and his co-researchers’ excellent workrepresents an important con-tribution to the improvementof top varieties of wheat inNSW,” he said.

Outstanding research

Advisor appointed:Professional services companyEvans and Peck has beenappointed technical adviser tothe Namoi Catchment WaterStudy.

The appointment is the first

major step in the procurementprocess to appoint anindependent expert to undertakethe water study.

The water study will collatequality data to assist inidentifying the potential risks

associated with mining and coal development on waterresources in the NamoiCatchment.

The study is overseen by aMinisterial Oversight Committee(MOC) chaired by Mal Peters.

Making NewsMaking News

Christmas lunch at Belgenny FarmFriday 25 December 2009 Belgenny Farm, Elizabeth Macarthur Ave, Camden


www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/events, www.belgennyfarm.com.au

Relax and enjoy a scrumptious Christmas lunch with all the trimmings in the beautiful Granary building.

Feast on delicious seafood, meat and vegetarian dishes from the buffet, including prawns, crab and oysters, chicken breast with mushrooms, pork loin, hokkien

noodles with vegetables and tofu, honey-glazed ham, veal goulash, pastas, and sweet-and-sour pork, served with vegetables, salads, rice and breads, and followed with a fresh fruit platter, cakes and pastries, freshly brewed coffee and tea, and drinks from our fully licensed bar.

Lunch will be served from 12.30 pm on Christmas Day. Only $75 for adults and $55 for children 3-12 years old. Bookings with full payment are essential.

Book up until 4 pm on Monday 22 December by phoning (02) 4654 6800.

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2010 RAINFALL CHART2010 JANUARY

mmFEBRUARY

mmMARCH

mmAPRIL

mmMAY

mmJUNE

mm

2010 JULYmm

AUGUSTmm

SEPTEMBERmm

OCTOBERmm

NOVEMBERmm

DECEMBERmm

1

2

3456

789

10

11

121314

15161718

192021

22

232425262728

29

3031

MonthlyTotal

ProgressiveTotal

Days of Rain

1

2

3456

789

10

11

12131415161718

192021

22

232425262728

29

3031

MonthlyTotal

ProgressiveTotal

Days of Rain

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TOOLEX PTY. LTD.TH7 Shown

TH2.5 591063 HONDA 5.5HP Engine 2.5KVA Recoil start. Ideal for emergency lighting or power tools to 2300 W & small motors

TH7 591000 HONDA 13HP Engine 6.8KVARecoil start. Suitable for larger domestic or rural applications. Welders to 170 amp, Compressors to 2.5 hp

Heavy duty frames on all models assembled in Australia

THGC 2.2 592097 HONDA 5.0HP Motor 2.2KVA powers tools to 2000 Watts $$549549 $$969969

$$17991799

GENERATORS

WORKSITE SPECIAL!from

$1469

LIMITEDSTOCK!!!!

$1469$1599$2099$2239$2299$2449$2849

. Honda GX160 . 5.5HP

. 2500PSI . 9.4 L/Min

. Double Braided . Steel Hose

. 10M Length

. 3 Piston Brass Wobble SJV25G25

539510 PETROL POWERED PRESSUREWASHER - 5.5 HP

. Single front wheels 85mm Dia. x 90mm W. Dual rear wheels 180mm Dia. x 65mm W. Cast steel with solid rubber tyre. Height of Forks: 85mm Lowered, 205mm raised. Spread Forks: 685mm Outside. Length of Forks: 1360mm

576642 2.5 TONNE PALLET TRUCK

$$399399$$16991699

594506 BRICK SAW. 14” Fasco Australian Motor. 2.2HP. Overload Protection. Steel Sliding Table. HD Pressed Steel Box

535018 TOOLEX AIR COMPRESSOR

MANUFACTURED IN AUSTRALIA

$$799799

.“15s” Model With Italian Alloy Pump With Cast Iron Sleeves. 2.2hp Motor, 58L ReceiverTOOLEX PTY. LTD.

May not be availableat all stores

TOOLEX LADDERS - HEAVY DUTY INDUSTRIAL

You won’t fi nd better! Don’t buy any ladder until you check out Toolex prices and quality!

