Starborough-Flaxbourne Soil Conservation Project
Low rainfall, exacerbated by westerly winds has led to soil erosion in the Starborough-Flaxbourne region, especially on north-facing hill country. There have been droughts in seven of the past 10 years. It is one of the driest regions in the country. Grazing whatever cover does appear on these faces can lead to the death of the plants and result in bare land, subject to erosion.
Farmers used a number of measures to cope with the droughts, including destocking their farms, but the long-term impact has been economic hardship for families and the whole community. Many farmers became increasingly concerned by the impact of drought and the continuous soil loss, and more than 60 people were attracted to a workshop on the issue in Seddon in late 2004, hosted by NZ Landcare Trust. Farmers wanted a range of options identified and assessed for the long term sustainable management of their fragile, dry countryside.
After the workshop the Starborough-Flaxbourne Soil Conservation Group was formed, to seek funding for farm-based trials. In May 2005 a grant of $220,000 was made by Sustainable Farming Fund, and Agriculture Minister Jim Sutton came to the area in July to see first hand. The community will also be contributing $60,000-plus a year through labour, time or cash. The Marlborough Research Council and the Marlborough District Council are also involved.
The project is designed to be community-driven and linking science providers, farmers and agencies on a regular basis with an emphasis on achievable, practical outcomes. Components include farm business modelling, pasture plants for dry-land farming, soil science, climate change, landscape and social issues. Six science providers with a sound knowledge of each of these components have been recruited to the project: Richard Hunter (soils), Gavin Kenny (climate change), Graeme Ogle (farm business modelling), Barrie Wills (pasture plants) and Paul Millen (landscape).
Two focus farms have been selected, one of which is the Averys Bonaveree farm. Potential farm management options will be modelled and tested over three years, using real farm environments and incorporating farmer experience, with input from the specialists.
There will be workshops for the whole community, to help them think differently about farm management to ensure the long-term sustainability of soils, vegetation and ultimately farms. The community is exploring resilience under climate change.
In early August Doug Avery and John Peter joined with Barrie Wills to establish trial paddocks for dryland species. Wills was a researcher for AgResearch, Landcare Research and DSIR before setting up his own consultancy in Central Otago. His speciality is identifying plant materials for tussock grassland and drought prone of semi-arid areas, and determining their establishment and management. Salt bushes were planted and a dry land pasture species mix oversown or drilled while there was still some moisture in the soil, thanks to some welcome rain. Both sites were ripped before planting.
The dry land pasture species mix was wheatgrass, dorycnium, sheeps burnett, lotus, plantain and several other legumes and herbs. Initial ground cover estimates were that bare ground dominated on both sites (mean 58%) with grass cover at 35%. Existing ground cover was therefore quite thin despite a mild winter and good growth last season. There was only minor litter levels as most of it had blown away. But this is not called a full-scale drought, because spring was relatively kind with several good rainfalls following on from a mild winter. Historical rainfall is 525mm/year. In recent years that average has been 450mm.
Our vision is far grander than just salt bush, just troubled hills or just valley floors. Its about moving thinking, preserving our natural capital, moving our farming systems to long-tern sustainability, not just to sit around waiting for rain. For each farm or farmer, there will be different processes and different opportunities. Those who adopt those processes and opportunities will be the market drivers of our district in the future. Doug Avery, Starborough-Flaxbourne Soil Conservation newsletter, October 2005.
Bonaveree is 1100ha of dry hard hill country (one-third), plus rolling south-facing hill country and 200ha of fertile flats. In 1997 Doug had a small area of lucerne on the flats, he now has almost all the flats covered in lucerne, plus some hill areas.
Lucerne, or alfalfa, is a deep-rooted herbaceous perennial which has a high energy level (about 12 ME) and 30% protein. It can be intensively grazed, using break-feeding, or baled for fodder conservation. Doug also produces lucerne seed for harvest and sale, which has become a specialisation of the property. He would not be farming Bonaveree without the positives of lucerne. It has turned his farming around, created profitable lamb production and now provides the cashflow to begin establishing other alternative species, such as saltbush and tagasate (tree lucerne) and address the soil erosion problems. Half of farm income is from lamb sales and one-quarter from lucerne seed sales.
Lambs are finished to 17-17.5kgCW on lucerne from three weeks to 12.5 weeks, at growth rates of up to 400g/day. The average growth rate for all lambs (excluding hogget lambs) in 2004 was 388g/head/day from birth to slaughter. Lambing starts in late July and this year 90% of lambs, from the ewes were away by late November. The big Corriedale-Poll Dorset ewes (68-70kgs at mating) achieved 128% this year.
