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Sustainability and profitability of three approaches to farm management.
This important trial is on a farm scale and therefore far more relevant to producers than the 'one acre plot' work which hitherto has been the scale of much published research. We are therefore subject to the same problems faced by the farmers - drought, cold weather, supplementary feeding, organising contractors etc. Thus our results are far more 'real', being on a realistic scale, and therefore more acceptable to the producers.
We have subdivided a 200 ha Central Learning Farm into 3 equal 50ha farms ensuring soil type, slope and drainage is even over the three farms (the remaining 50ha periphery is for other work as listed below). We have a management committee of producers and we have developed detailed "Farm management guidelines" for the Farm Manager to follow. In summary the different treatments are:
• Farm A has high inputs of, for example fertiliser and high production pasture seed. (eg. seed is direct drilled, all eight paddocks to receive super, fertiliser is spread at a higher rate etc.
5 mobs in 8 paddocks
• Farm B has a much lower input of fertiliser, seed goes out with the super, not direct drilled. This treatment is close to the district average. 5 mobs in 8 paddocks. Thus A and B can be directly compared as their inputs are different.
• Farm C is to have the same inputs as Farm B but there are more paddocks (33) so the grazing time and rest time per paddock is different. Thus Farm B and Farm C can be compared, as it is the grazing time and animal rotation which is different.
We are monitoring pasture changes, soil tests and all costs eg labour, fertiliser, animal health, supplementary feed, lambs produced, wool produced, fleece weights, fibre diameter etc so we can compare profitability and sustainability of all three farms.
See our Farmlet Guidelines for details on the seed and fertiliser inputs and the management guidelines
The following trials are also part of the overall work on the profitability and sustainability on the three farms. Despite taking detailed measurements only from July 2000, we are already seeing marked differences between the three farms in worm egg counts and lamb growth rates.
- Survey carried out at formation of The Cicerone Project.
- Worm monitoring (in progress, results to date in Newsletter 16)
- Vitamin B 12 weaner trial Completed. We found no advantage in weight gain for the lambs given the B12 this year.
- Chelated mineral weaner trial Completed. We found no advantage in weight gain for the lambs given the chelated minerals this year.
- Lamb numbers and ewe and lamb growth weights and fat scores (ongoing) Results to go in newsletter 24
- Wool characteristics (2001 and 2002 completed) We are looking at fleece weights, fibre diameter, and tensile strength at shearing to study if there are any differences between the wool from the three farmlets. Results to go in newsletter 24
- Survey of district producers about Mulesing time and treatment (completed, results published in Newsletter 19)
- Effect of time of mulesing on hogget fleece strength (results in Newsletter 23).
We mulesed half the lambs at marking and the other half in autumn and looked at growth rates and fleece characteristics of the hogget fleece to see any weight variation or possible reduction in tensile strength of the wool
- Botanical analysis and satellite imagery of pasture (in progress)
- Radio fence trial (Field trials planned when the technology allows). This technology has great potential especially anyone using rotational or cell grazing systems.
- Tree growth and its effect on welfare of the grazing animal and soil and pasture (planned to start Nov 2002, or when the drought allows).
- Monitor Farm for the Land, Water and Wool program (Due to start in 2003)
- Monitor Farm for the Sheep CRC Precision Wool Growing Project (Due to start in 2003)
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- Footrot trial Phase 1 Armidale RLPB (completed, see articles in Newsletters 5, 6, 7 and 8).
This trial showed that some footrot strains which are gel stable (ie lab virulent) act as benign in the field. This confirms that some producers may have been placed in quarantine even though the strain of bacteria was acting in a benign fashion in the field. The DNA test developed (by Dr Brian Cheetham of UNE) in conjunction with this trial can detect which strains are truly virulent and which are truly benign. Foot conformation was also found to be an issue for producers to consider when selecting sheep.
- Footrot trial Phase 2 Molong RLPB (completed, results in Newsletter 11).
This trial showed the same results were obtained with the same strains of bacteria when moved to another climate. These results have been presented at the Australian Veterinary Conference in May 2001 (See articles by Betty Hall in Newsletters 3 and 14)
- Cross breed meat sheep trial (complete, results in Newsletters 11 and 18)
This trial looked at the various breeds of South African meat breeds of sheep when crossed with merino ewes.
- Treatment off shears in a cold climate in the month prior to lambing (phase 1 completed, results in Newsletter 15, phase 2 using completed, results in newsletter 23)
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