Category Archives: events

Agronomy, AgTech, Conference, Drainage, events, Innovation, LandWISE People, Precision Agriculture, Projects, Research, Robotics, Soil, Tillage

Nutrient Budgeting made easy…

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.

View or download the templates below:

Phosphorus Budget Template 02-20

Nitrogen Budget Template 02-20

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.

Agronomy, AgTech, events, Fertiliser, Nutrients, Projects, Research, Soil, Vegetables

Nitrate Management Demonstrations – Gisborne 4 Feb

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:

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

This workshop was presented as part of our SFF project Future Proofing Vegetable Production.

Agronomy, events, Fertiliser, Nutrients, Projects, Research, Vegetables

Nitrogen Management Field Day – Levin 23 Jan

Many thanks to Woodhaven Gardens for hosting the Nitrogen Management Field Day we ran in Levin with VegetablesNZ. Thanks also to Antony for bringing hard copies of the new good practice guidelines, “Nutrient Management for Vegetable Crops in New Zealand“.  

We began the day with Luke discussing soil sampling strategies to make sure samples are representative. This involves taking at least ten samples, more from large areas, and ensuring samples taken fairly represent the variation across the vegetable bed and across the whole block or paddock.

Luke leads discussion about soil sampling methods to get good results

Georgia presented the Quick Nitrate Test method and the kit that is avaiable to growers. We use the test frequently in our trials and to guide nitrogen fertiliser use at the MicroFarm. We find the shaking of soil in the test-tube is important if reliable results are to be obtained. You must allow the extract solution to access all the soil to release the nitrate.

Georgia presents the Quick Nitrate Test

Woodhaven agronomist, Karen talked about their experiences using the Quick N-Test. They paired the quick test with standard lab testing while they learned how results are affected by soil variations and soil moisture levels. They don’t take the exact quick test result numbers, but use them to guide adjustments to their fertiliser application rates.

We demonstrated three alternative methods for applying liquid fertilisers; TeeJet, Stream Bar and home made Y-Drops. We think liquid fertiliser can offer significant benefits by enabling easier splitting and more accurate applications and reducing the risk of leaching while helping maintain excellent crop nutrition.

Droppers split near ground level and apply streams of liquid fertiliser to the soil beside row crop plants. This type of application is an alternative to banding dry fertilisers

The Y-Drop system is suited to row crops such as corn, broccoli or other brassicas. It drags soft hoses along the plant rows applying a stream to either one or both sides, close to the plant where uptake is most efficient. 

TeeJet nozzles (left) and Stream Bar (right) apply streams of coarse droplets that tend to run of plants and avoid risk of burning foliage. These are alternatives to broadcasting dry fertiliser

The TeeJet and Stream Bar systems replace standard spray nozzles, given a curtain of droplets along the boom. The TeeJet has diverging streams so application spacing can vary if the boom rises or falls. The Stream Bar tends to maintain a more uniform application. These systems are alternatives for crops such as baby leaf, baby beetroot and lettuces where dry fertilisers would be broadcast.

This field day was part of our Future Proofing Vegetable Production project and was held with support of Woodhaven Gardens, Pescini Bros and Vegetables New Zealand along with our major Project Sponsors.

events, Irrigation, Nutrients, Projects, Research, Soil, Vegetables, Water

Efficient Irrigation Workshop – Gisborne 22 Jan

The Efficient Irrigation workshop and IRRIG8 Quick bucket-test field demonstration we ran for Gisborne Irrigation Operators and Crop Managers was well attended. We were pleased to have industry and council staff also attending the day.

The key topics covered included:

  • What is Irrigation Efficiency?
  • Soil Water concepts
  • Testing Irrigation Application using the IRRIG8 bucket test

Many thanks to Leaderbrand for continuing their support for our Gisborne activities and setting up their irrigators for the bucket test demonstration. A great group of staff getting stuck-in and learning as much as possible about good practices.

We started the day with a slide presentation at the Bushmere Arms, discussing the many different definitions of “Irrigation Efficiency”. Efficient Irrigation is a critical input for high-value cropping systems. Getting it right or wrong can make or break crop yields, quality, and nutrient management targets. Dan noted that when most people are talking about efficiency they mean Application Efficiency: how much of the water applied to a field was held in the soil and avilable for plants for growth.

To get high application efficiency, application should be as uniform as practically posssible, and the depth applied should only be enough to refill most of the root depth. Low efficiency means excess water is applied, a sign that leaching risk is increased.

The IRRIG8 Quick calibration methods uses 20-24 9L buckets, spaced across the irrigation application area. Different bucket positions are used depending on the type of irrigation being tested. At this worshop, we tested one of Leaderbrand’s boom irrigators. 

We also demonstrated the IRRIG8Lite software that runs on a PC. This is a free resource from Page Bloomer Associates.  It takes care of all calculations required and produces printable reports including a graph of application depth across the irrigation area.

This Workshop was run with support from Leaderbrand and our project sponsors as part of Future Proofing Vegetable Production

AgTech, events, Innovation, Research, Soil, Uncategorized

Biochar Field Day – 8th November, Manawatu

Leave a comment

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.

