It may come as no surprise to both farmers and hunters that better coordination of on-farm hunting activities is required.

This is one of the preliminary findings of the Australian Hunter and Landowner Survey, currently open to farmers and hunters around the country.

Pastoral producers are looking for savvier ways to make life and work easier, more efficient, and more productive. This year Bestprac and Australian Wool Innovation are profiling innovations from Australian pastoral properties to help you find ways to make beneficial changes to your own business

Katie Fisher, AgriHort Communications
Queensland producer Robert Brown knows only too well how important it is to stay proactive, optimistic and information hungry – even when times are tough and a drought seems never ending.

AgriHort Communications

Far west New South Wales has once again been plagued with a short to medium term weather forecast that predicts no rain for at least the next four months. Therefore, pastoralists now must make some serious business decisions, with feed quality predicted to decline and livestock needing to be maintained.

Leading Sheep QLD regularly run webinars on subjects for Pastoral Zone wool producers. These recordings are available by following our links below.

By Katie Fisher from Agrihort Communications

Meeting the growing trend of a casually-dressed society, the demands of emerging consumer markets in China and the long-time absent market in Russia are the key objectives for wool marketing in Australia this year.

AWI's Beyond the Bale September 2013 edition

Young Climate Champion woolgrower James Walker from Queensland has modified his production practices in response to climatic and seasonal variability. James has provided more watering points for his sheep, and harvests grass during times of peak production to capture quality feed while it is available. James is also using dynamic weather forecasting models to help predict rainfall patterns.

by Liz Guerin

The contribution of non-domestic grazing pressure to pastoral areas of western NSW has been reported to increase grazing intensity by at least 50%. So, if you are a good manager and making stocking decisions to conserve feed, this can be a huge issue - both environmentally and financially.

Australian Wool Innovation Ltd
Without a substantial and co-ordinated effort, wild dogs may eliminate the sheep industry from entire pastoral zone of Australia within 30-40 years.

The extent of the wild dog expansion across Australia is outlined in a new scientific review by Ben Allen and Peter West from the Invasive Animals CRC published in this month’s Australian Veterinary Journal.

By Liz Guerin
In August of this year, the draft National Wild Dog Action Plan will be released for public consultation, after six months of project work initiated by WoolProducers Australia. 

By Pene Keynes

After a long period of dry, rain on the roof was a welcome sound at the joint Natural Resources Arid Lands and Bestprac forum, ‘Looking beyond the Horizon’ in Hawker on May 31. 

By Pene Keynes

Controlling dogs in the pastoral zone is vital for the future of the wool industry in this zone. Currently, a lot of funding and energy is being put into tackling this issue, through the ongoing operations of the ‘Bite Back’ program.

By Liz Guerin

Look up in the sky...is it a bird? Is it a plane? No... it may be a drone, or Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV).

Long used for military purposes, several Australian companies are using drones for real estate and mining purposes and, with equipment costs falling, the possibilities for applications in both agriculture and pastoral industries are vast.

Australian Wool Innovation

Applications are now being sought for the next Wild Dog Control program from Australian Wool Innovation (AWI).

Stage one achieved control methods across 1.3 million square kilometres of country in every mainland state of Australia through almost 50 wild dog control groups.

By Liz Guerin

Telemetry is a technology that allows data measurements to be made from a distance. In the pastoral sector it is used mainly for monitoring and control of stock water including tank monitoring or pump control, monitoring pipelines, mills and bores, and provides a 24/7 watch over watering points.

Whilst not replacing the need for checking troughs and tanks, telemetry can save pastoralists considerable time and money.

From Beyond the Bale

Young woolgrower Dan Korff uses the latest on-farm technology to provide productivity efficiencies on the property he manages, ‘Avington’ in central Victoria. Dan loves the wool industry and is passionate about encouraging the next generation to join it.

From Beyond the Bale

With many rural-based businesses adjusting to greater competition for skilled labour and the continued migration of people to urban centres, a recent study has highlighted the important role that employers play in attracting and retaining staff in the pastoral livestock industries.

Meat and Livestock Australia

Researchers suggest populations of feral pigs can triple each year during good seasons if not controlled.

Increasing feral pig populations threaten Australia’s agricultural viability, biosecurity and environment, but a number of control measures have been developed with support from MLA.

Over 130 smartphone Apps have been listed and road-tested in a ‘Smartphone Apps for Farmers’ compendium. The free PDF booklet is available from the SA Ag Excellence Alliance website. Check it out here

What's Climate Kelpie?

Climate Kelpie is for Australian farmers and their advisors. It connects you to tools and information about climate to help you make decisions about your farm business.

Farmer case studies - Folow this link to read about how farmers are working with the climate.

by Liz Guerin
Dogs are said to be ‘man’s best friend’ but with wild dogs costing Queensland alone an estimated $67 million per year in livestock losses, disease spread and control, many pastoralists are looking for a new ‘best friend’ as a solution.

Enter, the guardians! Alpacas, donkeys and maremma dogs are being used with success as the sheeps’ ‘best friend’ (or the friend of any domestic livestock or free range poultry) and can be an effective tool against predators.

by Angus Whyte

Below are some examples of the type of questions people are asking when they are faced with a shift to a planned grazing system?

