[Pil-pc-oceania] Natural sequence farning (courtesy farmonline)

[Deb Guildner]

100th PDC UpdateBreaking Rural News : LIVESTOCK  
     
     Natural sequence farming a hit in Central Qld 
      Australia
      Thursday, 27 December 2007 

      Video link on webpage 

      http://www.farmonline.com.au/news_daily.asp?ag_id=47706


      The push is on in Central Queensland's pastoral industry to bolster pasture productivity while at the same time shifting to more 'natural' land management systems.
      The recent Meat and Livestock Australia Meat Profit Day in Rockhampton emphasised the opportunities of marketing a top-shelf 'pasture-fed beef' brand, but the need also for pastures to be more productive and consistent to achieve this.

      Those messages have been heeded in the region, but there has also been a corresponding renewed interest from cattlemen in achieving improved pastures and productivity by targeting overall soil health and broader landscape management.

      A number of field days in Central Queensland in recent months have promoted such ideas as compost teas as a natural fertiliser, cell grazing to re-build soil organic matter and carbon levels, and most recently landscape guru Peter Andrews promoted his 'natural sequence farming' as a means of retaining moisture in the soil, improving water quality and reducing erosion.

      "The more water you can get into the ground and the deeper the roots of the plants that are edible, the more likely the landscape will remain productive," Mr Andrews said.

      At the core of Mr Andrews teachings is the concept of slowing the flow of water across a property through the use of contours across slopes and 'leaky weirs' across waterways.

      While many landholders initial reaction to the idea is that of cross-fence warfare over reduced run off and creek flows, Mr Andrews said the opposite was actually true.

      His concept aims to keep water in the soil longer - a full soil profile, he said, was like a wet sponge and any further rainfall would flow through the sponge, keeping creeks flowing and aquifers filling.

      "Holding the water means that only a small rainfall will then run off," he said.

      "This landscape is capable of huge levels of production even if it's not raining a lot - if there's water in the soil it is still capable of production."

      SOURCE: Extract from full report in Queensland Country Life.


           

     
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