New Zealand Study Tour Report

The study tour was conducted from 29^th October to 6^th November, 2009 and encompassed visits to farms, demonstration sites and research stations. It culminated with attendance at the New Zealand Grasslands Association annual conference held in the beautiful Bay of Islands area.   The group of ten was made up of 7 Victorians, a couple from NSW and tour leader, Michael Pocock from SA. It was a great bunch of people to travel with, and made for a very enjoyable 8 or 9 days.

 

There was also a lot of information to take in and experiences to learn from. Of the farm visits, one that stood out was a property called Hyde Park Farms at Santoft, southern Rangitikei, just near the coast west of Palmerston Nth. This property consisted of nearly 900 hectares, milking 1100 cows and also running a beef herd. The interesting aspect of this operation was the way the land has been transformed to create a productive farm.

 

The soil type consists of two sands, one a light grey sand and the other a heavy black sand. The near constant coastal winds not only cause a lot of evaporation, but also over time have formed the land into a series of sand ridges up to 20 feet high. These ridges more or less run parallel, in line with the prevailing wind. The owners of the farm have utilised earth-moving equipment to largely level out the landscape and then installed centre pivot irrigators. The visual effect was quite dramatic, especially where the irrigator-wheel was diverted over the top of the cattle-yards with a bit of home-made engineering. The effect on productivity, and value, of the land was even more marked and a real credit to the owners and manager.

 

The research sites we visited were also interesting, and varied. The AgResearch laboratories at Palmerston Nth were involved in many aspects of scientific investigation related to agriculture. The work on developing a more persistent white clover involved a cross-breeding program, attempting to cross white clover with some of the more than 250 other species of trifolium. Bumble bees are used in the cross-pollination process. To ensure they only transfer the desired pollen, they are first caught, washed by hand, and then released into the controlled trial plots – hard to picture the actual process of washing a bee, but we were assured it is a relatively easy task.

On another level, there was a range of research activities being undertaken at Tokanui Reseach station in the dairy–rich Waikato region. This is a fairly new development that is still being established. There is a 60 unit rotary for the main herd, and alongside that is a nearly completed 20 unit dairy that had the entire array of electronic measuring equipment. Milk components and quality, feeding regimes and management are all part of the trial work. At this research site and others visited, we were all impressed with the way in which government and private enterprise are working together to provide the resources required for the work being undertaken.

 

The highlight of the tour for me was the NZ Grassland Association conference over the final three days. There was a wealth and breadth of information presented, with the stunning venue, on the edge of the Bay of Islands in Northland only exceeded by the level of organisation. The conference included two afternoons of farm visits, which showcased some of the local approaches to managing the kikuyu dominant pastures of the region. The rest of the conference provided a plethora of information, disseminated primarily through spoken presentations, and secondarily via poster papers. There was too much information to summarise all of it here, so a brief outline of some of the more relevant subjects follows.

Programmed approach to pasture renewal. This paper sought to lay out a strategic approach to pasture renovation. Although nothing new, the strategy emphasised the importance of two autumn herbicide knockdowns over an 18 month period. Because of local circumstances, all clovers were excluded for twelve months as a means to eliminate or at least control clover pests. The underlying goal of this program was quite specific – it was not a vague hope of “improving” pastures but actually sought to lift the average energy value of the pasture sward. It was suggested that lifting the average metabolisable energy (ME) level of the pasture from 10.5 MJ/kg to 11 MJ/kg could lead to a 50-60% increase in milk solids production.

 

Forage crop sequences to achieve 45t DM/ha per year. The dairy industry in NZ has set a target of 45t DM/ha/yr of forage with an average ME value of 11 MJ/kg. This target was achieved in the trial reported in this paper using a sequence of maize followed by a winter oat crop. Sequences combining summer brassica and winter cereal crops did not meet the target. In another trial with a similar goal, best yields were obtained with a maize – triticale combination.

 

Phosphorous application and Pasja. Different rates of phosphorous (0, 20, 40, 60 kg/ha) were applied to crops of Pasja (forage rape) to see what the optimium level of application was. The most effective result was obtained at 40kg P/ha. Measurements of leaf area index and radiation interception indicated that the total accumulated solar interception was 8% greater when P was applied compared to zero P. Response to applied phosphorous was even across a range of soil Olsen P levels suggesting the application of P at establishment was more important than actual soil P levels.

 

Composition of high sugar grasses. Cultivars of ryegrass known as high sugar grasses were compared with other cultivars to consider plant sugar levels, and how this correlated to protein content of those grasses. It was argued that plants with higher sugar levels will provide more energy to enhance the efficiency of protein utilisation. This will cause more protein to be available for growth and production, with less broken down and excreted as urea. The key finding was that the ratio of plant sugar to protein was more important than sugar levels. Higher ratios measured were in the range of 1.5 to 1.9 carbohydrate:protein. These levels were recorded in both “high sugar grasses” and other cultivars.

 

Evaluation of Tonic Plantain for lactating ewes. This paper reports on a field experiment conducted over two years, where ewes with lambs were grazed on either Tonic Plantain or perennial ryegrass. In both years lamb liveweight gain was faster on plantain. During lactation, ewe liveweight on ryegrass decreased while increasing on plantain. Faecal egg counts in the ewes were significantly lower for the plantain group.

 

 

Greater detail on these and other topics covered at the conference can be provided on request.

 

I would like to thank the Grassland Society of Southern Australia for their generous contribution towards the cost of this trip, through the Gilbert Tippet Travel Grant. This financial assistance was very much appreciated. I would also like to thank Melinda Mann for all her hard work in organising the tour and Michael Pocock for his leadership of the group.

 

James O’Brien.