Resilient farming practices, soil health take the limelight at The Caves
Participation by the horticulture industry at a field day on soil health and farm resilience at The Caves, north of Rockhampton, last month demonstrate the industry’s enduring interest in soil health and a commitment to preventing loss of topsoil.
More than 30 people participated in the event coordinated by Growcom to learn some back-to-basics soils knowledge, practical soil conservation practices and farm business resilience information.
The event was supported by regional Natural Resource Management (NRM) organisation, Fitzroy Basin Association (FBA) and funded by the Australian Government’s Reef Trust.
Fresh produce farmers growing pineapples, sweet potatoes, bananas, vegetables, macadamias and lychees attended the workshop.
Organisations represented included Fitzroy Basin Association, the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Growcom, Nutrien-Ag Solutions, and the Queensland Rural Industry Development Authority (QRIDA).
Guest presenters included experienced heavy earthworks operator Darryl Hill, and ex-DPI soil conservation extension officer, John Day.
Between them they shared their 60 years of field experience in repairing and rehabilitating gullies, washouts, and run-down paddocks, as well as technical expertise in designing effective structures to prevent erosion, channelling and sediment loss.
Topics covered included knowledge of soil structure, type and properties, equipment needed to determine contour placement, construction of structures with dozer and back blades, and cover crops for improved soil health.
The day wasn’t all about dumpy’s and dirt however, with a mid-morning session focused on farm business resilience, featuring QRIDA’s John Metelli and Growcom’s Resilience Officer John Targett.
John Metelli gave an informative presentation on the Drought Assistance Programs currently available to help growers prepare, manage, recover and mitigate the impacts of drought, fielding lots of questions from the audience.
He walked growers through the in’s and out’s of the Farm Management Grants, the Drought Preparedness Grants, Drought Ready and Recovery Finance Loans, and other assistance packages that are available with a Farm Business Plan.
This was a good segue into the presentation on creating a Farm Business Resilience Plan through a new initiative, jointly funded under the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund and the Queensland Government’s Drought and Climate Adaptation Program (DCAP).
Hort360 GBR officer Michelle Haase attended the workshop and made a presentation about Growcom’s best management practice (BMP) program, Hort360 – an online platform and extension program for horticulture.
“It’s an important tool that can identify inefficiencies both in the paddock, and in the business,” Michelle said.
“It creates a snapshot of where your business is at and is effectively a yardstick for sustainability, efficiency, and resilience.”
