I am an agricultural scientist with a passion for good communication and love of new technology. Over 20 years’ experience in making the technical accurate and accessible, in print or online.
Managing stripe rust in a high-pressure season
In 2022 wheat crops were placed under greater stripe rust pressure than had occurred for many years. Many growers discovered a ‘business-as-usual’ approach was not sufficient to protect crops of susceptible varieties.
This publication 'Managing stripe rust in a high-pressure year' captures the experiences of eight growers across NSW, Victoria and Queensland and the management practices they used to get on top of the challenge.
Climate Eyes
Wimmera residents survived the 10-year Millennium drought. The report “Climate Eyes 2022: we saw, we learnt, we survive’ presents practical tips and shred personal stories that will help others across Australia stand together when the impacts of climate change hit hard in their communities.
GRDC GroundCover Supplement: Pulse Agronomy, May - Jun 2022
GroundCover is Australia's premier grains industry publication, and the Supplement is a feature liftout focusing on one topic.
This issue is Pulse Agronomy - Pushing Pulses from break crop to bank crop.
GRDC GroundCover Supplement: Grain Storage, Jan – Feb 2022
GroundCover is Australia's premier grains industry publication, and the Supplement is a feature liftout focusing on one topic - this issue is Grain Storage.
Today’s grain storage investments support tomorrow’s world.
The past 30 years have been a tumultuous period in grain storage infrastructure and technology.
Boosting on-farm storage with bags and bunkers
With care, bags and bunkers can provide a practical solution to the harvest logistics challenge.
High-quality sealed silos offer top-of-the-range storage, but the boom in demand for on-farm storage means growers are also exploring cheaper options to expand capacity.
Bags and bunkers have become a popular, more affordable choice, but growers need to be on their toes to avoid costly failures with these temporary storage solutions.
THE CLIMATE KELPIE BLOG: The good, the bad and the ugly – charting the impact of East coast lows
Extreme low pressures resulting in cyclonic winds, heavy rainfall and flooding sounds like something you’d expect in the tropics, but East Coast Lows can bring these tumultuous conditions to the southern part of Australia’s East Coast.
THE CLIMATE KELPIE BLOG: Health and productivity focus helps ride out extremes
Nina House knows a thing or two about dealing with uncertainty. Along with her parents, Ashley and Margaret, they have sustained their beef-breeding business in Central West Queensland through the last seven years of drought.
The House family have bred beef cattle at Aramac, in the Desert Uplands since 1983. Their animals are predominantly Brahman, with some crossbred cows. They mostly turn off weaner steers and fat cull cows and some excess heifers.
THE CLIMATE KELPIE BLOG: Probing the value of soil moisture monitoring
Modern banking apps let us check our balance any time, which is important if you need to make a withdrawal. Soil moisture is just like money in the bank – great if you’ve got it, but when you are hoping to convert it into grain or feed it’s handy to know whether there is enough to meet your needs.
NVT Harvest Reports
The National Variety Trials (NVT) program aims to assist Australian grain growers and advisors in varietal decision making by providing the latest independent information on yield, quality and disease ratings.
The Harvest Reports come from the NVT program as soon as possible after the results are released. As part of the program, we produce 16 Harvest Reports for each of our three key regions in Australia.
GRDC GroundCover Supplement: Pulse and oilseed diseases, May-June 2021
GroundCover is Australia's premier grains industry publication, and the Supplement is a feature liftout focusing on one topic - this edition contains articles on pulse and oilseed diseases.
GRDC GroundCover Supplement: Cereal diseases, March-April 2021
GroundCover is Australia's premier grains industry publication, and the Supplement is a feature liftout focusing on one topic - this edition contains 20 articles on cereal diseases.
THE CLIMATE KELPIE BLOG: New forecasting tools aid Red Witchweed cull
Queensland Government Biosecurity Officer Tom Bowditch is looking forward to the public release of new Bureau of Meteorology climate forecasting tools that will fill a need for better medium-term forecasts.
Tasked with coordinating an ambitious $5.8 million eradication program for Red Witchweed in the Mackay region, Tom credits his early access to the experimental forecasts with improving the effectiveness of the program.
THE CLIMATE KELPIE BLOG: Western climate drivers take the road less traveled
In the words of that well-known armchair forecaster, Bob Dylan, ‘the times (and climate) they are a changing’, and this is just as true on the west coast as it is on the east.
Over the last 50 years changes in Western Australia’s climate have increased average annual temperatures by one degree Celsius. While rain in the north and interior has increased, rain in the agriculturally productive regions in the south west and west coast have declined by close to 20 per cent over the same period.
THE CLIMATE KELPIE BLOG: Consensus on forecasts informs decision making
Climate models can help farmers get a feel for climate directions, but they don’t always agree and this can be a real challenge for on-farm planning.
As NSW grower John Hamparsum says, “Climate is one of the main factors impacting a farming business. A farm is basically a factory without a roof on it and any climate — whether it be hot, cold, wet, dry, or windy — will have an impact on your business.”
THE CLIMATE KELPIE BLOG: It takes teamwork to tackle the climate challenge
Whether it is on the sporting field or in the agricultural sector the old adage, a champion team will always beat a team of champions, highlights the importance of a coordinated approach.
While each agricultural industry sector faces its own unique set of climate challenges, there are many issues that impact across multiple industries. For example, developing accurate climate projections is an issue that is common across all sectors.