 

AgTech, Drainage, events, Orchard, Precision Agriculture, Projects, Research, Soil

Orchard Drainage Field Day – Hawke’s Bay 15th August

On Thursday 15th August, we visited Evenden and Red Barn orchards to view the Smart Tools for Orchard Drainage trial blocks.

A few months have now passed since the various drainage treatments were implemented in the trial areas – the soil has settled and the grass is beginning to establish in the interrows.

A group of growers arrived to see the different treatments which we will continue to track to monitor their effectiveness and longevity. One of the main tools we are using is the RutMeter we developed for the project.

The RutMeter automatically measures rut depth and records the location using SBAS GPS for accuracy

After several months, regrassing, pruning and mulching, inter-row 1-2 is looking pretty good. By minimising soil movement during levelling, there is only a small rise/drop between the inter-row and the undertree row ground level.

The inter-row between rows 1 and 2 several months after levelling. been regrassed, then after pruning the branches were mulched. A few weeks for regrowth and the surface should be looking green again

Very good discussion among the growers covered the different treatments, how they affected orchard operations (especially use of hydraladas) and what future remediation they thought would be needed.

Orchard managers are happy with results to date. They think there may need to be work later after wet periods, but the foundation for better surface drainage in in place.

Many thanks to T&G and Bostocks for hosting the trials and the field walks. And project funders, MPIU SFF and NZ Apples and Pears Inc.

events, Fertiliser, Nutrients, Soil

Soils Workshop Hawke’s Bay – 20th August

Do you want to learn more about managing our most precious resource for food production? Do you want to see why and how a soil sample should be taken?

LandWISE will be holding a FREE to attend soils workshop in Hastings on the 20th of August. All are welcome to join us for a presentation on the following topics:

  • Understanding soil tests – how to interpret values
  • Following trends in soil test values e.g. Olsen P, bringing values back to the ‘middle’/optimum
  • Using soil tests as the basis for a fertiliser plan
  • An introduction to N-Test Strips and VSA
  • Interpreting fertiliser recommendations from the new Nutrient Management for Vegetable Crops book (Reid and Morton, 2019) and current fertiliser guidelines for Pipfruit and Grapes.

This will be followed by a short field visit to demonstrate and discuss how to take a representative soil sample from a paddock, as well as using N-Test Strips to understand the amount of plant-available N in soil.

DETAILS

Hastings, HB

  • Tuesday 20th August 1:00pm, Green Shed, 21 Ruahapia Road

Please RSVP for catering purposes to info@landwise.org.nz

We look forward to seeing you there!

 

 

 

Soil Workshop Flyer (HB)

This event is presented as part of “Future Proofing Vegetable Production”, a Sustainable Farming Fund project supported by government, industry and farmers.

events, Nutrients, Soil

Soil Workshop 2 – Gisborne 22nd August

Leaderbrand, 390 Tucker Road
Hexton, Gisborne
1:00 – 3:00pm Thursday 22 August
Please RSVP to info@landwise.org.nz

This workshop follows Soils Workshop 1 that covered soil nutrient sampling, testing and determining nutrient needs.  Growers wanted to revisit soil quality assessment and to cover the Soil Nitrate Quick Test and that is precisely what we’ll do!

This is an outdoor workshop – digging, dropping, sieving and scoring! So stay in your boots and join us.

Visual Soil Assessment

The Visual Soil Assessment (VSA) method uses a series of simple visual checks that are strongly linked to scientific measurements of soil quality. A soil sample is cpompared to sets of three photos, scored and an overall VSA score  determined.

QuickTest for Nitrates

Growers are using the Nitrate Quick Test to determine soil nitrate availability and in many cases reduce side dressing rates, sometimes to nil. It uses a rootzone sample, an extract solution and dipsticks to measure soil solution nitrate concentration. This can be simply converted to kg/ha of available N.

Bring a friend to Hexton, and learn to assess your primary resource!

This event is presented as part of “Future Proofing Vegetable Production”, a Sustainable Farming Fund project supported by government, industry and farmers.

Agronomy, AgTech, Conference, Drainage, events, Fertiliser, Nutrients, Orchard, Precision Agriculture, Projects, Research, Soil, Vegetables, Weeds

LandWISE 2019: Rethinking Best Practice

22-23 May 2019
Havelock North

Do we really know why we farm as we do? Or are we constrained in ways we just don’t see?

Often our current practices have evolved over a very long time – thousands of years of human history, decades of technology developments. Remember the space shuttle and the horse’s rear? We’ve long forgotten some of the reasons behind what we do, so maybe it is time for a reset!

LandWISE was awarded four significant new projects that started in 2018. They cover enhanced GPS, precision drainage for orchards, nitrates in fresh vegetable production and herbicide resistance management. They’ll be among the topics discussed at LandWISE 2019.

LandWISE 2019 Platinum Sponsors

LandWISE 2019 Gold Sponsors

Thank you to our other sponsors…

AgTech, events, MicroFarm

Opportunity to view direct drill in action

We’re hosting FairwoodAgri at the MicroFarm. They’ll be planting some ryegrass for us using their Weaving GD drill, and there for you to ask any questions and see the machinery in action.

Centre for Land and Water
21 Ruahapia Rd
RD10, HASTINGS

Tuesday 7 May

11am – 3.00 pm

Any queries to Dave Mitchell
davefairwood@gmail.com
022 086 9887