Genevieve found herself running the family orchard and trying to locate people for her seasonal workforce. Here she discusses the problems she encountered, and her path to finding a solution and creating a business to make the process of engaging with growers and workers and meeting the many aspects of compliance.
A scientist working on the MBIE funded AgResearch project “Managing Herbicide Resistance”, Philip joins Georgia to discuss the research he and colleagues are doing into non-herbicide weed control. Podcast here>
Philip’s recent work includes examining the traits that underpin the success of invasive species; clarifying the main routes by which these species are introduced to a region, quantifying the impacts of invasive species on these habitats and predicting the potential impact of climate change on invasive species distributions.
Philip and colleagues are applying a “big data” approach to the problem of herbicide resistant weeds (HRW) to improve our information and evidence-base to raise NZ economic productivity.
Only now are sufficient data available globally on HRW for innovative analyses to quantify the future risks of HRW for NZ – through both unintentional introduction and in situ evolution of resistant genotypes. To date, all approaches worldwide to predict HRW risks have focused on individual weed species and have adopted a population genetic modelling approach to assess the conditions under which resistance may evolve. However, these approaches cannot predict potential risks of new HRW and are not appropriate for screening large numbers of HRW.
Philip’s group is using global datasets on HRW worldwide to establish prior probabilities of HRW risks. The research is structured along four sequential aims that will
a) Predict the assemblage of HRW worldwide that have a high probability of becoming established in NZ and distinguish both onshore and offshore risks
b) Assess the species characteristics that predispose a weed to become herbicide resistant and forecast new HRW threats to NZ
c) Characterise the climatic, agricultural and socioeconomic correlates of global HRW richness to identify the potential drivers of future HRW in NZ, and
d) Formulate and disseminate national and sector-specific strategies for avoidance of future HRW in NZ.
Many thanks Philip, and our virtual conference sponsors
A silver lining on the Covid-Cloud is online conferences. Here’s one few of us in this part of the world would get to, but now it’s an online event, attendance is just a click away!
Since 2016, the International Forum on Agriculturral Robotics FIRA has been must-attend event for professionals in the agricultural robotics sector. Initiated and organized in Toulouse by the French company Naio Technologies, FIRA is now presented by GOFAR – the association Global Organization for Agricultural Robotics, founded in 2019.
GOFAR is launching the virtual edition of its annual event, which runs from 8 to 10 December, 2020. FIRA 2020 will provide international participants with online live access to speakers, booths tours and interactions with exhibitors and other participants, and will thus become the social network for agricultural robotics.
This 3-day new format combines innovation and quality online experience for a sector that has a key role to play to address thcurrent environmental, economic and social issues. For those of us in another hemisphere, presentations wil be available to registrants to access as soon as they have been aired.
This week we hear from Dr Johanna Steyaert, Trichoderma research scientist and molecular biologist and Max Purnell, Trichoderma practitioner and dairy farmer. Johanna and Max will talk about their work with Trichoderma a type of fungi that lives in symbiosis with plant roots, where they can increase nitrogen use efficiency and solubilise phosphate as well as protect against root diseases.
“Spray-free” is an oft cited aspiration as the shift towards regenerative practices continues. An important part of such a strategy is the use of bioinoculants such as Trichoderma in place of traditional chemicals. However, it is not quite as simple as that. Beneficial microbes form part of a large interconnected web, a biological and chemical ‘superhighway’. Understanding those relationships is the foundation for understanding how to better optimise growth promotion and biocontrol.
Dr Johanna Steyaert is a senior scientist at Lincoln Agritech Ltd with 20 years’ experience working with Trichoderma bioinoculants used for disease control and growth promotion. Her research spans understanding the genetics of Trichoderma fungi to optimising production of biocontrol agents in collaboration with commercial partners. After completing her PhD, Johanna won a prestigious Marsden Fund grant from the New Zealand Royal Society. She led a highly original project studying the effect of the Earth’s electromagnetic field on fungal reproduction. Johanna has a strong interest in regenerative practices and the role Trichoderma play.
Max Purnell, was a member of the AGMARDT board for 10 years where his interest in soils and background in farming lead him to become interested in the work of Dr. Robert Hill who pioneered Trichoderma research in New Zealand. Max runs an 80 ha dairy farm in Thames, and takes a soils-first approach to farming. He has experimented with several strains of Trichoderma on the farm, and has supported research to collect Trichoderma fungi and observe their benefits to the farm system.
Thanks to our LandWISE Conference sponsors who continued their support by helping with the podcasts series after our May 2020 conference was Covid Cancelled.
We continue to have solid engagement with our farming communities in Levin and Gisborne. At this stage our project plan had us monitoring the effectiveness of a bioreactor to manage nitrogen leaving the field, but we have not been able to find a regular flow of nutrient rich water that we can treat. Further drain flow monitor through Levin has continued to show little nitrogen in the drains flowing past the cropping blocks so any nitrate losses are assumed to be via groundwater, possibly reappearing in the Arawahata Stream between the cropped areas and Lake Horowhenua.
We are working with growers to ensure that they are applying the correct rate of fertiliser in the right place so that they do not lose excess nutrients from the field.
As part of the suite of tools to help farmers, we have created LandWISE Nutrient Budget templates and updated the FertSpread web-calculator for broadcast spreader calibrations to include Fertplace for placement equipment such as planters and side-dressers.