Doug is using Rissington Highlander rams and looking for another 30% lambing. He also mates ewe lambs to produce as hoggets and scans 115% from them, which is an outstanding result. He flushes ewes on Omaka barley (50ha) and moves the twin-lamb ewes on to lucerne three weeks after giving birth, about the third week in August. The lambs must then stay on the lucerne until drafting to achieve the fantastic growth rates. There are some issues with lucerne-only feeding, to do with high nutrient levels, and stock must have access to hay or straw, especially in spring. This helps the rumen cope with the energy-rich lucerne and avoid red gut. Ewes with single lambs are run on the hill country and the growth rates are nothing like those on lucerne.
The Averys prefer to use lucerne as standing feed in the spring and then lock it up for flowering in summer and seed production in March. They cut and conserve, very little these days.
This is a race to get the lambs finished before summer. Every animal on the place over summer has to be the most valuable we can make it. Each one is competing with the others for feed.
The Averys also have some Angus breeding cows, run on the hard country, producing calves for the Five Star feedlot, Ashburton. They bring in some dairy bull calves to graze on lucerne to end April, when they are moved to the barley to groom it before the lambing ewes. Some 200 dairy grazing cows are also bought in to manage the hill country for the single-lambing ewes.
Lucerne has got the heart of this farm pumping again. In the third year of continuous drought (which has cost us over $800,000) we withdrew to the highly productive areas of the farm, to concentrate the spending. Now that has been so successful we can expand again, and pull in the remedial work on the damaged lands.
With an estimated 70-80ha of bare land and eroded areas, Doug says time will be needed to fix the problems. It took eight years to create, and it will take eight years to make good.
On a block called Vietnam the Averys have fenced off an area and planted saltbush, by ripping along the contour lines and planting bushes every 2 to 4 metres. The surrounding country will go into barley and then lucerne seed to pay for the remedial work.
Doug visited arid Australia and saw the transformation wrought by saltbush, which provided windbreaks, stopped soil loss and was also stock fodder. However tagasate may be even more exciting, because it provides winter feed for bumble bees (essential to pollinate lucerne) and a highly nutritious feed for sheep.
Doug is also planning to plant silver tussocks again, after years of grazing them down and losing them. Another farmer, Martin Pattie, is using sulla to good effect.
Farmers used a number of measures to cope with the droughts, including destocking their farms, but the long-term impact has been economic hardship for families and the whole community. Many farmers became increasingly concerned by the impact of drought and the continuous soil loss, and more than 60 people were attracted to a workshop on the issue in Seddon in late 2004, hosted by NZ Landcare Trust. Farmers wanted a range of options identified and assessed for the long term sustainable management of their fragile, dry countryside.
After the workshop the Starborough-Flaxbourne Soil Conservation Group was formed, to seek funding for farm-based trials. In May 2005 a grant of $220,000 was made by Sustainable Farming Fund, and Agriculture Minister Jim Sutton came to the area in July to see first hand. The community will also be contributing $60,000-plus a year through labour, time or cash. The Marlborough Research Council and the Marlborough District Council are also involved.
The project is designed to be community-driven and linking science providers, farmers and agencies on a regular basis with an emphasis on achievable, practical outcomes. Components include farm business modelling, pasture plants for dry-land farming, soil science, climate change, landscape and social issues. Six science providers with a sound knowledge of each of these components have been recruited to the project: Richard Hunter (soils), Gavin Kenny (climate change), Graeme Ogle (farm business modelling), Barrie Wills (pasture plants) and Paul Millen (landscape).
Two focus farms have been selected, one of which is the Averys Bonaveree farm. Potential farm management options will be modelled and tested over three years, using real farm environments and incorporating farmer experience, with input from the specialists.
There will be workshops for the whole community, to help them think differently about farm management to ensure the long-term sustainability of soils, vegetation and ultimately farms. The community is exploring resilience under climate change.
In early August Doug Avery and John Peter joined with Barrie Wills to establish trial paddocks for dryland species. Wills was a researcher for AgResearch, Landcare Research and DSIR before setting up his own consultancy in Central Otago. His speciality is identifying plant materials for tussock grassland and drought prone of semi-arid areas, and determining their establishment and management. Salt bushes were planted and a dry land pasture species mix oversown or drilled while there was still some moisture in the soil, thanks to some welcome rain. Both sites were ripped before planting.
