Cropa for Farmers and Agricultural Contractors.
Large numbers are now building wintering sheds
More and more dairy farmers are building wintering sheds for at least some of their herd. Philip and Denise van der Bijl have a large 200 metre by 34 metre wintering shed for their cows.
The $3.3 million wintering barn is big enough to house 1000 cows. It took about a year to build. The primary reason they invested in the 200m x 34m building is the weather. Philip says it can get as low as minus 7 and just getting cows to drinking water is a challenge in these temperatures.
Philip came to New Zealand in 1962 from the Netherlands with the dream of becoming a farmer. In 1966 he met his wife Denise, and together they were able to go sharemilking 125 cows in Warkworth. The couple bought their first farm in 1974 and after nine years sold it, eventually buying another property near Reporoa.
By 1992 they looked to Southland and bought a 1330ha rough block 17km south of Mossburn. The block was once part of the Dunrobin Station. Philip and son in-law John Lang bought the property, taking about a year to convert it.
They now have an 800ha milking platform and milk 1600 cows through an 80-bail rotary farm dairy in partnership with their daughter Yvonne and her husband John Lang.
Son Chris and daughter-in-law Trish farm the original property near Reporoa, milking 1100 cows.
Philip has recently retired as a member of the Fonterra Shareholders Council. He has been a member of the council since Fonterra’s formation and was a member of the NZ Dairy Group shareholders council before that.
Another reason for building it was that they were having issues with other wintering systems. “ We had grown swedes in the past,” says Philip, “ but we were getting crop failures. Our kale paddocks were out of the grazing round for 14 months or more. That was costing us too much.”
Rural Contractors New Zealand in partnership with Nufarm are delighted to announce the Nufarm RCNZ Agri-Chemical Applicator of the year award.
The purpose of the award is to recognise an individual who demonstrates excellence in Agri-Chemical application and innovation. Nufarm’s New Zealand Country Manager Gavin Kerr says:
“There has never been a better time to promote innovative industry leaders within the sector particularly those individuals promoting innovation related to the sustainable use of crop protection solutions. Nufarm fully backs every solution we provide and is very focused on how our solutions are applied sustainability.
“The recent release of our Grassmanship application has been a great example of this. We are looking forward to recognising industry leaders within the contractors’ industry in partnership with RCNZ.”
RCNZ CEO Andrew Olsen says: “In a highly regulated sector that gets plenty of attention from government agencies and the public, it’s timely that our partnership with Nufarm has extended to include a robust recognition program.
The intent is to open up the opportunity for our members to put forward their brightest and best and, through a rigorous judging format, award the highest level of expertise, compliance and innovation.”
As a farmer, ensuring that your crop is well-fed and healthy is crucial to your success. With so many factors to consider, it can be overwhelming to determine the best approach. However, when standing at the gate, you can take some time to consider several factors that will help you make an informed decision.
One of the most important things to consider is feed planning. This involves determining how many animals your crop will feed and for how long. Fortunately, there are tools available that can help you with this task.
For instance, the B+LNZ FeedSmart app is an excellent resource that brings together a range of variables to provide farmers with instant information on the nutritional requirements of different classes of livestock, feed values, and feed allocation.
By using this app, you can estimate the feed requirements for sheep and cattle at any time of the year and even help estimate the allocation of your winter crop.
Another critical consideration is excluding stock from waterways and critical source areas (CSAs). This involves creating an ungrazed buffer zone of crop between the livestock and any waterways (at least 5 metres), but this should increase with slope and soil type risk.
Additionally, you should identify areas that might channel overland flow (Critical Source Areas or CSAs) of soil nutrients and fecal matter to water and fence these areas off during grazing to reduce the risk of contaminating waterways.
CSA’s can be grazed quickly and lightly when soil and weather conditions allow. It is essential to check your regional councils’ rules and regulations because some have rules on buffer zones.
Read this story about horse health and tips and tricks to keeping a healthy horse. Adult horses should have a complete veterinary examination at least once a year. Geriatric horses (older than 20 years old) should see their veterinarian twice a year or more frequently because illness is more common in older animals and it can be identified sooner. Your veterinarian may recommend a wellness program for your horse, including routine blood tests.
FREE Calving Season Checklist 
Planning and preparing for calving with your Dairy Farm team will reduce stress when calving is in full swing, and will help keep everyone safe and healthy. Calving is one of the busiest times of the year. Spend time with your team prior to calving to create a plan that works for everyone and the results will follow. Ensure you have everything you need prior to calving to help reduce stress, keep you on track from the get-go, and to create better outcomes for your team and animals.
Vehicle leasing is a contract which allows a business to obtain a vehicle for a fixed period. The leasing company owns the vehicle and charges the business an agreed amount per month to use the vehicle. Usually, leases last for 12 to 48 months, but in some cases can be longer. Once the lease ends, the business returns the vehicle. Leases are tax-deductible. Importantly there are two types of vehicle leases – operating leases and finance leases. This guide focuses primarily on operating leases.
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