FEATURES - Australian Sugarcaneaustraliansugarcane.com.au/Back issues/144assug10/144assug10.pdf ·...

August–september 2010

COVER Australian SugarcanePO Box 766, Toowoomba, 4350. Phone: (07) 4659 3555. Fax: (07) 4638 4520. Email: [email protected] DELIVERY ADDRESS: 120 Herries Street, Toowoomba, Qld. 4350

EDITOR: Brian O’Connell PRODUCTION MANAGER: Mick Allan ASSOCIATE EDITORS: David Dowling GROUP SALES MANAGER: Norm Neeld Lloyd O’Connell OFFICE MANAGER: Catherine O’Connell

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CONTENTS OF ADVERTISEMENTS are the responsibility of the advertisers. All statements and opinions expressed in Australian Sugarcane are published after due consideration of information gained from sources believed to be authentic. The following of advice given is at the reader’s own risk, and no responsibility is accepted for the accuracy of the matter published herein. No portion in whole or part may be reproduced without permission of the publisher. Copyright 2010.

Published by Berekua Pty. Ltd., 40 Creek Street, Brisbane, Queensland. Printing by Peninsula Colour, 26 Virginia St, Virginia, Queensland 4014. Registered by Australia Post Publication No. PP 424022/1582. ISSN 1442–5157.

PUBLISHED: APRIL, JUNE, AUGUST, OCTOBER, DECEMBER, FEBRUARY. AUSTRALIAN SUGARCANE ANNUAL

A versatile tractor will have many uses when preparing

farming country for the planting season ahead.

Business opportunities from CRC’s research

Spring Planting Feature

New soybean variety is attractiveIN

SID

E

Print Post Approved Publication No. PP424022/1582

AUGUST–SEPTEMBER 2010Volume 14, No. 4 $6.60

FEATURES 4 Business opportunities to flow on from CRC’s research?

6 BSES northern news

Spring Planting Feature

8 Bed former/planter cuts costs, saves time 12 First ‘peak’ oil – now ‘peak’ phosphorous 15 Soil test results can now be stored online

Growers to reap benefits from portable devices

16 New soybean variety improves crop attractiveness

20 Down to Earth: Improving fertiliser efficiency in ratoon crops

REGULAR SECTIONS 2 Editorial

18 Modern Machinery Matters: So your upsizing – do you want extra efficiency with that sir?

21 News & New Products

22 Marketing: Stormy weather drives sugar market

23 Classic Tractor Tales: The ‘PHONEY’ farm!

26 District Reports including ACFA Comment

33 Fishing: Fish in the sea – snakes in the grass

August–september 2010 Australian Sugarcane — 1

Bed former/planterthe morellini

family grows around 35,000 tonnes of cane on 325 hectares on two farms at braemeadows and macknade. Daryl morellini and his parents peter and Audrey, trading as pAD Farming Company are planting cane using an innovative bed former/planter.See article . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 8

Attractive new soybean variety

moonbi is the latest soybean variety released from the Australian soybean breeding program and represents a major step forward in combining desirable quality and agronomic traits. moonbi should enhance soybeans as a profitable crop in areas such as north coastal and inland irrigated areas of NsW.See article . . . . . . . . . . . Page 16

The ‘PHONEY’ farm!

In may–June of this year margery and I spent some weeks savouring the delights of the scottish Highlands. this particular trip, we invited a group of our fellow members of the taree Historic motor Club to accompany us. but things were not as they appeared.See article . . . . . . . . . . . Page 23

In this issue...

Editorial...�Soils ain’t just soils anymore.As our past issue went to press cane farmers began to

come to grips with the reality of their first Environmental Risk Management Plan (ERMP). This was at the time when they were a little preoccupied with other things – such as harvesting and planting.

The Reef Wise Farming website tells us that the ERMP is a property management plan to minimise the risk of sediment, herbicide and nutrient run-off affecting the health of the Great Barrier Reef. It seems that when dealing with soil – and what’s in it – there’s more than the Reef’s health at risk.

The 19th World Congress of Soil Science was held recently in Brisbane and there was nothing mundane about much of what was discussed.

Farmers, who spend a lot of their time getting their hands dirty, would certainly sit up and take notice when the discussion turns to ‘killer soils’! I know I did.

Dr Tim Inglis, from Western Australia, spoke about a case in the Northern Territory where a driver who bogged his four-wheel drive vehicle near Katherine was dead within 48 hours of coming into contact with a soil bacteria in the mud. The man was killed by the little-known bacterial infection called melioido-sis. Apparently the bacteria lie dormant in the dry soils of North-ern Australia until the wet season.

It enters the bloodstream by a person breathing it in or through an open skin wound. Bandaids and shallow breathing could soon be all the go. On a happier note another presenta-tion put the value of the world’s soils at $20 trillion. Profes-sor Ian Pepper, from the University of Arizona, said that our potentially homicidal soils do have a nicer side – their positives outweigh the negatives and that the soil it is the most valuable ecosystem in the world. And here’s me thinking it was Bill Gates and Microsoft Systems.

The professor tells us that natural products isolated from soil resulted in 60 per cent of new cancer drugs between 1983 and 1994. Sickness and ill health are routinely treated with natural

products obtained from soils, such as antibiotics, anti-cancer drugs, and immunosuppressive drugs. Soils are also vital for providing nutrients in human diets. Profes-sor Eiliv Steinnes, from the Norwegian University of Sci-ence and Technology, says up to one-third of the world’s population suffers health problems caused by nutrient deficiencies as a result of food crops being grown in nutrient-poor soils. And don’t think that this is just a

sub-Saharan problem – apparently it’s a problem for both devel-oping and developed countries.

And there’s a multiplier effect as well – infectious diseases arising from any source are likely to be more serious in a popula-tion already suffering from imbalances in their diet.

And speaking of imbalances – any farmer in Australia can tell you just by looking at his fertiliser bill that there is an imbalance of nutrients in Australian soils. They are particularly low in plant-available phosphorus.

So what’s the problem you might ask – yes it’s an ongoing ex-pense but we are getting more efficient at how we use it – that’s part of what ‘Reef Wise’ farming is about. But we can always buy more in when we need it – can’t we?

First there was ‘peak’ oil – now we have ‘peak’ P. One of our feature stories in this issue looks at the ongoing availability of phosphorus. P is a key element in food production and it is a non-renewable resource. Recent estimates suggest that global production of P fertilisers will peak in 2033 and will be one third of that peak level by the end of the 21st century.

Population and income growth will increase demand for food, and especially animal protein, the production of which will accel-erate the reduced availability of P and consequential rising ferti-liser prices. We are already at the stage where current P fertiliser use divides countries into the ‘haves’ which in many cases face severe pollution problems from excess P, and the ‘have-nots’ in which low input use annually drains soil P reserves.

Do you think perhaps “getting your hands dirty” is starting to take on even more shades of meaning?

by�Brian�O’Connell,�Editor

2 — Australian Sugarcane August–september 2010

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Sacron Innovations was established in April 2010 as the successor organi-sation to CRC SIIB. The CRC SIIB

closed its doors in June 2010 after seven years of research and development, leaving behind an intellectual property (IP) portfo-lio including several licensed products and some promising new product opportunities.

The new company is made up of a small team of research and business profession-als. The benefits to flow on from the Sa-cron portfolio are likely to include novel, profitable products that are in many cases based on ‘green’ chemistry.

An office has now opened in Brisbane and a website launched – www.sacronin-novations.com

The website provides details of the prod-uct portfolio which is made up of Products in Development and Licensed Products.

PRODUCTS IN DEvELOPMENTThese have been through research and

product testing and are covered by intellec-tual property. They have reached ‘proof of concept’ and provide potential for further investment. These include:

Barrecote

Barrecote is a fully biodegradable water-proofing technology for paper. The tech-nology uses a plant-based coating which when applied to paper renders it water-proof while maintaining recyclability.

The technology can be used in three major manufacturing industries:• Businesses using paper coatings.• Paper manufacturers using either online

or offline processes.• Producers of paper packaging.

The compounds used to make Barre-cote are extracted from sugarcane after the commercial extraction of sugar has been completed.

GI Wise

GI Wise is a newly discovered, naturally occurring group of compounds that have been found to significantly reduce and con-trol blood sugar levels. Future products based on GI Wise could provide effective treatment to aid the management of Type II diabetes.

Compounds used to make GI Wise are natural and are extracted from sugarcane plants.

Hi-Fibre Canes

Hi-Fibre Canes have the potential to produce higher levels of fibre than the widely used sugarcane varieties grown for sucrose. New ‘energy’ canes combine the best of some of Australia’s current commer-cial sugarcane varieties with the untapped potential of wild relatives of sugarcane.

The technology behind Hi-Fibre Canes offers two key benefits:• The possibility to grow a viable source

of fibre to produce precursors for liquid fuels.

• Ability to use a high biomass crop to produce bio-based chemicals.

LICENSED SACRON PRODUCTSThese have been developed through to

full application and are ready for use in a commercial environment.

Individual licenses can be developed upon request and are managed by staff based at the Brisbane office. The licensed products include:

Bioplastics

Sacron Innovations has licensed tech-nology to add valuable, natural polymers polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA’s) to new sugarcane varieties. The polymers that can be engineered into the plant provide a renewable substitute for the production of plastics. PHA plastics are being used in large-scale manufacturing in the market-place and are proving to be a successful substitute for petroleum-based plastics.

Novel pest resistance

This technology enables the successful introduction of highly desirable pest con-trol traits during the development of new plant varieties. Once introduced, a resist-ance trait eliminates the need to apply pes-ticide to control a designated pest species and improves the crop’s green credentials.

DArT genotyping technology

DArT is a DNA mapping tool designed specifically for use in sugarcane breeding. It is fast and effective and allows for the selection of several desirable traits. For more information on DArT, go to www.diversityarrays.com.

Hyaluronic acid

This is a high performing hyaluronic acid compound that has been produced using enhanced microbe technology. Hy-aluronic acid is sought after for its benefits in managing joint health. More specifi-cally, this compound has the potential to aid in post-operative recovery from eye and joint surgery. For more information go to www.uniquest.com.au.

Email: [email protected] n

Business opportunities to flow on from CRC’s research?

To �nd your local Hi Fert dealer visit hifert.com.au or Free Call 1800 HI FERT (44 33 78)

the right choice,made easy.

To help farmers comply with Reef Regulations, Hi Fert’s NEW ReefChoice range with over 200 off-the-shelf fertilizer blends, will match 80%

of sugarcane fertilizer requirements following a soil test analysis, it’s that simple.

NEW!

200 plus o -the-shelf Reef Choice blends are available NOW!

We have created a new selection tool for dealers to help you �nd theright blend quickly and easily

Reef Choice saves time and resourcesover using a custom blend

Contact your Hi Fert dealer now for details

ReefChoice is easy to order and there’s no waiting. If I place the order before 11.00am, it’s on farm the next day.Adrian Zarb, Mt Ossa Rural Contact your Hi Fert dealer now for details


Weather conditions dried out enough for planting to commence in most

areas of the wet tropics during May and June, but wet conditions in July have created mixed for-tunes, with harvest in some areas impeded by the rain.

The period up to June was busy for BSES extension staff with industry train-ing. Six Easy Steps (6ES), Integrated Weed Management Courses and ChemCert courses were held throughout all northern regions.

ChemCert in particular has taken a great deal of BSES resources but was es-sential to enable growers to meet the three competencies decreed essential by the State Government under the reef regula-tion legislation.

If the industry had to rely on outside contractors, there is no doubt the cost to growers would have been higher as BSES have run the courses at a subsidised rate for members, and have done so in record time.