The dry land pasture species mix was wheatgrass, dorycnium, sheeps burnett, lotus, plantain and several other legumes and herbs. Initial ground cover estimates were that bare ground dominated on both sites (mean 58%) with grass cover at 35%. Existing ground cover was therefore quite thin despite a mild winter and good growth last season. There was only minor litter levels as most of it had blown away. But this is not called a full-scale drought, because spring was relatively kind with several good rainfalls following on from a mild winter. Historical rainfall is 525mm/year. In recent years that average has been 450mm.
Our vision is far grander than just salt bush, just troubled hills or just valley floors. Its about moving thinking, preserving our natural capital, moving our farming systems to long-tern sustainability, not just to sit around waiting for rain. For each farm or farmer, there will be different processes and different opportunities. Those who adopt those processes and opportunities will be the market drivers of our district in the future. Doug Avery, Starborough-Flaxbourne Soil Conservation newsletter, October 2005.
Bonaveree is 1100ha of dry hard hill country (one-third), plus rolling south-facing hill country and 200ha of fertile flats. In 1997 Doug had a small area of lucerne on the flats, he now has almost all the flats covered in lucerne, plus some hill areas.
Lucerne, or alfalfa, is a deep-rooted herbaceous perennial which has a high energy level (about 12 ME) and 30% protein. It can be intensively grazed, using break-feeding, or baled for fodder conservation. Doug also produces lucerne seed for harvest and sale, which has become a specialisation of the property. He would not be farming Bonaveree without the positives of lucerne. It has turned his farming around, created profitable lamb production and now provides the cashflow to begin establishing other alternative species, such as saltbush and tagasate (tree lucerne) and address the soil erosion problems. Half of farm income is from lamb sales and one-quarter from lucerne seed sales.
Lambs are finished to 17-17.5kgCW on lucerne from three weeks to 12.5 weeks, at growth rates of up to 400g/day. The average growth rate for all lambs (excluding hogget lambs) in 2004 was 388g/head/day from birth to slaughter. Lambing starts in late July and this year 90% of lambs, from the ewes were away by late November. The big Corriedale-Poll Dorset ewes (68-70kgs at mating) achieved 128% this year.
Doug is using Rissington Highlander rams and looking for another 30% lambing. He also mates ewe lambs to produce as hoggets and scans 115% from them, which is an outstanding result. He flushes ewes on Omaka barley (50ha) and moves the twin-lamb ewes on to lucerne three weeks after giving birth, about the third week in August. The lambs must then stay on the lucerne until drafting to achieve the fantastic growth rates. There are some issues with lucerne-only feeding, to do with high nutrient levels, and stock must have access to hay or straw, especially in spring. This helps the rumen cope with the energy-rich lucerne and avoid red gut. Ewes with single lambs are run on the hill country and the growth rates are nothing like those on lucerne.
The Averys prefer to use lucerne as standing feed in the spring and then lock it up for flowering in summer and seed production in March. They cut and conserve, very little these days.
This is a race to get the lambs finished before summer. Every animal on the place over summer has to be the most valuable we can make it. Each one is competing with the others for feed.
The Averys also have some Angus breeding cows, run on the hard country, producing calves for the Five Star feedlot, Ashburton. They bring in some dairy bull calves to graze on lucerne to end April, when they are moved to the barley to groom it before the lambing ewes. Some 200 dairy grazing cows are also bought in to manage the hill country for the single-lambing ewes.
Lucerne has got the heart of this farm pumping again. In the third year of continuous drought (which has cost us over $800,000) we withdrew to the highly productive areas of the farm, to concentrate the spending. Now that has been so successful we can expand again, and pull in the remedial work on the damaged lands.
With an estimated 70-80ha of bare land and eroded areas, Doug says time will be needed to fix the problems. It took eight years to create, and it will take eight years to make good.
On a block called Vietnam the Averys have fenced off an area and planted saltbush, by ripping along the contour lines and planting bushes every 2 to 4 metres. The surrounding country will go into barley and then lucerne seed to pay for the remedial work.
Doug visited arid Australia and saw the transformation wrought by saltbush, which provided windbreaks, stopped soil loss and was also stock fodder. However tagasate may be even more exciting, because it provides winter feed for bumble bees (essential to pollinate lucerne) and a highly nutritious feed for sheep.
Doug is also planning to plant silver tussocks again, after years of grazing them down and losing them. Another farmer, Martin Pattie, is using sulla to good effect.