The Nitrate Quick Test is a rapid measurement of available nitrate in the plants’ rootzone
The three main tools we are using in our work with growers are:
The LandWISE Nutrient Budget: used in the crop planning stage to ensure planned fertiliser practice follows industry good practice.
The Nitrate Quick Test soil test: used as an active management tool during the crop to check the fertiliser plan and to validate additional fertiliser applications where the grower expects that extra fertiliser is required on top of what was originally planned.
The calibration tools, FertSpread and FertPlace: used to ensure that the fertiliser application equipment is evenly applying the fertiliser at the target rate where it is required.
In the coming season we have started two large, replicated trials in Gisborne focusing on nitrogen application rates to tomato and sweetcorn crops. Late winter soil testing to 90cm has shown a large range of soil nitrate levels (60-257 kg N/ha) in paddocks across Gisborne. Planned nitrogen fertiliser applications across these blocks were the grower standard rate.
Further work we are completing is turning the LandWISE Nitrogen Budget template into an online app for growers to use. The aim is a mobile-friendly tool that growers can use in the field. By making the information available on the technology growers always have with them, they will be able to simply validate their planned fertiliser plan against industry good practice and make more informed fertiliser decisions.
John Evans (Canterbury Farmer, Strip-tiller, LandWISE Chair)
Allister Holmes, (Technology R&D Manager, FAR)
Charles (Merf) Merfield (BHU, Independent Cover Crops and Tillage Researcher)
If you’re interested to hear the panel members’ individual podcasts, plus one from Simon Lochhead, Strip-till farmer in Canterbury, follow these links:
Calling all followers and friends of LandWISE, we invite you to become a financial member this year.
Your support is vital for LandWISE to continue doing what we do. We rely on farmer support to ensure the backing of new projects, discover new areas for research or technology adoption, and to fund field days, workshops and the development of practical resources.
LandWISE Membership is a great way to support the mission of sustainable production in New Zealand, and as a member you’ll benefit from:
Results from on-farm trials
Projects focussed on real farmer and grower problems
Regional field days and workshops on a range of topics from conserving soil to nutrient management and novel fertiliser technology
A discounted registration at the 2021 LandWISE Conference
Subscription to our annual LandWISE News publication
Membership is open to all who are interested in primary production and share our values. We hope you’ll consider becoming a member, or forward this on to a non-member if you already are!
We’re pleased to announce the release of our Nutrient Budgeting Templates. Designed to support vegetable growers to budget fertiliser use according to good management practice guidelines the A4 pdf templates rely on nutrient recommendations from Reid & Morton (2019). Crop yield predictions and soil fertility testing are used to determine the optimum rate of Nitrogen and Phosphorus to apply, based on the best trial data NZ has for 12 different vegetable crops.
The LandWISE Nutrient Budget Templates bring together this resource along with FAR’s Nitrate Quick Test Mass Balance tool which allows growers to enter soil nitrate levels using the Nitrate Quick Test. This test can provide growers with soil nitrate levels in less than an hour for about $1. FAR’s tool reliably converts nitrate concentrations (ppm) into kg N/ha.
Nutrient budgets are becoming a necessary process to document the movement of nutrients on and off-farm, and justify fertiliser applications. Nutrient budgets can be used to develop a fertiliser plan, where each paddock or management unit has a clear strategy to maintain, build or mine soil nutrient levels.
The Nutrient Budget Templates have been developed as part of Future Proofing Vegetable Production, a three-year project funded by MPI’s Sustainable Farming Fund, Ballance, Horizons, Gisborne District Council, and Potatoes NZ.
We are keen to hear from those using the templates so please get in touch if you have any questions or feedback.
We had a good turn out at our Nitrate Quick Test and Alternative Application Technology Demonstrations in Gisborne on 4th February. Many thanks to Calvin Gedye and family for hosting the event.
Intended for Growers, Agronomists, and Fertiliser Reps, it was a chance to show and see some new technologies and talk about trials we are running in Gisborne and Levin. Attendees saw demonstrations of:
Alternative fertiliser application equipment: Y-Drops and Stream Bars
TeeJet fertiliser nozzle on left, Stream Bar on right
Managing plant available nitrogen in soil is critical to ensuring crop yield and quality targets are met, and the risk of losses is minimised. However Nitrate-N, the main source of N available to plants is highly variable spatially and over time. Regular soil testing can help growers make better decisions about fertiliser use. Quick-N tests are affordable, easy to use and can give results in less than half an hour.
Why liquid fertilisers? In order to sidedress N more frequently and match crop demand closely, application needs to be efficient, even and easy. Liquid fertiliser application technology is progressing, and many attachments are now available to fit spray booms, in a variety of different spread patterns. Specialised nozzles do not mist, but apply large droplets that run off leaves and minimise risk of burning.
The dropper systems apply liquid direct to the soil alongside the plants, where root activity is greatest.
Dropper systems apply liquid fertiliser direct to the soil. We are trying various types for different applications such as potatoes or sweetcorn
On Friday the 8th of November all are welcome to attend a field day hosted by NZ Landcare Trust and Slow Farm Ltd about Biochar. The field day will include a demonstration of how Biochar is made, a presentation by Massey University on Biochar research, as well as a workshop to discuss the potential of Biochar in Manawatu.
The Field Day will be held at Tom Shannons farm in Aokautere, which is shown in the map below.
When: 10:30am – 2:00pm
Where: 1213 State Highway 57, Aokautere, 4471
Please RSVP by Wednesday 6th November to Alastair Cole, NZ Landcare Trust if you plan on attending.
The 