Grub damage continues to show up in some parts of the Herbert and Innisfail dis-tricts in particular. The new Grower Group Innovation Projects (GGIP) on grub moni-toring for the Herbert has commenced with considerable support from Meringa-based Dr Nadar Sallam. Aerial flights of grub damage took place in the Innisfail-Babinda areas highlighting the success of area-wide management and the danger of this process dropping off.

REGIONAL UPDATESBurdekin

In the Burdekin the Farm Productivity Analysis (FPA) process is continuing as part of the Reef Rescue project and to date 80 FPAs have been completed or are in progress.

The BSES leased farm is being utilised

effectively for trial work with herbi-cide screening, row spacing trials and variety trials all in place. The commercial side of the farm is also looking very sound. This farm has also allowed local extension staff to

conduct farm walks and mini field days as part of an overall extension program.

Since June a Gen 2 Biomass trial has been set up on the BSES Brandon station. This trial has two varieties (MQ 239A and KQ228A), four replicates and three har-vest sequences to monitor biomass accu-mulation over three years.

Another major project underway in the Burdekin is a water quality trial involving soybeans.

In July a new Rural Water Use Efficiency (RWUE) four position was set up with 100 per cent external funding. This position was created in conjunction with Burdekin Canegrowers.

HerbertIndustry training continued unto June

with Integrated Weed management, 6ES, and ChemCert courses. Integrated Weed management plans and nutrient man-agement plans have been developed for growers who have completed the courses. Many of the ChemCert courses were run on weekends.

As in other districts, cane grubs are a growing problem with a heavy extension campaign rolled out highlighting the need to treat plant cane. A new grower group innovation project has been set up to pro-

BSES northern newsBy Northern Extension Leader Greg Shannon

Greg Shannon.

mote area wide management and monitor-ing of the pest.

Herbert BSES staff also contributed a great deal to the Herbert River show cane section, with three staff working as stew-ards and supplying information to show patrons. Two new varieties are being re-leased by Herbert extension staff (Q232A and Q237A), with more then 40 tonnes released so far.

The fortnightly Women in Sugar Her-bert meetings continue to be held at Her-bert BSES.

TullyLocal staff have been maintaining the

soil testing service and follow up nutrient recommendations. In addition variety rec-ommendations and identification carried have been carried out as required.

The Harvest best practice project run by Cam Whiting is now extending into Tully with several industry meetings being held. Also the harvest maximisation service for the Tully industry is ongoing with BSES and Tully Cane Productivity Services Lim-ited (TCPSL) support.

Other notable events include, a young grower group workshop, TCPSL produc-tivity awards event and two ChemCert workshops at BSES stations.

Innisfail/BabindaMany ChemCert courses have been

held to get the industry qualified according to the State Government requirements. Ten courses have been held in Innisfail-Babinda. One was also completed for the Murray Upper growers supplying South Johnstone mill.

Local staff have also been involved in assisting the running of the integrated weed management courses.

With grubs a growing problem, a heavy extension campaign has continued high-lighting the need to treat plant cane and use area wide management to reduce pest numbers. An aerial photography survey was used to track the damage throughout the Babinda/Innisfail region. This activity was supported by both the Canegrowers and ACFA organisations.

MulgraveLocal staff, Principal Extension Officer

David Calcino, is one of the key instructors for the 6ES across the north, as far south as Ingham. By the end of June, 14 workshops were held covering all seven mill areas from Ingham north. These were attended by 159 growers and 31 support staff.

Shed meetings for Mulgrave growers were held. Reef regulation issues was one of the main topics.

TablelandThe local BSES extension officer Drewe

Burgess continues to operate an irrigation monitoring service.

A 6ES course held was held in May. To date almost 50 per cent of the Tableland industry has completed this course.

MossmanTraining courses have been run as in

other regions.

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTSSix Easy Steps v N Replacement trials

Ongoing 6ES v Replacement theory v Conventional fertiliser use trials data has been presented to the northern extension team as well as industry. Trials exist in the Burdekin, Tully and Innisfail involving Barry Salter, Jason Perna, David Millard (Burdekin trials), Glen Park (Innisfail) and Danielle Skocaj (Tully). Results will con-

tinue to be extended. In the Burdekin a number of meetings have taken place be-tween BSES, Burdekin Canegrowers, Pio-neer and Kalamia Canegrowers and CSR to find a way to further ground proof 6ES for the district.

Farming systems workThe sustainable farming systems group

based in the Herbert has been expanded to include representatives from Tully and the Burdekin.

Reef RescueIn the Burdekin, Herbert and Tully re-

gions, BSES extension staff are directly involved in on the on-farm project applica-tion grant process and in both districts the demand for assistance is high.

David Calcino, and Greg Shannon are involved with the terrain technical working groups while Marian Davis is also involved with NQ Dry Tropics. n


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The Morellini family grows around 35,000 tonnes of cane on 325 hec-tares on two farms at Braemeadows

and Macknade. Daryl Morellini and his parents Peter and Audrey, trading as PAD Farming Company are planting cane us-ing an innovative bed former/planter.

This was constructed with the support of other Ingham farmers; financial assist-ance under SRDC grower group innova-tion project GGP036; and, the invaluable mechanical skills of employee Ryan An-dersen.

The group considered that the plant-ing system in the Herbert needed to be changed to minimise fuel and labour costs (a consequence of excessive cultivation), stool losses, soil compaction, and crop losses from wet weather during planting. Mounding can make a big difference to planting results with beds remaining high and dry after heavy rain.

Although the Morellinis still convention-ally prepare for planting by ripping and rotary hoeing, the new all-in-one system eliminates five of six passes previously re-quired:

• One with a 2–leg ripper;• Two with a weeder rake;• One side dressing with fertiliser; and

• One grubbing and a hilling-up.The new unit forms a bed profile of

shape and height to:

SPRING PLANTING FEATURE

Bed former/planter cuts costs, saves time

The innovative bed former/planter.

Daryl Morellini (left) and Ryan Anderson.

*suSCon Maxi is now registered for 3 year control of Southern species of canegrubs. suSCon Maxi is a registered trademark of Crop Care Australasia Pty Ltd. ABN 80 061 362 347

Secure greater protection of your investment by incorporating suSCon Maxi into your grub control program.

Maximum long term protection.

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2 or 3 year grub control* depending on the species

Yield

Return on investment

Minimise

Environmental Impact

Labour

Secure grreeaatteer protection of your investment by incorporating suSCon Maxi into your grub control program

Yield and profi tmised

2 8 2 8 S u s C o n M a x i 2 7 5 x 2 . p d f P a g e 1 2 7 / 0 5 / 1 0 , 3 : 3 1 P M

*suSCon Maxi is now registered for 3 year control of Southern species of canegrubs. suSCon Maxi is a registered trademark of Crop Care Australasia Pty Ltd. ABN 80 061 362 347

Secure greater protection of your investment by incorporating suSCon Maxi into your grub control program.

Maximum long term protection.

MaximiseProtection

2 or 3 year grub control* depending on the species

Yield

Return on investment

Minimise

Environmental Impact

Labour

Secure grreeaatteer protection of your investment by incorporating suSCon Maxi into your grub control program

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• Suit wet conditions;• Match the harvester basecutter blades;• Align billets; and,• Provide appropriate soil cover (100 to

150 mm maximum) to minimise stool tipping.Planting can be done later than usual

because the only subsequent operations required are spraying at strike stage and fertilising. The planting speed was initially around seven km/h but Daryl expects that this will increase to around 11 to 12 km/h.

A floating front utilises depth wheels to keep the device level with the ground and parallel arms ensure all mounds are con-

sistent. Press wheels can be used to roll the hump in dry soils to conserve moisture if needed.

The project report (see box story) pro-vides a real appreciation of the various stages any break through in any field must go through.

There is the recognition of a problem that perhaps can be addressed; the initial glimmer of an idea that may meet the chal-lenge; the search for information from a variety of sources; and, not to mention lots of trial and error involving hard work and the determination to persevere until the Eureka moment.

Then of course you must do the research

work required to prove the merits of your innovation to your peers – and they often include in their ranks a very unforgiving, sometimes cynical crew – but that’s life.

Contact: Daryl Morellini Phone: 0419 200 721

Drawn from SRDC Grower Group Innovation Project – Final Report -Total Concept Sugar Cane Planting System – PAD Farming Company and the article “All-in-one planter, bed former saves costs at Ingham” by Bill Kerr featured on the website: growergroupservices.com.au

This project was conducted by the grower group, Daryl Morellini from PAD Farming Company, Ryan Anderson, David Pearson, John Pudruzzi and Carmellito Lenzo, in association with the Sugar Research and Development Corporation (SRDC). n


the aim of this project was to build a one pass plant and mound planter which would reduce the cost of growing cane, and eliminate the need to work the ground after planting.

Conduct• In 2006 planting into wet ground, and bogging, I could see the

benefit of mound planting and hilled up a wet section in a block with a chipping hoe;

• After receiving funding in 2007, myself and ryan Anderson went to the burdekin to see a grizzly planter. We then met mike Hudson who introduced us to Josh roncato who had a two row Hbm planter setup to plant and mound in one pass;

• ryan and I made plans and drawings and made a prototype to get mound shape and the profile was achieved;

• We started building a fixed leg profiler similar to Josh roncato’s but we found it was not suitable;

• We then built an oscillating profiler with parallel arms that follows the ground level on wheels;

• We tried to make the press wheels and cover discs fixed together but this did not work;

• the four press wheels had to be aligned as two outside wheels forward of the middle two would not turn when soil got between them;

• We cut two inches off the back of the profiler legs to get the profile Attachment Device closer to the planter;

• Fitted cover disc rams to go 75 mm deeper on the ends of drills to cover the billets; and,

• made a one piece shoe on the profiler leg – we did not need the adjusting boards on the back of the leg.

Key results• We successfully made a one pass planter to form an apex profile

from wheel centre to wheel centre to suit harvester base cutters on 1.83 m row spacings; and,

• the total plant cane growing costs per hectare for the 1.8 m pAD system was $1606.18, compared to conventional 1.8 m system costs of $1844.72, and conventional 1.5 m system with costs of $1821.58.For the 2007–09 seasons, the savings achieved by using the

pAD system on 300 acres planted, compared to a conventional 1.5 m system include:• time comparison savings – 298 tractor hours = less wear and tear;

• Wages saved $8940;• Fuel saved 5586 litres @ $1.40/l = $7820.40;• total dollars saved $16,760.40;• greenhouse emissions saved 5586 litres of diesel fuel burnt x

3.1 kgCO2/litres = 17,316 kg of carbon dioxide less in the atmosphere;

• the new reef rescue package for gps and erosion is exactly what we have been doing for the past two years with gps and nil working of ground after planting;

• In replicated trials the 1.8 m pAD system achieved 15.25 tonnes sugar per hectare compared to a conventional 1.83 m system which achieved 16.76 tsH and a conventional 1.53 m system which achieved 16.44 tsH;

• Although the 1.8 m pAD system had lower growing costs, due to the slightly lower yields, the gross margin was also slightly lower than the other two systems – the 1.8 m pAD system achieved a gross margin of $992.75, compared to the 1.8 m conventional system which achieved $1073.75 and the 1.5 m conventional system which achieved $1137.25.

• When working the ground for plant cane a record of paddock operations was kept – this record showed a huge reduction in time taken to work the pAD system: – the 1.8 m pAD system took a total of 95 minutes, – the Conventional 1.83 m system took a total of 219 minutes, – the Conventional 1.5 m system took a total of 259 minutes;

• the 1.5 m system appears to have the greatest decrease in first ratoon yield after being cut wet in plant cane, compared to the 1.8 m systems;

• We can still plant conventionally with four adjustments to the planter, which takes 15 minutes;

• A second profile attachment device has been made for a contractor’s billet planter which has planted 300 acres so far this year; and,

• Lots of good comments from farmers about the apex mound.