The Australian goatmeat industry has experienced strong growth, over the past 20 years, with over 1.5 million goats processed annually. This growth has been largely supported by the sale of goats sourced from the rangelands which accounts for more than 90 percent of production.

Report on Australian Rangelands Conference at Kununurra, Western Australia September 23-27, 2012
Kevin Ingram

This was a truly applicable theme for the 17th Biennial Australian Rangelands Society Conference held at the Kununurra Leisure Centre, Western Australia. I saw the range of landscape diversity from the East Kimberley Ranges, involving the Durack Family “Kings in Grass Castles” history, to the wildlife activity of the scenic waterways of Lake Argyle and the Ord River. Business diversity was evident in agriculture, horticulture, tourism and mining developments. From indigenous culture and art to future beef production programs, I had a truly extraordinary experience.

By Angus Whyte

I flew into Darwin very early on Saturday (22nd) morning, spent a few hours going around the Parap markets and getting some supplies for the trip to Kununurra (850km). I had to wait as Annabel Walsh and Becky Kossler flew in to Darwin at 2pm, then we all drove to Katherine, then on to Kununurra on Sunday, arriving in Kununurra at about 3pm local time (to register), after some detours and sightseeing on the drive from Katherine (another story!).

Fumigation is a valuable tool in successful rabbit management programs. It is an effective follow-up technique to poison baiting and warren ripping, and is a particularly useful control method in areas where other techniques cannot be used (eg poison baiting). Fumigation works by replacing the air in warrens with lethal gasses, which are in-turn inhaled by rabbits, causing them to suffocate and die.

Paper submitted at the Rangelands Conference 2012

By Angus Whyte, Landholder Wyndham Station Wentworth NSW and Peter Jessop Rangeland Scientist DPI Dareton NSW

A bit of background and explanation of where we live, Wyndham is a 12,500ha property on the Anabranch River in Western NSW about 200km south of Broken Hill; we graze sheep and cattle as well as from time to time opportunistically crop some of our floodplain country. I’m a fourth generation landholder in the area, my parents live on another property about 20km away and we help them with the running of their property when required.

PROJECT BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Early in 2011 a sample of blowfly larvae collected from struck ewe lambs on a Nimmitabel property were submitted to NSW DPI (Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute) as a possible cyromazine1 breakdown. Wether lambs on the same property that had been treated with dicyclanil2 were not affected. The property had a long history of cyromazine and dicyclanil use but it was deduced that the ewe lambs had been under-dosed with a cyromazine spray-on product.

Mick Alexander

Pre 1990, our farming systems included a program of ploughing, scarifying and cultivating multiple times before planting a crop. This methodology had its drawback including loss of carbon, often serious erosion and loss of topsoil during high rainfall events.

by Liz Guerin
Being able to communicate is a vital part of society and now Australian researchers from Flinders University, Adelaide, are working to ensure everyone has access to telecommunications.

By Jane Garrett

The WA Group ran it’s Climate Change Workshop at Hamelin Station on 18th and 19th May with session leader David Galloway from Ferart Design & Northwest Carbon.

By Liz Guerin
EMU™ numbers are taking off in the arid lands of South Australia – and according to Coober Pedy based NRM officer, Janet Walton, this is a good thing!

We are of course referring to the number of pastoral properties participating in the Ecosystem Management Understanding (EMU)™ project, and not the long legged, feathered variety.

By Mark Gardner

On the 13th December some 32 producers and industry people gathered to look at and discuss new water monitoring technology and to see some in action on Mike and Meg Bennett’s property “Kirkton” Narromine, some 45 km west of Dubbo, on the banks of the Macquarie River.

The day show cased some of the latest technology related to water monitoring.

Australian Pastoral Property Innovation Manual - order now

Forum Presentations available to review

Invasive Animal CRC launches PestSmart toolkits.

By Mick Alexander, Grazing BestPrac

By Liz Guerin

By John Squires, Rural Directions Pty Ltd

Lauren Costin, Productive Nutrition
Productive Nutrition are independent agricultural consultants based in South Australia and are using their experience and expertise in livestock nutrition to investigate saltbush and its value to livestock grazing systems.
 

By Liz Guerin
Wild dogs do unquestionable damage to sheep flocks and in many instances have been the primary factor contributing to producers moving out of sheep industries.
 

By Mark Gardner

Feral dogs maim and kill sheep, AWI has two major projects in wild dog control.

By Greg Curran
Regional Veterinary Officer
NSW Dept Industry & Investment

Mark Gardner, Vanguard Business Services, NSW
On 2 and 3 July 2009 a dozen people undertook a car convoy trip from Coonamble to Cobar and Nyngan as part of the Innovations project.

By Chelsea Muster, Rural Directions Pty Ltd

Which are you using, LEAD or LAG indicators?

By Brian and Margie Rowe, Carrieton Bestprac Group

By Chelsea Muster, Rural Directions Pty Ltd

Three years in the making, and here it is! South Australian Pastoral producers now have a set of responsive grazing management tools that are specifically designed for South Australian land systems.

 By Chelsea Muster, Rural Directions Pty Ltd

A recent workshop held at North Well Station, in the North East, has highlighted the importance of water budgeting and analysis of water quality to pastoralists.