EACH LADDER IS INTENDED TO CARRY A MAXIMUM LOAD OF

150KG• Fibreglass Step Ladders - Single Sided Sizes: 6, 7 & 8ft

• Fibreglass Step Ladders - Double Sided Sizes: 3,4,5,6,7,8,10 & 12 ft

• Fibreglass Extension Ladders Sizes:17, 21 & 25ft

• Aluminium Step Ladders - Single Sided Sizes: 6,7 & 8 ft

• Aluminium Step Ladders - Double Sided Sizes: 3,4,5,6,7,8,10 & 12 ft

FROM

FROM

FROM

FROM

FROM

$$369369$$119119

$$159159

$$129129

$$109109

Ideal for 4WD

524552 PROCRAFT AIR COMPRESSOR. 10cm 6L . 2hp. 240 Volt . 50 Hertz

$$149149

524572 CHAIN SAW SHARPENER. 240V/50HZ . 85w. 4800 RPM grinding speed. 7/8” arbor Dia.. Mounts to bench, wall or vice. Includes 4 1/4” x 1/8” Grinding Wheel

$$9999

Extra power!1hp motor!

$$649649

533101 4 SPEED 14” 2 WHEEL BANDSAWMADE IN TAIWAN

530384 6” - 1/2hp 3000rpm530385 8” - 3/4hp 3000rpm

BENCH GRINDER - 4 WHEEL

$155$119

. Includes wire wheel and buff mop.

Auto584210

· Automatic (20x)· Includes Industrial dome tripod and 3m staff (includes cover)

TOOLEX SURVEYORS PACKAGE

3m Staff 584218

Tripod584216

All This For

$379!!

592785 WALL MOUNTED FAN . Industrial Quality. 30” (750mm). 3 speed motor. Max. 1400rpm. 380 Watt

592787 PEDESTAL FANINDUSTRIAL QUALITY . 30” (750mm). 3 speed motor. Max. 1400rpm. 380 Watt

ALSOAVAILABLE583049PEDESTAL FAN. 26” (660mm). 3 speed motor. Max. 1350rpm. 230 Watt

$$199199 $$199199

$$179179 380380WATTS!WATTS!

Also Available:580776 - Right Hand Side750\520W x 270D x 440Hmm $189

. 1 x HD T Lock

. 1.5mm 1060 Aluminium Grade

ALUMINIUM UNDERTRAY TOOL BOX580775 - Left Hand Side750/520W x 440D x 270Hmm

. Comes with 2 x HD T Locks

. 1.5mm 3003 Grade Aluminium

. Strong Gas Struts

. Reinforced Lid

. Full length drawer 1 tonner

. Comes with 2 x HD T Locks

. Gas Struts to secure Lid

. Rubber Sealed

. Powder coated rippled white. 1 x HD T Lock. Drawers run on sealed bearing

. Gas Strut to Support Lid

. 1 x HD T Lock

LOW PROFILE ALUMINIUM BOX ALUMINIUM TOOL BOX

ANGLED STEEL TOOL BOX

ALUMINIUM TRAILER BOX580765 - 950W x 600D x 500Hmm 580769 - 1210W x 500D x 700Hmm

580770 - 700W x 600D x 750Hmm

580774 - 900W x 500D x 450Hmm

Also Available:580766 - 1250W x 600D x 500Hmm $499580767 - 1550W x 600D x 500Hmm $649

Also Available:580771 - 1250W x 600D x 750Hmm $1099580772 - 1500W x 600D x 750Hmm $1349 (Shown)