What we learnt• the time needed to make the attachment;• the time needed to modify ideas during planting;• Huge cost savings achieved – $16,760.40 for the 2007–09

seasons; and,• more time after planting to do other farm work.

srDC grOWer grOup INNOvAtION prOJeCt


www.bayercropscience.com.auBayer CropScience Pty Ltd, 391–393 Tooronga Road, Hawthorn East, Vic 3123. ABN 87 000 226 022. Technical enquiries 1800 804 479 [email protected] Ph 03 9248 6888 Fax 03 9248 6800Con� dor® and Stress Shield Inside® and logo are registered trademarks of Bayer. Stress Shield™ is a trademark of Bayer.RRA/BAY8626

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Phosphorus is a key element in food production, but is a non-renewable resource. Recent estimates suggest

that global production of P fertilisers will peak in 2033 and will be one third of that peak level by the end of the 21st cen-tury. Population and income growth will increase demand for food, and especially animal protein, the production of which will accelerate the reduced availability of P and consequential rising fertiliser prices.

The global distribution of current P fer-tiliser use divides countries into the ‘haves’ which in many cases face severe pollution problems from excess P, and the ‘have-nots’ in which low input use annually drains soil P reserves.

Coping strategies include improvements in the efficiency of fertiliser P manufacture and use, and recycling of P in liquid and solid wastes. The latter approach offers win/win solutions by reducing the environ-mental pollution of water in highly popu-lated areas. Future utilisation of scarce P reserves requires policy decisions that take account of equity, productivity, environ-mental and trade considerations.

Increase in fertiliser useThe 20th century saw massive increases

in food production that generally kept pace with a global population increase from 1.6 billion to six billion. Some of the produc-

tion increase was due to opening new land for cultivation, but the green revolution in the high-potential areas, particularly in Asia, contributed significantly in the coun-tries with major population growth.

As modern fertiliser-responsive rice, maize and wheat became widely avail-able, use of P fertilisers increased 3.5-fold. In Latin America large areas of land were opened to agriculture only after adequate fertility management using liming and P application was developed. P fertilisers also played a key role in agricultural production gains made in North America and Australia.

As one of the three major essential ele-ments for plant growth, P supplies have a significant influence on efforts to expand food production. Importantly, plants con-centrate P in the grains and fruiting bodies, which when harvested create a significant drain of P reserves in soil, so high yield-ing systems require P inputs at a minimum level that replaces harvest losses.

Unlike nitrogen, which can be fixed from the atmosphere, P is mined from limited deposits. And although energy-intensive industrial N can potentially be re-placed using biological nitrogen fixation by legumes, those legumes require adequate P supplies.

It is estimated that to feed a projected population of nine billion in 2050 will re-quire a 66 per cent increase in crop pro-

duction from the base level in 2005–07. During the same period meat produc-tion will have to increase 85 per cent as incomes increase – particularly in Asia. Demand for P fertilisers will accelerate as the quantity and quality of food and feed grain production increases. But P is a non-renewable resource with finite reserves.

How much phosphorus does the world have?

Annual global production of P rock in 2008 was 167 million tonnes (mt), with China, the US and Morocco and West-ern Sahara as the main producers (Table 1). Global reserves total 15,000 million tonnes but the country rankings in terms of reserves are not the same as for annual production – the data for the US indicate an annual rate of use of 19 per cent of glo-bal production with only seven to eight per cent of the worlds’ reserves. On the other hand, China’s production is proportional to its reserves.

Reserves divided by annual extraction rate gives a life span of 90 years for P rock reserves at current rates of global produc-tion plus 281 years for the ‘reserve base’ – P rock with a reasonable potential for becoming economically available.

The calculation of future rates of pro-duction and peak P must take into con-sideration:• The future rate of increase in demand; • Market price movements; and,• Potential improvements in technology

– especially to remove impurities eco-nomically.Recent studies suggest a peak in P pro-

duction in 2033.The rate of production reduces sub-

stantially by 2100. World trade issues and market forces will influence the life of P resources. Another critical factor that is already changing markets and distorting availability is cadmium legislation.

A Finnish proposal to pass on new EU cadmium limits would mean that much of North African P could no longer be im-ported – this would be the case as long as cadmium removal remains an expensive proposition.


First ‘peak’ oil – now ‘peak’ phosphorus

From a paper by Eric T Craswell1, Paul LG vlek2 and Holm Tiessen3 delivered at the 19th World Congress of Soil Science, Brisbane

TABLE 1: Production of P rock and reserves in main producing countries

Proportion of global total P rock (%)Country 2008 annual

productionReserves Reserve base1

China 30 28 21United States 19 8 7Morocco/Western Sahara 17 38 45Russia 7 1 2Tunisia 5 <1 1Brazil 4 2 <1Jordan 3 6 4South Africa 1 10 5Global total P rock (Mt) 167 15,000 47,0001Reserve base: P rock with a ‘reasonable potential for becoming economically available within planning horizons beyond those that assume proven technology and current economics’

New Zealand: Farming The Rugby World Cup Tour (October 7–24, 2011)

China & Mongolia: The tour will travel into Mongolia and fascinating far western areas of China to see large-scale grain and cotton production along the Old Silk Road. We will also inspect the Three Gorges Dam and other farming and cultural sights in eastern China.

South America: South America is always a popular destination for Australian farmers – and with very good reasons. Not only is the continent home to arguably the world’s most diverse, interesting and stunning array of cultures and landscapes, South America is booming agriculturally.

Scandinavia: The Vikings struck terror into the hearts of the citizens of the known world a thousand years ago, but these days they are much friendlier. In fact they welcome tourists – and fact finding farmers – and do their best to help them enjoy this wonderful part of the world.

Southern Africa: Southern Africa is home to arguably the world’s most diverse, interesting and stunning array of cultures, wildlife and landscapes. And much of southern Africa shares agricultural challenges and opportunities very similar to our own.

2011FarmStudy ToursFor more than 18 years Greenmount Travellers have criss-crossed the globe visiting amazing agricultural, geographical and cultural destinations in China, Russia, South & North Americas, Canada, India, Tibet, Africa, Eastern & Western Europe, Scandinavia, United Kingdom, SE Asia, Japan, The Kimberleys and Nuigini.

We know where to go – and have established excellent farming and agribusiness contacts. We also have valuable experience in dealing with the unique challenges ‘out of the square’ travel presents. This ensures our tours are well organised and are expertly guided by local, trusted operators and our own experienced Greenmount Travel guides.

Express your interest by giving us a call on 07 4659 3555 or email [email protected] or visit www.greenmounttravel.com.au

Licence No. ABN 57085 828011TAG 1608 IATA 96-8 0483 1

Ph: 07 4659 3555www.greenmounttravel.com.auE: [email protected]

Fax: 07 4638 4520

2011 Tours FPC-1.indd 1 2/06/10 3:43 PM

New Zealand: Farming The Rugby World Cup Tour (October 7–24, 2011)

China & Mongolia: The tour will travel into Mongolia and fascinating far western areas of China to see large-scale grain and cotton production along the Old Silk Road. We will also inspect the Three Gorges Dam and other farming and cultural sights in eastern China.

South America: South America is always a popular destination for Australian farmers – and with very good reasons. Not only is the continent home to arguably the world’s most diverse, interesting and stunning array of cultures and landscapes, South America is booming agriculturally.

Scandinavia: The Vikings struck terror into the hearts of the citizens of the known world a thousand years ago, but these days they are much friendlier. In fact they welcome tourists – and fact finding farmers – and do their best to help them enjoy this wonderful part of the world.

Southern Africa: Southern Africa is home to arguably the world’s most diverse, interesting and stunning array of cultures, wildlife and landscapes. And much of southern Africa shares agricultural challenges and opportunities very similar to our own.

2011FarmStudy ToursFor more than 18 years Greenmount Travellers have criss-crossed the globe visiting amazing agricultural, geographical and cultural destinations in China, Russia, South & North Americas, Canada, India, Tibet, Africa, Eastern & Western Europe, Scandinavia, United Kingdom, SE Asia, Japan, The Kimberleys and Nuigini.

We know where to go – and have established excellent farming and agribusiness contacts. We also have valuable experience in dealing with the unique challenges ‘out of the square’ travel presents. This ensures our tours are well organised and are expertly guided by local, trusted operators and our own experienced Greenmount Travel guides.

Express your interest by giving us a call on 07 4659 3555 or email [email protected] or visit www.greenmounttravel.com.au

Licence No. ABN 57085 828011TAG 1608 IATA 96-8 0483 1

Ph: 07 4659 3555www.greenmounttravel.com.auE: [email protected]

Fax: 07 4638 4520

2011 Tours FPC-1.indd 1 2/06/10 3:43 PM


How much phosphorus do we use?P reserves are being utilised at an unsus-

tainable rate. While the distribution of P rock reserves across countries of the world is uneven, the rate of use of the P is also extremely uneven.

Figure 1 shows the 2005 annual con-sumption of P as fertiliser broken down by region, as well as projections to the year 2030, which is approximately when P production is expected to peak.

The highest level of P consumption in 2005, and projected to 2030, is in Asia, which reflects the high population as well as the intensive cropping systems, based on the use of irrigation and modern high-yielding varieties. Europe, North America and Latin America utilise proportionally less fertiliser, but the most striking contrast is the low consumption of P in sub-Saha-ran Africa, and the low trajectory of the projected future use.

Over 30 years of repeated harvests without matching fertiliser applications has resulted in an estimated depletion of 75 kg P per hectare from 200 million hectares of cultivated land in 37 African countries.

At the other end of the scale are ‘nu-trient surplus’ countries in Western Eu-rope, such as Belgium, Denmark, and the Netherlands, which import feed grains for livestock production creating a surplus of nutrients in the environment, and there-fore face serious pollution problems.

The same applies to some of the inten-sive production systems in North America and Asia. Excess P use can cause eutrophi-cation of waterways and toxic algal growth that can cause red tides in coastal zones. This is a key area for environmental policy action and progress is being made – P surpluses in agricultural land in Germany

were reduced by 60 per cent in the last decade of the 20th century.

In Australia, low rates of P over ex-tended pasture and crop areas have led to neutral or slightly positive P balances. In Latin America P balances are generally positive for cash and plantation crops but negative in low yield subsistence cropping areas.

P transfersThe transfer of P and other nutrients in

agricultural commodities in international trade is an area of increasing interest. Like ‘virtual water’ trade it provides insights into whether particular countries should choose to grow their own food or import it.

In many cases grounds for such a de-cision may be dominated by water avail-ability but the consequences in terms of P flows are real, not virtual, and will become more important as P resources decline.

Figure 2 shows the positive and nega-tive balances of P in traded agricultural commodities projected to 2020. Major food exporting countries and regions, es-pecially the Americas, have large P deficits whereas importers are positive.

CONCLUSIONThe need for global action to address

the need to increase agricultural produc-tion while finite P resources continue to decline is clear. Technological and policy options should be explored to form the ba-sis for coping strategies. At the P produc-tion level, research is needed to improve the efficiency of processing in P fertiliser manufacture.

The revision of market regulations for the water soluble P content of fertilisers will become more important as reserves decline. In the P-rich countries and re-

gions, the emphasis should be on recycling which has the win/win advantage of also reducing environmental pollution.

