There is a tendency to treat agriculture and forestry separately when addressing natural-resource concerns, but agroforestry offers a set of conservation and production technologies that can help to integrate forestry and agriculture efforts beyond carbon cycles, such as water quality and biological diversity.
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In the soil, the decomposition of living things forms the soil carbon sponge, which can resiliently sustain plant life, affect the earth’s hydrology and heat balance, and may give humans the near-term leverage we need to avert catastrophic climate change, restore hydrologic function, maintain our economies and civilizations, and maintain and enhance human health.
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In this essay David Smith contends that the message that agricultural scientists have promoted for decades and the core of the courses in land management they have taught, is acceptable, and a recognition of the work of the agricultural science/natural resource management profession.
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A world analysis of the feed consumption of all livestock classes shows that the bulk of their diets are supplied by pasture, browse, food processing wastes and bi-products. Just 13% is supplied by grains that could be used for human food production.
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The Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) program trains farmers in agroforestry techniques that increase their resilience and food security in the face of hotter, drier growing conditions.
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Study of the mostly microscopic soil food web has been going on for decades but is now attracting more interest from researchers looking for environmentally benign methods to improve agriculture.
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I would not recommend this book to most farmers, they have many other more balanced publications and knowledge sources to help them understand and adopt a holistic approach to decision making.
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By working with nature farm productivity is rewarded with optimum lamb and ewe welfare, optimum lambing percentage, and optimum pasture growth to support ewe milk production and lamb growth rate. Applying some simple pasture management techniques supports natural sheep reproduction cycles, pasture growth and paddock ecosystem functions.
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Michael Lyons’ Nuffield report recommendations provide an excellent blue print for any livestock business to operate under or at the very least consider seriously.
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In balancing conservation concerns and agricultural aims, there are other factors to consider, including what farmers want and what happens to crops growing near forests.
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The latest CSIRO Biodiversity Knowledge Project seems premised on agriculture being a negative force. In reality farmers have some really positive stories of land use and climate resilience, which we should be sharing and learning from.
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Brassica has been demonstrated as the most cost effective pasture species for finishing heavy trade lambs over summer, autumn and winter on Moffitts Farm. The alternatives such as supplementary feeding lambs with pasture silage, lucerne silage or pellets are in our experience more expensive per kg dry matter fed, more labour time consuming and result in more variable lamb growth rate performance.
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Vigorous pastures species managed for resilience to variable rainfall will be able to accommodate a range of insects such as Yellowheaded cockchafer larvae, field crickets and red legged earth mites. They become part of the soil food web rather than a problem.
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Small and absentee landowners need to consider a wide range of animal welfare, environmental, infrastructure, technology, cost and time issues when deciding on which type of livestock to buy for their farms.
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Many Australian farmers have dramatically improved the state of the environment over the past decade, however, while these improvements are noted in the State of the Environment report released in March 2017, the authors persisted in painting a gloomy picture of the future.,
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Many people are unaware that poison 1080 is the most environmentally sensitive and target-specific poison available to protect Australia’s vulnerable wildlife and ecosystems from feral animals, because it occurs naturally in over 30 species of native plants.
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After 30 years of landcare farming practice change, greater emphasis should be put on protecting the enhanced environments built up across participating farms. It’s time for more dollars being allocated to exclusion fencing for its long-term benefits in protecting farm ecosystem functions and livelihoods.
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Given the Animal Industries Advisory Committee failed to understand what constitutes best practice grazing management which protects ecosystem functions, and the Victorian state government supported virtually all its recommendations it is unlikely that the changes to be made to planning procedures for livestock enterprises will make a significant difference.
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On Moffitts Farm near Romsey, Victoria a ram joining management program is reducing the lambing period to about three weeks. Coupled with attention to high pasture herbage levels in lambing paddocks for avoiding bad wind chill impacts and ensuring high levels of ewe nutrition, lamb marking percentage is keeping above 130% .
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The recent statement by Animals Australia that farmers who are involved in the live export trade are being “kept in the dark” over the treatment of their stock seems to be correct. This situation can be easily changed to give farmers knowledge about what happens to their livestock overseas.
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Seasonal rainfall conditions changed dramatically between May and September 2016. After 30 months of below average monthly rainfall, above average rainfall has made a significant impact.
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The Wongwibinda, Northern Tablelands NSW fertiliser trial was established through local farmer interest in composts as an alternative source of phosphorus and other plant nutrients. Unfortunately the trial has produced biased results.
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The latest expose showing killing cattle with a sledge hammer in a Vietnamese abattoir highlights the inability of the Australian government’s Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS) to prevent animal cruelty.
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By Lisa Miller. Soil monitoring through the Corangamite soil monitoring program and trial sites shows soil acidification issues are not limited to the topsoil (0-10cm) but commonly extend to 10-20cm in all soils types, indicating our liming practices are not keeping pace with acidification rates.
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Patrick Francis summarises the key points in his submission to the Victorian government’s Animal Industries Advisory committee’s review into a presumed intensification of livestock farming.
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Comment by Patrick Francis. I am continually challenged by how conventional agricultural science has simplified phosphorus fertiliser applications for maintaining or increasing plant production in an incredibly complex soil medium where interactions are only partly understood.
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The marketability of wool from mulesed sheep where the operation is undertaken without pain relief is declining and the same may not be far off for Merino wool from sheep mulesed with pain relief. By Patrick Francis
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Farmers should be monitoring soil test data as well as paddock carrying capacity per hectare and per 100 mm of rainfall.
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In early March 2016 the two years of lower than average rainfall set a milestone for Moffitts Farm, all surface water had evaporated.
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New animal welfare standards for sheep will still result in people not being legally liable for many undesirable sheep husbandry and handling practices.
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Results of a three year liming trial on grazing and cropping farms to help farmers make more informed decisions on lime applications.
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By Patrick Francis Coinciding with the COP 21 Climate Change conference in Paris has been an increase in the number
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At Moffitts Farm we breed a type of sheep known as a Wiltipoll, they have no horns and they shed their wool in spring, so they have a short coat for the summer – no shearing is required.
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Crowdfunding can enable youth and women in agriculture to raise funds from multiple individuals through donations, presales/rewards, debt, or equity.
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The rapid rise of urban food markets across sub-Saharan Africa represents an unparalleled opportunity to drive development of African agriculture, according to conveners of the African Green Revolution Forum.
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Petition fails to understand the complex animal husbandry and ecosystem functions associated with Blackmore’s move to finishing his Wagyu cattle on farm.
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Livestock farming intensity is a relative term which should not be categorized by the percentage of daily feed intake which an animal eats. What is important about intensity are the outcomes associated with livestock health and welfare, outcomes for ecosystem functions across the farm concerned, and issues with feeding logistics and transport in the vicinity of the farm.
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By Patrick Francis The value of optimising soil organic carbon (SOC) to farming ecosystems and plant and livestock productivity is
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Moffitts Farm Wiltipoll sheep meat has won a silver medal in the 2015 Royal Melbourne Fine Food Awards.
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