ALBURYBLACKTOWNCAMBELLTOWNCANBERRACOFFS HARBOURDUBBODANDENONG

425 KIEWA ST170 SUNNYHOLT RD9/7 HOLLYLEA RDUNIT 1 137 GLADSTONE ST31 ISLES DR132 TALBRAGAR ST9 STH GIPPSLAND HWY

PH: 02 6021 5699PH: 02 9671 3888PH: 02 4625 0972PH: 02 6280 0785PH: 02 6651 8200PH: 02 6884 7600PH: 03 9799 3188

GOSFORDINVERELLLAMBTONMT GAMBIERPENRITH

332 MANN ST67 OLIVER ST53 GRIFFITHS RD173 COMMERCIAL ST EASTLOT 4 BATT ST

PH: 02 4324 3333PH: 02 6722 3151PH: 02 4906 7777PH: 08 8723 0322PH: 02 4721 5838

RUTHERFORDTAMWORTHTAREN PT.TUGGERAHWAGGA WAGGAWARNERS BAYWOLLONGONG

52 SHIPLEY DRIVE36-42 BRIDGE ST6/139 TAREN PT. RD19 ACE CRESCENT75 COPLAND STUNIT 1 276 MACQUARIE RD82-88 FLINDERS ST

PH: 02 4932 4489PH: 02 6762 0550PH: 02 9524 0708PH: 02 4352 2136PH: 02 6931 9415PH: 02 4954 3555PH: 02 4227 1611

STORE LOCATIONS - FOR YOUR CLOSEST STORE CALL 1300 427 935

• ILLUSTRATIONS FOR DISPLAY PURPOSES ONLY • ERRORS AND OMISSIONS EXCEPTED • FREIGHT COSTS CAN APPLY IN COUNTRY STORES • PRICES VALID UNTIL 31/12/2009 • CONDITIONS APPLY

WWW.GASWELD.COM.AU

ANGLE GRINDER125MM (5”) 730W KITG13SR3-BP-HIT

. 1 Grinding Wheel

. 3 Cutting Wheels

. 1 Diamond Wheel

. 1 X 8m Tape

. In Case

LITHIUM:LITHIUM: • NEW FAN COOLED CHARGER WILL CHARGE LI-ION, NI-CD AND NI-MH BATTERIES • NEW FAN COOLED CHARGER WILL CHARGE LI-ION, NI-CD AND NI-MH BATTERIES • OVER DISCHARGE PROTECTION • LI-ION BATTERIES 40% LIGHTER THAN NI-MH • OVER CHARGE PROTECTION• OVER DISCHARGE PROTECTION • LI-ION BATTERIES 40% LIGHTER THAN NI-MH • OVER CHARGE PROTECTION

NOTE:NOTE: CHECK IN STORE FOR BONUSES. AS BONUSES CHANGE FROM MONTH TO MONTH FROM OUR SUPPLIERCHECK IN STORE FOR BONUSES. AS BONUSES CHANGE FROM MONTH TO MONTH FROM OUR SUPPLIER PLEASE ASK IN STORE WHAT BONUSES WE CAN OFFER YOU AT THE TIME OF YOUR PURCHASE.PLEASE ASK IN STORE WHAT BONUSES WE CAN OFFER YOU AT THE TIME OF YOUR PURCHASE.

BONUSBATTERY

$49900

BONUS!

KC18DFL-HIT - 2 PIECE 18V KITDS18DFL DRILL DRIVER & WH18DFL IMPACT DRIVE 6.5MM HEX DR

. 18 Volt

. 2 x 1.5 Lithium Batteries

. Site Bag

. Charger

$9900

GREAT VALUE!

DISCOUNT TOOL CENTRESELLING TOOLS, NOT TOYS

SPARES • REPAIRS • EXPERT ADVICE

$$299299

$$799799$$189189

$$699699$$469469

592787Shown

592786 PORTABLE FLOOR FAN 450mm Industrial Quality

. 3 speed motor

. Max. 1400rpm

. 220 Watt

. 240 Volt

. 50 Hertz

$$149149

$$11951195

ALL NEW

RANGE OF

BOXES!

$31900

18 VOLTS

$36900

2400 WATT

BONUSWET & DRY VAC

DS18DFL-HIT LITHIUM DRILL DRIVER. 18 Volt. 2 x 1.5 Ah Li-ion Batteries. Carry Case. Charger. Driver Bit. 13mm Keyless Chuck

BONUS

MASONRY BIT KIT

$25800

BONUS!

. 730w . 13mm Keyed Chuck

. 20mm Capacity

. 2 speed VSR

DV20VB2(H8)-HIT IMPACT DRILL

PACK180-HITC7MFA-HIT 1010W 190MM CIRCULAR SAW AND C10FCE2(H1)-HIT 1520W 255MM COMPOUND MITRE SAW

$49900

PACK180-HIT

BONUS5 x CW355 WHEELS

14" CUT OFF SAWCC14SF-HIT. 355mm. 2400W. Soft grip handle

TL1732856

agriculture today - december 2009 edition€¦ · 2 the land | thursday, december 3, 2009 superfine...

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