In crop production systems in both high and low potential areas, the efficiency of P fertiliser use should be improved through better timing and placement of P, as well as research on the improvement of P up-take by innovations such as inoculation with VA mycorrhiza.

Policy measures are needed that ensure a more equitable global P balance in which measures require both developed and developing countries to take action. The wisdom of P investment in soils that have other major production constraints (semi-arid Africa for instance) will have to be judged against equity considerations.

Developed countries need to reduce pro-duction subsidies, regulate nutrient disposal, and implement nutrient trading permits.

On the other hand most developing countries should increase input subsidies, implement credit schemes, and extension and training programs to encourage P consumption. Major exporting countries need access to P supplies whereas import-ing countries need to address problems of P excess in large urban areas, especially where peri-urban animal production cre-ates re-cycling problems.

From the paper by Eric T. Craswell1, Paul L.G. Vlek2 and Holm Tiessen3 – “Peak phosphorus – Implications for soil productivity and global food security” delivered at the 19th World Congress of Soil Science, Brisbane.1Fenner School on Environment and Society, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia, E: [email protected] for Development Research, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany, E: [email protected] American Institute for Global Change Research, São José dos Campos-SP, Brazil, E: [email protected] n

FIGURE 1: Annual consumption of P fertiliser – 2005 and projections to 2030

FIGURE 2: Projected regional flows of P in net trade of agricultural commodities in 2020 (Craswell et al. 2004)


Soil test results can now be

stored online

As cane farmers move into the EPRM era it is interesting to note that in WA there are some interesting developments that are adding real value to soil testing for growers across

fences, catchments and regions.Growers can store their soil test results online and compare

them with benchmarked soils from their region thanks to a new feature on a Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) supported website.

The website www.soilquality.org.au was developed by Uni-versity of WA (UWA) Associate Professor Daniel Murphy and his team.

It contains regional soil information, collected over time, and allows the information to be examined and compared, and soil relationships to be explored.

Associate Professor Murphy said growers can now register for an account with the website which they can use to store their own soil test results online for several years.

“Growers can also use the ‘compare’ function to produce a graph comparing their soil test results with results from their re-gion or catchment,” he said.

“I expect growers will initially upload several years of data at once, and then upload annual data when they get their soil test results, usually in January or February.

‘Traffic light’ systemA ‘traffic light’ system can help growers interpret soil test results

as:• Red – high risk and needs to be investigated urgently;• Amber – moderate risk and should be investigated further; and,• Green – low risk and regular monitoring should be continued.

Associate Professor Murphy said other features available on the website include 10 calculators, some written by Graeme McCon-nell of Planfarm, which allow growers to evaluate the effect of different variables on soil properties or income.

“These calculators cover variables including green manuring; wheat yield potential; stubble retention; organic matter biomass; lime; controlled traffic, gravel and bulk density; deep cultivation; and, gross margin,” Graeme said.

Associate Professor Murphy said more than 15 fact sheets are available on the website which explain different indicators of bio-logical, chemical and physical soil qualities and their relationships to plant growth.

He said the website and associated soil monitoring work is this year being extended to cover more of Australia’s cropping land – including eastern Australia.

The soil website is part of the GRDC funded Soil Biology Ini-tiative (SBI) which is using an integrated approach to investigate soil’s complex biology.

Growers to reap benefits from

portable devices

The development of portable, self-calibrating devices able to accurately analyse soil, plant and grain composition is ex-pected to revolutionise on-farm testing.

Funded by the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC), the Micro-Electronics Research Group at the University of WA (UWA) is developing ‘microspectrometers’ suitable for in-clusion in on-farm instruments.

Microspectrometers measure infrared spectra to obtain detailed information about the composition of complex materials.

UWA Micro-Electronics Research Group engineering manager Dilusha Silva said ‘benchtop’ spectrometers are currently used in the grains industry to analyse material composition but they are not suitable for more rugged on-farm uses.

“These spectrometers can cost more than $50,000 per unit, weigh more than 30kg and require costly routine calibration and maintenance by experts,” he said.

“Our technology will allow the development of handheld instru-ments, expected to be a fraction of the cost of current equipment, which can be used more pervasively in the grains industry.”

Professor Silva said potential uses for microspectrometers in-clude:• Analysing carbon and mineralisable nitrogen in soils, allowing

farmers to apply fertiliser more efficiently.• Measuring the protein, starch, oil and moisture content of

grains.• Analysing plant tissue to help determine crop health.

Professor Silva said the team of UWA researchers is working on developing a microspectrometer which can automatically cali-brate.

“A self-calibrating microspectrometer will mean a skilled techni-cian is not needed to calibrate the device, resulting in significant ongoing savings to the grower,” he said.

A prototype of the self-calibrating microspectrometer is ex-pected to be tested in the field in 2011 after initial laboratory testing.

Professor Silva said early feedback from growers had been ex-tremely positive.

“They are really keen to get this device out the door,” he said.“Most of their excitement relates to the fact that it is a much more

affordable means of testing soil, plant matter and grain – not only in the initial outlay but particularly in its reduced running costs.”



Dilusha Silva, of UWA, holds a microspectrometer which will be contained in a hand-held device, also containing the required optics and electronics, for use by growers on-farm.


Moonbi is the latest soybean vari-ety released from the Australian Soybean Breeding Program and

represents a major step forward in com-bining desirable quality and agronomic traits. Moonbi should enhance soybeans as a profitable crop in areas such as north coastal and inland irrigated areas of NSW. Other improved varieties are in the pipe-line for release over the next few seasons.

A focus of the breeding program, led by CSIRO breeder Dr Andrew James, and funded by GRDC is to develop higher

yielding superior quality culinary beans for expanding export and domestic markets. Moonbi combines high yield for its sowing window in a number of environments as well as excellent quality.

Moonbi has high protein (similar to Cowrie and far better than Soya 791), an important requirement in human consump-tion and high value markets. It has better tolerance to weathering than Cowrie and Soya 791 and other clear hilum early sown varieties. Its weather tolerance is not quite as good as that of Zeus, a dark hilum type.

North coast leader of the Australian Soybean Program, Dr Natalie Moore of NSW Industry and Investment at Grafton, stresses that in environments like the north coast weathering tolerance is especially critical because of the high risk of rain over the harvest.

Other good seed quality attributes of Moonbi include attractive large round seed shape, clear hilum (important for many hu-man consumption premium markets) and shiny seed coat.

Moonbi finishes quickly, around 10–12 days faster than Soya 791, generally a de-sirable feature and a help to minimising the risk of harvest weather related losses. Natalie Moore notes fast finishing is desir-able in double crop situation, common on the coast and in inland irrigation districts. It also can reduce the need for late irriga-tion and can help avoid damaging effects (including quality) of late disease outbreaks like rust.

Natalie believes a big advantage of Moonbi is its broad adaptability from the north coast to further south (including inland irrigation areas). Moonbi is a very compact plant and is not prone to lodging. Its non-twining habit also helps with hav-ing an open crop that is less prone to the development of fungal diseases like scle-rotinia (white mould) in wet humid condi-tions, commonly experienced in coastal crops.

Another feature important in many areas is improved tolerance after sowing to water logging compared to Soya 791. Good tolerance to manganese toxicity, a major problem in acid soils in wet times, compared to Soya 791 and A6785 is also a feature.

Soy Australia will be managing the re-lease and commercialisation of Moonbi with industry partners.

Soybeans’ ability to build soil nitrogen by more than 90 kg per hectare and its rotational disease control benefits, to-gether with better varieties is encouraging increasing popularity of the crop. It is es-pecially gaining interest among sugarcane growers as well as on farms engaged in ce-reals, dairy and beef. Other varieties are in the pipeline for release with one that has good grain yield but also yields well above current ones for hay/silage. n

New soybean variety improves crop attractiveness

North coast leader of the Australian Soybean Program, Dr Natalie Moore of NSW Industry and Investment at Grafton, checking the new soybean variety Moonbi earlier this year. Moonbi offers an improved package of yield, high quality and disease resistance.

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As farmers and contractors look for economies of scale they are finding that there can be other spin-offs –

often unanticipated but certainly welcome. Getting bigger should now mean getting smarter as well – for both machine and operator.

David Singh farms at Kennedy, 25 kilo-metres south of Tully. Over the past few years he has been buying additional country.

“We felt that with the improved sugar prices we would increase our area,” Says David. “We now farm around 700 hec-tares – this will take us from 33,000 to around 55,000 tonnes of cane.”

More area means gearing up, particu-larly when David intends to move to zonal tillage across the farming country as he re-places his ratoons over the next few years. This will mean he has plenty of deep rip-ping ahead of him.

“When we bust up the old compacted country we are going down around 50 cms with a Gessner seven tyne ripper,” explains David. “Then we have the offsets

and a 5.2 metre wide three bed rotary hoe to haul around.”

Throw in fertilising and soybean plant-ing and you can understand why David decided to look carefully at his tractor op-tions – he needed fuel efficient power but he also wanted versatility.

“We try to upgrade our main tractors every four years,” he explains. “We bought a Magnum 305 which delivers 258 PTO hp. More recently we purchased a Puma 225 with 197 PTO hp.

“With the Magnum we wanted grunt for the primary tillage and the deep ripping – but we also got the auto shift and end-of-row function. This means it can do every-thing including spraying and fertilising.

‘We fitted the Puma with duals which help get its power to the ground. Doing the deep ripping would be asking too much of it but it certainly handles the off-sets. So we now have a ‘back up’ unit for most of our farming operations.”

These units come AccuGuide Ready, which makes it easy to fit precision guid-ance technology. This was an important consideration for David as he moves to-wards achieving his goal of reducing com-paction by running all gear on the same 1.8 metre tracks as the contract harvesters.

“The Magnum, the Puma and the har-vesters are all running on 1.8 metre tracks

The Magnum 305 delivers the grunt for the heavy work like deep ripping but is versatile enough to be used across all

farming operations.

Modern Machinery

Mattersis proudly supported by

So you’re upsizing – do you want extra efficiency with that sir?

– we have RTK guidance units in both tractors for controlled traffic across all our farming country. This reduces compaction in the growing zone which is what we need as we move towards zonal tillage. It also means that we can get back on the coun-try sooner after rain – the wheel tracks are so well compacted. We can be planting in April and get it out of the way before harvest kicks off in June. We are able to spread the workload away from the very busy June – August period.”

And workload there is – David is aver-aging around 1500 hours per year on the Magnum and has put 600 hours on the Puma in four months. With longer inter-vals between fluid changes than many oth-ers, there are also real savings in service time and money.

“With servicing we have also come across something else I thought was in-teresting,” says David. “We used to use any ‘suitable’ oil but decided to give the manufacturer’s own recommended prod-uct a go. I was surprised to see that we are certainly using less oil.”

If there is a problem it can be diagnosed almost immediately with the onboard diag-nostics which again helps with down time.

“It’s handy having a reliable dealer close by. If we need assistance they can have someone here in 20 to 30 minutes. Being able to go local also means we can keep money and work in this community.” n


David Singh is in the process of upsizing both his farming operation and the machinery he needs to do this effectively.

pumA 165By Steve Baker

steve baker, from riverend Harvesting, murwillumbah in northern New south Wales wanted more horsepower for the large bins they were hauling – they ‘upsized’ to the puma 165 delivering 136 ptO hp. part of the new puma range, this unit has high ground clearance and the Constantly variable transmission (Cvt) option.

What they found was that hauling was not only easier, it was significantly quicker and a long way more comfortable.

“the extra weight of the tractor stops it from being bounced around by the loaded trailer,” says steve. “And the front suspension just takes all the jolts out.”

What also stands out for steve is the 50 km transmission. being able to travel comfortably and safely at a decent road speed has delivered some very noticeable time savings.

