Like many north-west Tasmanian farmers, Andrew and David Pilkington, face waterlogging challenges that impact pasture production and profitability. They're participating in a trial by the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA) to address this challenge.
The Pilkington's receive a high annual average rainfall of 1150 millimetres at their Killara Pastoral property near Arthur River where they run a 1120 head cow-calf operation.
To alleviate the challenges of waterlogging, they are undertaking an extensive pasture renovation phase at their property.
Their aim is to improve drainage in winter waterlogged areas and establish perennial pastures that will persist and increase animal production.
The Pilkington's are one of several farmers involved in a project being undertaken by TIA to help farmers grow the productivity of Tasmania's red meat sector through the selection and establishment of perennial legumes.
The five-year project, led by TIA Senior Research Fellow, Dr Rowan Smith, is advocating perennial legume species that can successfully persist to fill feed gaps and improve tolerance and productivity under waterlogging.
"The current low proportion of legumes in Tasmanian pastures are limiting the profitability and productivity of the Tasmanian red meat industry," Dr Smith said.
"The project aims to enhance the legume component of pastures, improve productivity and build resilience to a changing climate.
"We have taken a region-focused approach to improve the proportion of legumes in the high rainfall regions of the north-west and low-medium rainfall region of the Tasmanian Midlands.
"By successfully establishing perennial legumes, producers can extend their growing seasons beyond what is currently being achieved and enhance the resilience of their feedbase to the changing and variable climate."
Updates and case studies on the projects have recently been released and can be found on the TIA website.
"We will continue to take regular feed tests in paddocks to assess how legume content changes feed quality through the growing seasons," Dr Smith said.
The case studies include:
Chicory trial
Longford red meat producer Jock Hughes is introducing chicory into his pure clover pastures to try to reduce sudden lamb deaths and create more grazing flexibility for his cropping and mixed grazing business. Mr Hughes has been tracking the seasonal changes in feed quality across a range of pasture mixes including ryegrass dominant, mixed ryegrass and clover and clover dominant pastures.
Boosting perennial species
Midlands sheep producers Chris and Claire Headlam are aiming to increase the proportion of perennial species in the 'shoulder areas' at their property, Ratharney.
Their goal is to create pastures that are more resilient and productive for their grazing enterprise. They're also aiming to extend the grazing phase of their cropping rotation to compensate for a reduction in poppy area and provide a longer rest period for soils.
Deep-rooted pasture trial
Stanley farmer Iain Bruce is growing a deep-rooted perennial pasture mix of cocksfoot, prairie grass and lucerne to combat both wet and dry conditions.
Dryland pasture mix trial
Northern Midlands farmers John and Kate Simpson are striving to find a dryland pasture mix that can grow feed to support their agistment heifers and increase feed base diversity across the farm. Like many mixed cropping/grazing enterprises, juggling cropping rotations and the availability of water for irrigating fodder or pasture has been a challenge.
The project is funded by Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) and Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA) and is part of the Livestock Productivity Partnership.
The Livestock Productivity Partnership (LPP) is a collaborative research and development partnership involving MLA Donor Company (MDC), TIA, NSW Department of Primary Industries, University of New England, University of Melbourne, and CSIRO, aimed at boosting livestock productivity and developing new R&D capacity.
TIA is a Joint Venture of the University of Tasmania and the Tasmanian Government.
