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Author: Clarisa Collis

74 results found:
  • Fire adversity turned to opportunity
    Fire adversity turned to opportunity
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2021-04-06T09:00:00+10:00

    South Australian grower Steve Jaeschke has turned the adversity of a fire into an opportunity for intensive soil amelioration works on his family's farm near Bordertown. The Jaeschkes' amelioration program includes clay spreading, delving, spading and deep ripping. It has not only remediated charred non-wetting sands, but also lifted the overall productivity and profitability of the family's farm business since the fire in 2018.

  • The road trip that delivered feats of clay
    The road trip that delivered feats of clay
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2021-03-30T09:00:00+11:00

    From testing the waters to full immersion, South Australian grower from Karkoo, Scott Crettenden, recounts his clay spreading journey from novice to becoming his region’s principal contractor. Scott ameliorated non-wetting sands with a Claymate machine developed specifically for clay spreading as part of a contracting business on SA's Central Eyre Peninsula. Scott estimates the business spread clay on about 12,000 hectares of the region's water-repellent sands between 1997 and 2003.

  • Tackling acidity becomes a mine field for SA family
    Tackling acidity becomes a mine field for SA family
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2021-03-22T09:00:00+11:00

    South Australian grower Scott Crettenden has developed a lime sand mine on one of his properties near Karkoo which is helping tackle widespread, increasing soil acidification on the Eyre Peninsula.

  • Report reveals common safety issues
    Report reveals common safety issues
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2021-02-01T09:00:00+11:00

    New work, health and safety profiling has provided a multi-sector overview of the hazards common to different agricultural sectors and evidence-based recommendations to guide future collaborative research, development and extension investments with the best chance of success

  • Narrow row spacings set up ‘opportunity enterprise’
    Narrow row spacings set up ‘opportunity enterprise’
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2021-01-26T09:00:00+11:00

    The transition to narrower crop row spacings has led to higher yield potential, reduced in-crop weed pressure and increased plant biomass on Richard Konzag's property at Mallala in South Australia's Lower North region.

  • Virtual fencing adds new strand to farm management
    Virtual fencing adds new strand to farm management
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2021-01-08T09:00:00+11:00

    A new series of trials is pushing the boundaries of virtual fencing technology to more strategically manage cattle and sheep grazing for weed control on mixed farms in South Australia.

  • New tool guides Russian wheat aphid management
    New tool guides Russian wheat aphid management
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2020-12-16T09:00:00+11:00

    A new predictive tool for Russian wheat aphid (RWA) management aims to help Australian growers avoid yield losses and unnecessary expenditure on control costs. The tiny exotic pest has expanded its range across the country since it was detected in Tarlee, South Australia in 2016. RWA has been detected in five states in four years, including SA, Victoria, Tasmania, New South Wales and Western Australia.

  • Researchers profile Red leather leaf disease
    Researchers profile Red leather leaf disease
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2020-11-17T00:00:00+11:00

    New southern research findings have highlighted the grain and hay yield losses caused by a common, yet previously little-known, oat cropping disease – Red leather leaf (RLL). The ongoing research led by Agriculture Victoria research scientist Dr Mark McLean shows the disease can cause grain yield losses of up to half a tonne per hectare and hay yield losses between 0.5 and 1t/ha.

  • Common and curious pests unmasked
    Common and curious pests unmasked
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2020-09-20T00:00:00+10:00

    University of Melbourne postgraduate student Josh Douglas has helped demystify the factors contributing to pest outbreaks and crop damage that could help guide management options for growers. Dr Douglas examined four insect species as part of his PhD thesis, co-invested by GRDC and CSIRO, from 2014 –19. These pest species included the Portuguese millipede, a species of slater called the common pill-bug, redlegged earth mite and blue oat mite.

  • Timely safety lessons emerge from header fire
    Timely safety lessons emerge from header fire
    Author: Clarisa Collis, 2020-09-16T00:00:00+10:00

    Mallee grower Ian Hastings has devised a new system to enable fire-fighting from the safety of the tractor cabin, instead of standing in the paddock, after he was seriously injured fighting a blaze in a barley crop on his family's property during harvest last year. The Hastings family – Ian, Cathie, Michael and Megan – crop about 4600 hectares at Ouyen in north-western Victoria.

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