“We thought we were getting a faster turn around time and the harvester drivers all confirmed it. It was particularly noticeable when we had the old tractor operating alongside the new.”

For contractors and owner operators alike, time is money. If there is a problem with the tractor the onboard diagnostics alert the operator and indicate if this is ‘critical’ or ‘non critical’. this means that a small problem is less likely to become a major issue, costing time and money. steve was also happy to be able to use a local dealer.

“It’s good for a lot of reasons to be able to deal locally, for a start they only 20 minutes away – but what we also found was that to get a comparable size unit from a different manufacturer we had to pay more – the puma is very cost effective.”

Steve Baker, Riverend Harvesting, Murwillumbah.

Steve Baker was looking for bigger and got faster and better too.

Down to EarthIncitec Pivot and Australian Sugarcane present a series of articles looking at practical ways of sustaining your soils.

For details from the fertiliser specialists, contact your local Incitec Pivot Distributor. Freecall 1800 009 832 www.incitecpivot.com.au

This column is proudly brought to you by Incitec Pivot Limited, the fertiliser specialists.

IPL2526Down2Earth.indd 1 9/10/07 12:08:54 PM

Cane growers may be able to signifi-cantly improve nitrogen fertiliser efficiency in ratoon crops by mak-

ing changes to minimise the potential for volatilisation losses.

Volatilisation is the nitrogen loss mecha-nism where ammonia, derived from ap-plied fertiliser, is lost as a gas and is no longer available for the crop.

It is only a threat where specific forms of nitrogen are surface applied without ad-equate incorporation (15–20 mm of irriga-tion or rainfall).

There are several factors that influence and drive the rate of volatilisation.

These include urease activity (for urea),

surface trash levels, moisture, soil pH, fertiliser pH levels, evaporation rates, the presence or absence of carbonates and the time to fertiliser incorporation.

Strategies for reducing volatilisation losses where relevant include applying ni-trogen in irrigation water, irrigating after urea application or applying urea into the soil.

But where nitrogen will be surface ap-plied and irrigation is not available, grow-ers should consider a fertiliser that is less prone to volatilisation.

Urea is at the highest risk of volatilisa-tion loss. Fertilisers with nitrogen in the ammonium (NH4+) form, such as Gran-

Am (sulphate of ammonia) are significantly less prone to losses. Nitrate nitrogen (NO3-) cannot volatilise.

Cal-Am (calcium ammonium nitrate) contains both nitrate and ammonium forms of nitrogen and also offers greater volatilisation stability compared with urea.

This makes nitrogen fertiliser selection one of the greatest influences on volatilisa-tion losses that a grower has control over.

vOLATILISATION RESEARCH IN CANE

Denmead et al., 1992* compared vola-tilisation losses in cane trash blanket blocks across four sites in north Queensland (see Figure 1). The products compared were

Rob Dwyer.

Improving fertiliser efficiency in ratoon crops

By Rob Dwyer, Technical Agronomist – Sugar, Incitec Pivot Fertilisers

FIGURE 1: Ammonia losses from applied urea and rainfall amounts (mm) at experimental sites

Source: Denmead, OT et al, 1992.

Technology developed in 1995 to au-tomatically land a jet airliner is at the heart of a new upgraded precision

guidance system now available to Austral-ian farmers.

The researchers behind that project went on to found the AutoFarm company and deliver the auto steering technology to agriculture.

First hands-free landingThe roof mounted array at the heart of

AutoFarm’s ParaDyme precision guidance system is based on gravity probes and sen-sors originally employed to perform the first Boeing 737 hands-free landing.

This technology allows continuous track-ing of roll, pitch and yaw giving ParaDyme unmatched accuracy and repeatability, and rapid line acquisition in both forward and reverse.

But the patented dual antenna system offers much more with a built in telephone modem that connects operators with their local dealer at the press of a button, allow-ing for quick and easy remote diagnostics.

In most cases dealers will be able to adjust the internal settings from their computers, saving time and money. The farmer will save on down time allowing them to get on with the job.

very remote repairsThe exclusive Australian distributor,

gps-Ag, launched the new product line at a dealer conference held recently in Cairns and provided a graphic demonstration of how remote diagnosis works.

A farmer near Bendigo 2200 km to the south was experiencing minor problems and used the call button to seek help. A support technician at the conference showed the dealers what he was seeing on his screen, even pin-pointed the exact location on Google maps, and then remotely adjusted a sensitivity setting in the tractor’s guidance console which solved the problem.

A graphic display on the diagnostic screen showed the before and after effects. The whole process took only a few minutes.

gps-Ag marketing manager, Adam Hut-ton, said ParaDyme had met with a warm response from both farmers and deal-ers in the US where it was launched last December.

“Farmers love the ease of setup, and the

new and convenient support concept. A dealer at Dos Palos in California reports a 30 per cent sales growth and says he is providing quicker support to more custom-ers over a larger area.

“But there’s more to the remote access than just modifying settings. For example, the 24 month warranty only starts when the unit is first switched on in the paddock.

“That’s because the unit automatically connects to our database and the warranty then kicks in,” he said.

“We can also transfer data to apply up-grades and make routine adjustments with-out the operator needing to do anything.”

Receive signals from a variety of sources

ParaDyme is configured to receive sig-nals from both the GPS and Glosnass sat-ellite constellations, and corrections from all sources including OmniSTAR HP, RTK and CORS (Continuously Operating Ref-erence Stations, a system operating across Victoria and rolling out in other states).

Adam said the ParaDyme roof array is the heart of the system. “It’s the huge leap forward. Farmers can then choose to couple it to any of three consoles – the Ag Leader Edge or Integra and the Raven Vi-per Pro – depending on their requirements.

“They can also choose between hydrau-lic, wire and electric steering. This flexibil-ity provides an upgrade path that future proofs their investment.

“You could start off with the smaller screen, entry-level Ag Leader Edge with elec-tric steering, and then upgrade to hydraulic steering for two cm accuracy and have the ParaDyme advantages all the way through.”

Further information: Contact: Adam Hutton 0429 362 502. n

Look no hands – flying or farming

The dual antenna with array is based on technology used to conduct the first automatic landing of a jet airliner in the mid-90s.

news & new productsurea and sulphate of ammonia, applied at 160 kg/ha of nitrogen.

Volatilisation losses were varied across the sites. But in two of the trials where urea was used and significant delays to incorpo-ration occurred, 32 per cent and 39 per cent of applied nitrogen was lost through volatilisation in less than 45 days after ap-plication.

At these same two sites, only 0.7 per cent and 1.8 per cent of applied nitrogen was lost through volatilisation under the same prevailing conditions where sulphate of ammonia was used.

Lower volatilisation losses may corre-spond with better nitrogen efficiency and potentially better sugar cane yields as a result.

When making surface nitrogen applica-tions on green cane trash blankets, one of the safest nitrogen fertilisers to use is one which contains a combination of ammo-nium nitrogen and nitrate nitrogen.

Cal-Gran fertiliser is a non-SSAN blend based on Gran-Am and Cal-Am. Cal-Gran contains 23.9 per cent nitrogen with 7.4 per cent in the nitrate form and 16.5 per cent as ammonium nitrogen. It also con-tains 10.8 per cent sulphur and 4.4 per cent calcium.

A number of Cal-Gran blends are also available to meet added nutrient require-ments such as those of phosphorus and/or potassium. Cal-Gran blends also contain useful amounts of sulphur and calcium.

Sulphur could be required in many situ-ations, but is most likely to be needed on sandy soils that are low in organic matter. Calcium is also likely to be low on sandy soils and in high rainfall areas. Calcium plays an important role in determining soil physical and chemical characteristics such as structure and pH.

An added benefit is that Cal-Gran and the range of Cal-Gran blends are not classi-fied as security sensitive ammonium nitrate (SSAN) products, which means growers do not require a licence to purchase, transport or store these products.

Cal-Am, and blends which contain more than 55 per cent Cal-Am, are classified as SSAN products.

For more information on Cal-Gran and Cal-Gran blends, please contact your local Incitec Pivot Fertilisers’ Distributor.

Source: *Denmead, OT et al. ‘Volatilisation of ammonia from urea and ammonium sulfate applied to sugarcane trash in north Queensland’ Final Report SD92002, SRDC Project BS375, July 1992.



MARKET DRIvERSUps Low stock levels, at a global level and in

a number of major importing countries;s Scarcity of prompt exportable sugar

coupled with emergence of new import demand from countries such as Iran and the Philippines; and,

s Concern that weather-related issues could affect 2010–11 output in key countries such as Brazil, India and Thailand.

Downt Threat of reduced import activity fol-

lowing the recent rebound in global sugar prices; and,

t Impact of negative global macroeco-nomic developments on sugar and other commodity markets.

PRICESWith global import demand appearing

to have been reignited at least temporar-ily, sugar futures have gained ground over the last month. Over the period June 21 to July 21, New York raw sugar futures (basis October) gained 10 per cent, while London white sugar futures rose by 16 per cent.

On the supply side, the availability of prompt sugar to satisfy import demand appears largely limited to Brazil, with Thailand not only sold out but also buying back sugar earmarked for export to satisfy domestic demand.

OUTLOOK AND STRATEGYAlthough sugar futures have risen sig-

nificantly over the past month, there re-mains little consensus over the outlook for prices over the next few months. Whether the recent increase in buying by importers is temporary or will be sustained through-out the coming months is one issue that is both important and opaque.

Another is the continued importance of weather-related developments that impact production, export availability and import demand in key countries. After two pro-nounced global sugar deficits in 2008–09 and 2009–10, global sugar stocks have been depleted. Most analysts are projecting a return to surplus and a partial rebuilding of stocks in 2010–11, but this outlook is vul-nerable to changes in production forecasts.

In recent weeks, the outlook for pro-duction in several key industries, such as Thailand, the EU and Russia, has been questioned as a result of unfavourable weather. Unless offset by improved pro-duction prospects elsewhere, these devel-opments effectively increase the market’s vulnerability to any shortfalls in Brazilian and Indian production.

FUNDAMENTALSLast month the impact of weather on

the global supply/demand balance was discussed with reference not only to Bra-zil and India (a seemingly perennial dis-cussion), but also to Thailand, where dry

weather has prompted downward revi-sions of 2010–11 cane and sugar produc-tion prospects.

Since then, weather-related concerns regarding production have emerged in two other important sugar industries, namely the EU and Russia. After a period of ex-ceptional heat and dryness, forecasts for beet yields and sugar production may be revised lower. The extent of any downward revision is unclear as there are still around two months until harvesting begins, and at least some damage to yields could possibly be offset by wetter weather between now and the end of the growing season.

Both industries are important in their own ways. Both are large importers. Moreover, the EU´s export availability still retains the ability to influence world refined sugar prices, even though the volume of EU exports has diminished dramatically since the reform of EU sugar policy.

Drawn from Rabobank Agri Commodities Monthly – July.

Contact: Andy Duff, Sao Paulo, E: [email protected] n

Stormy weather drives sugar marketBy Andy Duff – Rabobank Sao Paulo

FIGURE 1: Rabobank Sugar No. 11 Price Quarterly Forecasts (ICE NY)

SOURCe: Bloomberg, Rabobank.

WeAtHer DeLAys brAzILIAN sugAr

AccuWeather.com reported in early August that heavy rainfall at many of brazil’s main shipping ports had prevented the transportation of raw sugar driving prices to four-month global highs.

In the past two months, the port region has had about three times its average rainfall – and the wetter-than-normal conditions were forecast to continue.

