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Eric Harvey of Geurie, Central Western NSW, has a complete farm management system into which he feeds data and from which he takes advice. An extremely successful grazier, Eric proves the adage that "Knowledge Is Power". This presentation was given at the Carbon farming Expo & Conference in Orange NSW Australia in November 2008.
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GilgaiA Passion for
Solutions
Our CREEDS
C – Celebrate, Challenge and Commitment
R – Respect, Responsibility, Reward, Recognition
Restore and Repair
E – Ethical Business Dealing
E – Expect Excellence, Education
D – ‘Do No Harm’, Discipline
S – Share,
Self: Awareness, Monitoring, Motivation
Our Belief
Soil Health
Plant Health
Animal Health
Human Health
www.eatwild.com
www.soilfoodweb.com.au
Our Passion is Soil Health
We define our Soil Health as:
“Soil with a good mineral balance, high organic matter, high diversity and high
active microbial biomass that will produce High Quality Healthy
Agricultural Products at Low Cost”
• Human Health and Disease are directly linked to Nutrition
• Nutrition comes from Food / Agriculture
• Current system of food production has degenerated our food, health and environment
The Link
THE BIG PICTURE
The plant you see is the ‘above-ground part’ of -
A complex symbiosis (relationship) with soil microbes in the root zone
3. How many are present.
4. Are they the right kinds for the desired plants?
The Biology
1. Understanding soil health requires knowing what organisms occur.
2. Which ones are working.
www.soilfoodweb.com.au
The Biological Approach
“If you don’t know what organisms are present in your soil, on and in your
plants leaves, much of your management is being left to
chance.”
www.soilfoodweb.com.au
Our Monitoring Tools
– Soil Health and Landscape Function• “Quickchecks”• Land Function Analysis • EAL and SFI
– People• “Vanguard Satisfaction Index”• Annual Appraisals
– Financial Security• Return on Assets Managed• Profitability
Monitoring & Evaluation Of Solutions
• Solutions are evidence based (data from June 2000)
• Software “PAM QA+ with Mapping and Individual Animal Records, Pasture Watch
Individual Animal Records
Paddock Performance Monitoring (DSE/grazing days/hectare/paddock)
‘Pastures from Space’ shows
Our Carrying Capacity monitored against Pasture Growth Rate
Paddock Pasture Growth Rate
Paddock Grazing History and Rainfall
TDM (Ground Cover)Production & FOO
“Quickchecks” Land Health Monitoring
“Quickchecks” (Broken Dam)
“Quickchecks” Monitoring (Broken Dam)
August 2006 May 2008
“Quickchecks” (Broken Dam)
“Quickchecks” (Broken Dam)August 2006 May 2008
“Quickchecks” (Broken Dam)
“Quickchecks” (Broken Dam 29 05/2008)
“Quickchecks” (Broken Dam 05/2008)
www.co2science.org/articles/V5/N11/COM.php
‘People Monitoring’
Satisfaction comparisions 2005 and 2006
0.00
0.20
0.40
0.60
0.80
1.00
I feel accepted by friends
My family is close
I have freedom to spend tim...
Say what I like Clear expectations
time we spend together
We are able to make decisi...Family members make deci...We have lots of argumentsAny criticism of me is fair
We work well to solve pro... common sense of purpose
fun things together2006
2005
Definitions: Experimentation, Testing
& Assessment
AND/OR….
Ordeal, Hardship & Learning
THE TRIALS
Trials and Tribulations
• Our Land Purchase
• Our Grazing Trials
• Our Beef Trials
• Our Sheep Trials
• Our Cropping Trials
• Our Compost Tea (Biology Trials)
Firbella Properties Pty Ltd
‘Cooee’ 2004
‘Firbank’ 2000
‘Glenara’ 2006
‘Murga Ridge’ 2006
‘Gilgai’ 2000
‘Comobella’ 2000
‘Loisville’ 2007
Basalt
Macquarie Thrust Sheet
Cudal Thrust Sheet
Surat & Gunnedah Basin
Our Surface Geology
Sandstone
Loams & Clay Loams
White Clays
Sodic soils
Our ‘Soil Profile’ and Erosion on “Glenara”
Sodic Soils on ‘Murga Ridge’
White Clay on ‘Firbank’
Red Sandy Loams on ‘Gilgai’
Heavy Black Self-Mulching Basalt on ‘Firbank’
Our Grazing Trials
Set stocking, Rotational grazing
Time controlled cell grazingFeed controlled cell grazing
Our solution: A mix of the above (Mainly cell grazing)
Infrastructure Established For Cell Grazing(with assistance from CW CMA & Stipa)
WATER
• 9 new dams (total storage of 100 megs)
• Solar powered borehole
• Mobile Pumping Station
• 74 new Cell Centre watering points• 44 kilometres of 2” piping
Our Cell Centres
Ballimore Rd Pdk 26/09/2008
Infrastructure established For Cell Grazing
(with assistance from CW CMA & Stipa)
WIRE
• 68 kilometres hinge-joint fencing
• 43 kilometres of electric fencing
• Converted 87 paddocks to 184 paddocks
Our Hinge Joint & Electric Fencing
Livestock Grazed Together
Our Grazing Trials
East Middle – 12/02/2008
1200 DSE/HA
Ballimore Rd 26/09/2008
Our Beef Trials
5 beef breeds with cross-breeding and pure blood lines on progeny
performance.
Our Solution:
Simmental Purebred
One of Our Simmental Cows with her 3 month old Calf
Joels September 2005
Our Beef atRAS Sydney 2006
10 month old Simmental Steer – 456 kg
The Meat from
‘527’
Brisbane ‘Ekka’ Entrant 2006 542kg at 13months, 71% meat yield
Our Sheep Trials
Merino sheep and
cross-breeding
Our Solution: Pure Merino medium fine wools
“The Flock”
Shearing Time
Our Wool Clip History
Our Cropping Trials
We cropped cereals, legumes, forbs and pasture through conventional, direct-drill
& zero-till methods.
Our Solution:
Native and exotic perennial pasture mix established by our Method