Adequate rainfall and favourable weather conditions provided brazil with an above-average harvest this season but the persistent wet weather on the coast will continue to hamper efforts to get sugar out of brazil.

the vessels are unable to load during rain because sugar must be poured into a hole in the upper deck to containment below. Damp conditions in the lower containment deck can spoil the finished product.

In early August it was reported that a record 115 vessels were waiting to load 3.53 million metric tons of sugar at brazil’s six main ports.

marketing

INTRIGUE!In May–June of this year Margery and

I spent some weeks savouring the delights of The Scottish Highlands. We are indeed privileged, for every few years we have been able to return to this land of my birth and spend glorious days discovering new places, while roaming throughout our be-loved Highlands and Islands. But during this particular trip, we invited a group of our fellow members of The Taree Historic Motor Club to accompany us. So there we were, each couple with its own rental car and cosily ensconced in the evenings in a cluster of rented farm cottages.

Being a gathering of country folk, our interests were not surprisingly focused on the rugged mountains, the magnificent mysterious lochs, and the stark lonely glens. But the group was equally im-pressed by the productivity and obvious proficient husbandry of the arable farms of The Lothians, Perthshire and The King-dom of Fife.

One morning I informed our compan-ions that this was the day I was going to take them to a farm with a difference, which Margery and I had stumbled across four years previously. I assured them they would agree they had never seen a farm like it. This of course brought on much speculation and various opinions as to what type of a farm it could possibly be. Would it be a deer farm? Or maybe an exotic berry farm? “Or what about a haggis farm?” one chap suggested, with tongue in cheek.

“If I told you, you’d never believe it,” was my response.

So we piled into our cars, armed with thermos flasks and thick sweaters, and headed south through the fair city of Perth. Then east to Dundee, which we skirted, and took the A92 across the spec-tacular 2.25 kilometre Tay Bridge to The Kingdom of Fife. The convoy kept hard on my tail, fearful of taking a wrong turning or being left behind.

In the interests of the golfing enthusiast in our group, we paused at St. Andrews and did the camera thing in front of The Royal and Ancient. We also took timeout to stroll around the cloistered streets and wynds of this historically significant en-chanting Scottish town.

But I could see my travel companions

were keen to move on. The allure of this mystery farm had them full of anticipation and curiosity.

THE MYSTERY FARM REvEALEDThe East Neuk of Fife is a large penin-

sular of rich farmland that extends east to the North Sea. To the north it is bounded by The Tay estuary, while the broad Forth estuary washes its southern shores. St. An-drews is adjacent to Fife Ness, the most easterly point.

I led our convoy south in the direction of the picturesque fishing village of Anstru-ther. Half way there, and after only a 20 minute drive, I took a left turn into a minor road bounded on one side by a thick wood. I pulled over and beckoned the group from their cars.

“We are nearly there,” I announced.They looked around in puzzlement. To

our left was a broad field, from which a dense crop of young wheat was look-ing promisingly healthy. Next to it was a freshly planted potato field. To our right was a thick wood. It all looked perfectly normal and not at all mysterious.

It was time to reveal.I pointed to a track leading off the road,

which penetrated the dense wood. I ex-plained we would drive into the track and proceed about a kilometre into the wood after which they would observe the coun-try opening up to become a flat arable farm of around one hundred acres. They could expect to see a typical farmhouse and cattle peacefully grazing. They would

also notice that the farm was completely surrounded by the wood and was entirely hidden from the outside world.

They gasped with amazement when I told them that 35 metres under this typi-cally tranquil farm scene lay a hidden two storey nuclear bunker of dimensions equat-ing the area of two football fields!

This astonishing disclosure had some regarding me sceptically and others study-ing me to determine if I had forgotten to take my medication that morning! (For the record I do not take any medication).

“Come on, and I’ll show you,” I con-cluded.

Well – there was a rush to get back into their vehicles. I led them through the gate-way and we proceeded down the track, through the dark wood.

As promised, we emerged into open farmland complete with grazing cattle, in the centre of which stood a typical Fife farmhouse. But also there was a scat-tering of military vehicles parked around the house and a sign pointing the way to ‘Scotland’s best kept secret – The Secret Bunker’.

I directed the now wide eyed group into the entrance hall of the house, where a ro-tund friendly Scottish lady interrupted her knitting to issue us with tickets costing £10 each. A small price for what was in store!

We then clambered down a steep spi-ral staircase and were confronted with a seemingly endless passage sloping down-wards, with occasional wall lights provid-


The farmhouse looks perfectly normal, but it is in fact a guard house, with hidden machine guns protecting the entrance to the Secret Bunker.

The ‘PHONEY’ farm!By Ian M Johnston

CLASSIC TRACTOR TALES


ing the sole illumination. The narrow passage was in fact 150 metres in length, at the end of which, at a right angle was a massive hermetically sealed three tonne blast proof door, designed to withstand a nuclear shock wave. We were about to en-ter the bowels of Scotland’s hitherto top secret nuclear bunker!

This amazing structure had been built in the 1950s, during the darkest days of the Cold War. It involved a massive civil en-gineering task and remarkably, neighbour-ing farmers and villagers remained totally unaware of its existence. Certainly there was talk of the rumble of trucks and appar-ent movement of heavy machinery during the hours of darkness.

Even high ranking government and mili-tary officials were not informed of the bun-ker’s existence. Only the prime minister and his cabinet, plus a handful of Britain’s top military leaders were privy to the clan-destine operation. That is obviously apart from carefully screened army engineers in-volved in the actual physical construction, who were obliged to sign an Official Secret Acts Document guaranteeing a lengthy jail term, or even execution under The Traitor Act, for the slightest indiscretion.

WHY?So what was the purpose of this ex-

traordinary undertaking?During the 1950s the threat of a nuclear

holocaust between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union was considered as likely, rather than simply just a threat. London and the British parliament was a known target. A thermal nuclear detonation over the British capital and the resulting annihi-lation of the nation’s leaders would have had unimaginable consequences. The Scottish bunker was therefore built as an impenetrable bolt hole, 650 kilometres north of London, ensuring that some form of control would survive.

Although it was only four years since Margery and I first visited the bunker, we were still astounded by its complexity. The others were silent and gazed in wonder-ment as we penetrated the two levels of this phenomenal place.

The bunker was designed to accom-modate 300 personnel for a period of over three months. During this time there would be no glimpse of daylight. Six dor-mitories were equipped with ‘hot’ beds. Staff would sleep for six hours, then swap their beds for the next shift. This occurred

four times each twenty four hours. Show-ers would be non-existent, as the reserve of precious uncontaminated water would be retained for drinking.

Along with cabinet ministers and mili-tary staff, there was a fully equipped BBC studio, capable of transmitting emergency broadcasts, as it was assumed all other ra-dio stations would be off the air.

All these and other control rooms were inspected by us. The chemical toilets were state of the art. As were the food prepa-ration areas. We looked with fascinated interest at the machinery and associated equipment designed to provide life sup-port for the occupants, including scrubbed recycled fresh air. This was indeed a self contained underground town!

THE CONSTRUCTIONThe bunker design required a 40 metre

deep hole with a shock-absorbing founda-tion of gravel. The outer shell of the build-ing was constructed from three metres of solid concrete, reinforced with 2.5 centi-metre thick tungsten rods placed every 15 centimetres. The entire inner structure was lined with bricks and covered in steel net-ting, then sprayed with a cement skin.

The 150 metre passage located deep below the farmhouse. The three tonne blast proof door.

A reassuring sign. One of the six dormitories.

The farm house above ground, served as the entrance to the bunker and also a guard house. From the air it was impossible to detect any indication of what lay below the apparently normal farm landscape.

In the event of an imminent nuclear at-tack, only the authorised staff, cabinet min-isters and war chiefs would be admitted. Family members were not included. It was decreed that irrespective of who or how many pleaded, no other individuals would be allowed in. Further, if the attack had commenced, the blast proof door would be irrevocable locked and sealed. Tough luck for those who failed to arrive on time!

It occurs to me that the British Intelli-gence Service would have had to be super efficient to be able to forecast a nuclear attack on London. Presumably the Soviets would not have bothered writing a letter to the prime minister advising of their inten-tions to nuke London on a specific day.

The nuclear early warning detection devices provided only minutes rather than hours of warning. One can only assume that if the threat had become a red alert, the VIPs would have scrambled into heli-copters and high tailed it for Fife.

The establishment retained its top se-

cret classification for over 40 years. When the Ministry for Defence finally revealed its existence to the British public in a carefully worded communiqué, the disclosure cre-ated a furore, particularly by the surround-ing farming community who greeted the revelation with astonishment. They had no inkling whatsoever that such a place had existed right in their midst for over four decades. But some of the older neighbour-ing farmers, upon reflection, could recall the heavy night time truck movements in the early 1950s. They now knew why.

But it was time for us to move on. A stop at Anstruther for haddock and chips, then further along the East Neuk coast for a nostalgic (for me) quick tour of Earls-ferry, the wee village where I was reared during World War II.

We then headed north across Fife, via Largo Ward and on through Auchter-muchty and its hill farms (where light years ago I toiled as an agricultural student) be-fore finally arriving back at our cottages in Perthshire.

Everyone agreed, they had never expe-rienced a farm like the one hidden in the woods in Fife. n


The main control centre.

IAN’s mystery trACtOr QuIz

Question: Can you identify this hard working tractor?Clue: Have a look at what is below the radiator.Degree of Difficulty: No problem if you were driving British tractors in the 1930s!!Answer: See page 29.

The BBC emergency broadcasting studio.

The incoming attack plotting room. Scientists tracking the nuclear fall-out.


TABLELANDSWith 10 weeks of the 2010 harvest

completed, crop yields are up five per cent on the same period last year and the sea-son estimate of 640,000 tonnes appears achievable. Fortunately, CCS is tracking last year with the season to date figure at 13.23. Although the yield of blocks com-pleted to date is 99 tcph, this figure is likely to drop later in the season with harvest of older ratoon blocks.

The mill has performed exceptionally well with minimal lost time due to break-down. But considerable lost time has resulted from prolonged wet weather ham-pering harvest efforts at coastal mills that process the syrup from the Tableland mill. Taking this in to consideration, the Table-land mill should still manage to crush out by mid November – provided early storms don’t disrupt the harvest.

The Tableland district is in a strong po-sition against any impact from sugarcane smut with only 22 per cent of the crop sus-ceptible to the disease, down from 31 per cent in 2009. With further plantings of re-sistant and intermediate varieties this year,

only 10 to 15 per cent of the 2011 crop will remain susceptible. By 2012, suscepti-ble varieties should make up less than five percent of the crop.

During the past four years since the detection of smut on the east coast, sales of smut resistant to intermediate varieties from the Tableland approved seed plot have ramped up. With 2010 orders, a total of 327 tonnes making up 12 varie-ties were sold with 66 per cent of sales comprising the newer varieties – Q183A, Q208A, Q231A, Q237A and KQ228A. In 2011 there will be sufficient planting material of these varieties on farm to com-plete all commercial plantings.

Greyback grub damage is becoming more evident since the start of the crush as blocks are dried off for harvest. Dam-age is evident in some blocks treated with imidacloprid insecticide. But this reflects the build up in grub pressure rather than any failing of the insecticide. Without the protection provided by the insecticide, se-vere damage would have occurred, forc-ing growers to replant. Growers need to continue treating at-risk blocks with imi-dacloprid insecticides (such as Confidor 200SC) or else risk serious damage either

next year or the year after. With greater supplier competition making imidacloprid insecticides more economically attractive than ever before and sugar price forecasts for next year as high as $450 per tonne, growers should not hesitate to use these products to protect their crops.

Drewe Burgess BSES Tablelands

August 10, 2010

MOSSMANFine weather has made for a smooth

harvest so far, with the mill only losing 1.5 days to wet weather. The estimate has dropped from 550,000 to 530,000 but as we get into plant cane some blocks are weighing heavier than estimate.

Planting is way up on last season – driven by firm prices and a mill planting incentive of $350 per hectare.

Farmers are busy completing the Envi-ronmental Risk Management Plan (ERMP) under the Queensland government’s Reef Protection Package. Mossman Agriculture Services has been assisting farmers with the ERMP, in group sessions.

Don Murday Northern Region Director

August 20, 2010

Districtreports...

Brisbane ●

● CairnsAtherton TablelandMossman–Mulgrave

Innisfail–TullyHerbert

BurdekinProserpine

Mackay–Sarina

Bundaberg

Maryborough

New South Wales

Rocky Point

Numerous growers have commented that the yield of Q200A seems to drop away in ratoons – especially after second ratoon. One way to test whether this perception is a real effect is to calculate the yield index for Q200A. The yield index is simply the yield of Q200A divided by the yield of all other varieties crushed at the Tableland mill in 2009 for each crop class. The results of this exercise displayed in Chart 1 clearly show Q200A performance improving in older ratoons compared to all other varieties. As Q200A is sensitive to nutritional deficiencies, if your Q200A is not performing, it may be wise to seek agronomic advice and rule out nutritional issues before throwing out the variety.

INNISFAIIL/TULLYJuly has been nothing short of a write-

off in the Innisfail Babinda area with rain causing major complications with harvest and planting. Tully and Mulgrave suffered minor disruptions but could still crush cane. CCS levels are generally down on last year.

The Tableland mill slowed down due to the processing backlog in coastal mills which process Tableland syrup into sugar. Tableland CSS is similar to last year.

Growers are discontented with Queens-land government leasing rates on crown land which they see as a revenue grab.

Farmers are finalising their ERMPs while the conditions are too wet to farm.

John Blanckensee ACFA Innisfail Director

August 20, 2010

HERBERTWidespread rain was received across

the east coast of Queensland on August 10, with lightning and thunder amidst a tropical downpour. For once the Herbert was the least affected, receiving approxi-mately 25 mm while the surrounding areas received 90 mm or more. This has been followed by some nice cold weather. Farm-ers are busy trying to prepare ground to keep up the planting rate but a lot of areas are still too wet.

So far this season the Herbert mills have crusted a combined 1.33 million tonnes of cane. Variety performance to date (mid August):• Q 208 with a CCS of 14.69;• Q200 – 14.08;• Q190 – 13.95;• KQ228 – 13.88; and,• Q183 – 13.58.

QSL has announced an advance for this season, effective from August 19. The interim payment will increase from $265 per tonne of sugar to $310 per tonne. There will be another increase in Septem-ber to $340 per tonne of sugar.

There are quite a few paddocks of cane showing grub damage so farmers need to be ever vigilant as they plant for the com-ing year.

Carol Mackee ACFA Herbert Director

August 20, 2010

BURDEkINWidespread rain and winds across most

of the Burdekin district brought an abrupt stop to harvesting and planting activities

and highlighted the need for disputation within the milling sector to quickly reach a satisfactory resolution, in order to avoid further stoppages.

The weather conditions are likely to be repeated, given weather predictions for the season. The larger harvest of an esti-mated 8.38 million tonnes will require the cooperation of all sectors of the industry in order to achieve the anticipated finish date for the season.

Over a third of the Burdekin crop has been harvested to date (mid August), with 3.37 million tonnes at an average CCS of 14.3.

Varieties have performed as follows:• KQ228 – 15.55 CCS on 49 per cent

of the crush;• Tellus – 15.41;• Q171 – 15.36;• Q183 – 14.83;• Q208 – 14.53;• Q200 – 13.70; and,• Q133 – 13.55.

The Queensland government’s Reef Protection Package requires that Burdekin canefarmers operating an ‘Environmen-tally Relevant Activity’ are required to maintain records for the application of agricultural chemicals, fertilisers and soil conditioners on their properties.

Six farmer mentors are now available in the district to complete the various docu-ments required under the reef protection

legislation. This service is free and ACFA will be providing further workshops as re-quired to assist growers with explanations on the primary documents and mandatory competency levels required for chemical usage and fertiliser and soil conditioner applications. For further information or to book for a workshop, please contact me on 0407 779 700 or e-mail: [email protected].

The state government’s QCA water pricing review continues to loom over the district’s producers and, based on previous experience with these reviews, there is lit-tle confidence of a reasonable outcome be-ing achieved or of realistic operating costs for the Sunwater network being recorded.

The ACFA again sponsored the an-nual Hand Cane Cutting Championships at Dalbeg on June 27 which hosted Hon Bob Katter, Federal Member for Kennedy, as a guest cutter. As usual the cutters all gave commendable performances and highlighted the difficult work undertaken by our predecessors and the pioneers of the sugar industry.

Burdekin Productivity Services reports that Ratoon Stunting Disease (RSD) has been confirmed on a Burdekin farm. This is a serious disease and one that can im-pact growers’ productivity and profitability enormously.

BSES reports that in some districts, productivity is reduced by up to 20–30


DISTRICT REPORTS

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per cent. Nearly all varieties are suscep-tible, with varying resistance to RSD and while the disease is called ‘ratoon stunting disease’ it can seriously affect plant cane as well. Infection is spread through cane juice, so it is imperative that contractors who are not sterilising equipment between farms commence their hygiene programs immediately.

Margaret Menzel ACFA Burdekin Director

August 20, 2010

CENTRAL REGIONThe widespread unseasonable rain

across the entire region on August 10 and 11 was largely welcomed as soil moisture levels were low and widespread irrigation was in full swing. It was probably a little more than we required with falls of over 100 mm recorded in some areas.

It will be difficult harvesting in most ar-eas and it will be a week before normality returns. The effect should be that sugar content will fall while cane tonnage will rise and will hang on later into the season. The rain is good news for the plant cane in most areas, but low lying areas will need sunshine and warmer temperatures.

Proserpine Sugar crushed 317,711 tonnes up to the end of week four ending July 31, 2010.

Progress is 18.69 per cent of an esti-mated 1.7 million tonnes. Season to date CCS was 13.35 at 85.04 purity.

Proserpine varieties Q208, KQ228 have been the leaders with CCS in the 14s.

Mackay Sugar processed 258,609 tonnes for the week ending August 8. Sugar content was an average of 14.77 units for the week compared to 14.02 units in the previous week.

Plane Creek crushed 56,078 304,256 up to the week ending August 7, 2010. The CCS for the week was 15.30 CCS while the year to date CCS was 14.39. The yield is tracking 83.5 per cent of es-timate and the crop forecast 1.1 million tonnes.

Plane Creek varieties Q208, Q157, Q209, KQ228, Q200 and Q185 have all recorded CCS in the 15s, with the varie-ties RB75-541, Q138, Q170, Q226 and Q190 all in the 14s CCS.

The highest Plane Creek CCS sample for the week was from a rake of Plant KQ228, at 17.64 from the Yukan District.

QSL has increased the sugar price for the interim cane payment from $265 to $310 per tonne. This increase will be ef-fective from Thursday, August 19.

Mackay Sugar has developed a 20-year plan setting out the potential for projects and growth through to 2030. The plan-ning document will be tabled as part of Mackay Regional Council’s planning con-sultation process. The plan aims to see that sugar cane land is acknowledged and protected.

Ross Walker Central Region Director

August 20, 2010

SOUTHERN REGIONRecord August rainfall! 150 mm was

the highest fall I have heard of and that is in a 24 hour period – a most unusual event in our region. Probably 50 mm fell in the first hour during the later evening and then a wet day followed with rain decreasing until sunset.

Remembering that the Southern region had near record low rainfall for May, June and July, I have not heard anyone say it

was too much. Maryborough farmers re-ported about 70 mm, Childers area 80 mm, south of the Burnett 110 mm, north of Burnett 128 mm and east of Bundy 148 mm.

Standing crops are really impressive – there has been some lodging, but it is not extensive.

The weather and sugar price are getting a lot of people out of the blocks and on track to plant an increasing area of sug-arcane. Some wild rumours about tens of thousands of acres may be a bit optimistic, but it’s good to hear optimism and it gives our industry a bit of leverage against losing all our good operators to ‘the mines’.

The Burnett Basin Water Resource Plan is being worked on. A newsletter outlin-ing recent developments is available from DERM.

This is separate from the Sunwater price path enquiry which is being conducted by the Queensland Competition Authority. The Burnett Plan is more of what will be done with the water by whom and includes all groundwater, surface flows and perhaps even off the house roof as well as irrigation scheme water. If I understand the intent of the Department, it is very comprehensive and a mass of administration.

Cane harvesting – up until the rain – was belting along. Some farmers started the harvest on 15s, some on 9s. It would seem worth spending some effort on a research project investigating why there is such CCS variation by area, for the same inputs. I think this has been studied in the past, but modern science may turn up something. Perhaps we could investi-gate revising the system within harvesting groups to ‘chase the sugar’.

Mills have had a few wrinkles to iron out. ISIS has had its share of rail transport incidents. This became a fairly hot topic locally as OH and S considerations were aired in the press.

Maryborough Mill made a clean start but has had to recover from a protracted stoppage. All is going again now though. Bundy Sugar had industrial action looming but once again, this seems to have been averted by negotiation.

Now to spring planting – a final push to ditch any smut susceptible varieties is on with plough out replant being used to get new varieties in for next year. Q190 is hanging around and has never gotten any better, so with better prospects it’s going – even if it may have had a ratoon or two left in it. At least we won’t need to be irrigating

DISTRICT REPORTS

our plant this year which is another reason to say … ‘It’s all good’!

Mike Hetherington ACFA Southern Region Director

August 20, 2010

NEw SOUTH wALESI have indicated in earlier reports that

the crops at Condong Broadwater and Harwood are all up on last season. The main focus of the industry now is to get the production back to over the two mil-lion tonne mark. This is quite achievable as records show from several years ago.

With the increase in cane prices and growers having money now to spend on fertiliser and other necessary inputs, all looks well for the future.

There is a lot of arrowing in NSW this year at all mill areas. This is something we do not have to deal with very often, and it can reduce production markedly in two year old cane.

Growers are being advised to check crops for ‘blind arrows’ as well as they can also effect production.

Wet weather continues to hold up har-vesting from time to time and although we have wet weather harvesting equipment, the mud levels in wet conditions are dif-ficult for the mills to deal with.

Condong growers are working with mill management on a further trial to establish the level of trash that can be handled (crush-ing without loss of sugar). At present we are delivering around 50 per cent trash. This is being achieved by minimal topping of the crop and running extractors at 800–900 RPM. The aim is to deliver around 100,000 tonnes of cane to the mill to establish once and for all what can be achieved.

On a personal note, I have had a lot of overseas visitors to the farm, during the last month. These have come from Fin-land, a group from the World Soils Con-gress and two groups from Indonesia as well as China.

The NSW Cane Growers’ Council hosted the Indonesian millers from Java representing 14 mills. Over two days, they visited the Rogers farm in NSW, Condong Mill, and Industry and Investment NSW at Wollongbar to discuss with researchers their work on bio char. They also visited David Bartlett’s at Condong as well as my place.

The Chinese were here to find out more about the Plant Stone Technology and how claiming carbon credits/offsets may occur from that technology.

Robert Quirk ACFA New South Wales Director

August 20, 2010


DISTRICT REPORTS

QLD GOvERNMENT CLEARS UP REEF CONFUSION

under the Queensland government’s reef protection package, farmers have had imposed on them many regulated obligations. some of these have been unsuitable, requiring modification. Keeping abreast of changes has been difficult for farmers as some recommendations arising from negotiations with industry have been delayed while others have applied more specifically to certain geographical regions. Knowing which is which has been a challenge.

For some time, industry has urged the Qld Department of environment and resource management (Derm) to provide clear updates on the status of rulings and amendments to the regulations.

Following the request of industry, Derm has recently developed a reefWise Farming Newsletter to provide sugarcane farmers, cattle graziers and industry with a regular update on the latest information regarding implementation of the reef legislation.

A package comprising the Newsletter, relevant technical Advisory Notes and the current Herbicide List was posted, early August, to all sugarcane farmers and cattle graziers in the three regulated catchments.

the material explains the adjustments to the regulated nutrient calculation and soil sampling methods for sugarcane and clarification of the record keeping requirements for cane farmers and cattle graziers.

After consultation with industry representatives and farmers,

changes have been made to the two regulated methods for nutrient calculation and soil sampling. the specific details of the amendments or clarifications are provided in the package as ‘technical Advisory Notes’.

Farmers are reminded that under the Qld government regulations; from October 1, 2010 all sugarcane farmers in all three catchments must start observing the 20 metre no spray zone adjacent to down slope water bodies or adopt a five metre down slope ‘effective vegetated treatment area’ (evtA) to ensure run-off leaving the crop passes over a five metre evtA at the time of spraying ametryn, diuron or hexazinone. If a farmer chooses not to comply with this or any other mandatory chemical requirement, they must submit a Chemical ermp for accreditation. these requirements are further explained in the mail out package.

meanwhile the Federal Coalition has pledged $5 million towards developing environmental policies to help protect the great barrier reef if elected.

Opposition environment spokesman greg Hunt made the commitment campaigning in townsville on August 13. three million dollars will go towards helping farmers prevent sediment run-off and $2 million for the reduction of crown-of-thorns star fish.

the AbC cited that mr Hunt’s announcement was based on the voluntary best management gains made by farmers who are keen to continue their initiative.

Stephen Ryan General Manager

ACFA COmmeNt

ANsWer tO IAN’s mystery trACtOr QuIz

The tractor is one of the few remaining Marshall 18-30 single cylinder diesel tractors in existence. The photo was taken at the Sandstone estates of Centurian in South Africa. Only a handful of these idiosyncratic machines were produced between 1932 and 1934.


People interest me. Especially the way they think, the way they rationalise, the way they justify their actions not

just to others but to themselves.I used to do business with a bloke who

claimed he wouldn’t get out of bed for less than five hundred dollars yet he was one of, if not the most, money hungry, tight fisted, mean spirited penny pinching indi-viduals I’ve ever had the misfortune to deal with, but he was a flash dresser and a big talker and in his own eyes he was a legend.

As far as he was concerned if you look like ‘The Man’ and acted like ‘The Man’ you are the ‘The Man’. He justified himself to himself and that’s all that mattered. An ex-boss of mine had a favourite saying ‘all things are relative’, and to a point I agree, everything depends on the circumstances at the time. But every decision I made was challenged and had to be justified by his cri-teria – at the time he chose to review my decisions not the circumstances at the time.

This guy’s claim to fame was that he was academically brilliant, head of a university department and a member of Mensa, the self proclaimed ‘brains trust’ of the uni-verse. He refused to join any organisation

such as the RACQ because he rationalised that the cost of getting a mechanic on the rare occasion he needed one was cheaper than being a member. He got a flat tyre on

the way home one night, rang his wife and she came and changed it for him. He ra-tionalised that the ability to change a tyre wasn’t gender specific and if his wife knew how to change a tyre he didn’t have to.

We talked about this later. I rationalised as an Aussie male, do it yourself, self reli-ance, independent point of view and tak-ing Telstra’s coverage into account while he looked at it from his London born and Eton educated view point.

He conceded that in a country as large, culturally barren, artistically impoverished and poorly serviced as Australia, organisa-tions like the RACQ are a good idea but as he doesn’t go travelling by car it wasn’t necessary. Even if he did, his wife would be with him and she could change a tyre and anything more serious he’d call a me-chanic so the ongoing expense of joining the RACQ was not rational and economi-cally unjustified. Everything came down to economics and that’s all that mattered.

SOCIAL COMMENTARYI like Nancy Reagan, the wife of the late

president, not that I’ve met her personally. I’ve read a number of things she’s written, particularly her social commentary and I

Fish in the sea, snakes in the grass

By Phil Jackson — Fly, Tye and Tackle

FISHING

My prize, my salvation and my accuser.

The scene of my victory.

can’t help but feel she probably had more to contribute to American politics than her husband but that’s just my opinion. One of the many things I admire about Nancy is her ability to speak her mind and make her point without offending anyone because she just told it like it was.

When Monica and Bill Clinton were the hottest things in Washington, Bill was asked if he and Monica had a sexual rela-tionship and history records his denial and his change of mind when he claimed that he couldn’t remember.

A leading newspaper, the New York Times I think, was interviewing Nancy about issues of the day and naturally Bill and Monica came up in the conversation.

When Bill’s change of mind was men-tioned Nancy said “Can’t remember – that’s just so much bull. There’s no such thing as bad sex. There’s good sex and great sex but never bad sex and if it was that bad you’d remember.” But as far as Bill was concerned he justified it to himself by saying he couldn’t remember and that’s all that mattered.

BACK TO FISHINGWhat’s this got to do with fishing? June

24 this year was a momentous day in my part of the world. It was close to, if not, the shortest day of the year, the country got a new Prime Minister and the first woman PM in our history, but more importantly it was my birthday.

I wasn’t particularly fussed that social and political events had overshadowed my birthday on the historic calendar of the na-tion because I was about as far removed from the pressure of social events as it was possible to get.

By the time the sun rose in the east, I had finished my coffee and was standing on the most pristine stretch of beach in the entire cosmos, in my pyjamas. Or at least my black boxer shorts with “Size Mat-ters” emblazoned in red across the rump. I didn’t really care that the sight of me in my boxers could severely damage the physi-ological development of any normal per-son because the vast uninterrupted sickle shaped curve of the Pennefather beach was deserted for as far as the eye could see.

The surging waves that lulled me to sleep the night before had subsided into a succession of gentle frothy ripples two metres above the gutter that ran along the beach and turned sharply out into deep water and the bait fish were balled up lit-erally at my feet. Birds working the bait ball swooped past my rod tip to reeked

havoc as they competed with the mack-erel, trevally and fingermark.

THE BIRTHDAY FISHThe TSS4 ripped my Laser lure deep

through the mêlée, bounced it across the surface, ran it across the current, down the current, up the current and all without suc-cess. The fly fisherman in me said ‘match the hatch, duplicate the prey’ and I did. The Laser was exactly the right size and colour and I was desperate. This was day 12 of my three month odyssey, my first chance to wet a line and my birthday and I deserved a fish.

I had 94 litres of fridge-freezer filled with bacon, eggs, steak, lamb chops, roasts and

enough comestibles to satisfy a king but I wanted fish. I deserved fish and come hell or high water I was going to have fish. A change of tactics was called for.

A long cast over the tidal surge past the incoming waves and well out into clear open water. The high speed retrieve of the Shimano TSS4 had the lure skipping across the surface and leaving a smoking trail of bubbles in the swell.

Suddenly the line went taut the rod tip bent and a full metre of dazzling chrome mackerel catapulted into the air. My world went into slow motion as the fish of my dreams cart wheeled across the Gulf on its way to Gove. It was a magnificent fish. A


FISHING

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PHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSONPHIL JACKSON

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CGNZ06.pdf 4/12/05 3:48:57 PM


fish fit for a man on his birthday, for the first fish of my trip of a lifetime, a fish wor-thy even of a female Prime Minister. This was my fish.

The Laser scribed a huge arc as it and the mackerel parted company. The fish continued to jump long after it threw the lure not because it didn’t realise it was free but just to mock me with its freedom and because it knew it was my birthday.

First I was stunned with disbelief and then I got angry.

The lure had barely hit the water when I lifted the rod tip and cranked the reel into overdrive. The lure skipped and bounced across the sea spending more time in the air than the water. One more roll of the dice, one more turn of the cards, one more cast, I was frantic in my addiction.

Almost at my feet the fish struck. The rod tip bent over and the line peeled off the reel. YES! YES! YES! There is a God. No theatrics this time, no dumbstruck amazement of the virgin novice, no sen-timentality about the privileges of age and birthdays! This was serious.

The fish ran and I let it run, it turned and I counter turned, lifted the rod to draw my prize to me and wound in the slack as the tip came down. I was the master. The tide had changed both literally and figuratively, and the rippling waves had matured to a foam crested surge. The same waves that had nurtured the fish all its life now turned traitor and carried my spent and flapping victim – my prize – to the sand.

A queenfish! I’ve caught hundreds of

queenfish – I encourage clients to throw them back! Queenfish are my back stop when nothing else would open its mouth. Even my most inept client can catch queenfish! Was I happy to see this particu-lar queenfish? You can’t begin to imagine.

I fell upon that queenfish as if my life de-pended on it. The razor sharp belly spikes cut my hand as I lifted my reward from the coarse gritty sand. It flapped in my gasp as I slipped the knife between its gills and let the hot rich dark red blood spill on the sand.

I walked the short distance up the beach to the long stand of casuarinas where the annex to the Kimberly Kampa was just be-ginning to cast a morning shadow.

Filleted and skinned cut into bite size portions and rolled in seasoned flour my trophy sizzled in the pan. We breakfasted in near silence while the sea and endless beach occupied our minds and the crispy brown fish pieces satisfied our inner being.

I was satisfied. I had established my right to be here for I was the hunter and the gatherer, never mind if it was the humble queenfish that had been my salvation, all things are relative.

A RUSTLE IN THE GRASSLong after the sun had set into the Gulf

and the distant lights of Weipa were barely a dull glow in the south I made my way across the dunes to refuel our latest acqui-sition.

My head torch caught a diamond like flash in the spindly coarse grass along my

worn track and I stopped. Life had taught me when in doubt don’t step out, and this wasn’t natural. The reflected flash of un-blinking eyes betrayed the reptile’s move-ment and there before me lay the dreaded tawny green torso of one of this country’s most feared snakes.

I turned the fuel can side on as a bar-rier between us and to mark the location – but most importantly to free me from the weight of twenty five litres of genera-tor fuel.

I returned to the camper, rummaged un-der the bunk and headed back to the fuel can. “What’s the matter?” was the ques-tion from the camp fire “Oh nothing” I replied which was code for move into the light and get your feet off the ground.

I generally use number seven shot for clay pigeon and skeet but I’ve found it to be most effective on uninvited guests of most species. Years of fox whistling have taught me to grip the Dolphin torch and the fore wood of the shotgun in my left hand and load with my right. I enjoyed the reassuring plunk as the two cartridges fell into the open breach of the twelve gauge side by side.

The taipan had moved onto the track but fortunately away from the power cord and as I approached it raised its head about 20 centimetres off the sand. The single re-port echoed across the dunes bounced off the tea trees and rumbled out to sea.

About a metre of snake hung each side of the boat hook and I carried the shred-ded carcass back and dropped it in the campfire. I don’t particularly like snakes and they do have an ecological niche to fill but this one was in the ‘too’ category, ‘too deadly and too close’. “They don’t at-tack out of anger you know, they attack because they feel threatened,” came the voice from the camper. “Me too,” I re-plied. Now I was rationalising like a reptile, I wonder if I have a future in politics? n

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FISHING

‘Beer o’clock’ in paradise.

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