Hi everyone, I’m Ian and my family and Ifarm near Ariah Park, about 35km South of West Wyalong, NSW. We are 100% dryland cropping and predominantly grow canola, wheat, barley and faba beans on approximately 1900Ha.
We have an average rainfall of 400mm at our property and we had an incredible start to our season this year with a wet summer of over 100mm in January alone. Rain continued throughout the planting window of April/May which resulted in a great germination. Follow up rain of approximately 100mm was delivered throughout June/July/August which set our crops up to have the potential of fantastic high yields. However, the lack of rain throughout September and a period of high temperatures and warm winds has really taken the top end out of all the crops. This was followed by a few days of solid frosts for the district causing widespread damage on the low-lying areas. The crops which have not been damaged by frost have the potential with one more good rain to still deliver above average yields. We are almost ready for windrowing canola which will be quickly followed by harvest.
For me, the biggest challenge currently for us is the increased input costs that are resulting in much smaller margins for our business. It is a great opportunity though, to ensure we are on top of our financial figures and operating at our highest efficiency and productivity. It is exciting to challenge ourselves with improving our business every year. There are amazing opportunities available to educate ourselves in improved farming practices, business management and personal development. I really see agriculture as an incredible industry to be involved in and one that is going ahead in leaps and bounds with technology development, research and education.
I’m proud to be an Aussie grain grower as we are leading the way in agricultural progression globally and are growing incredibly high quality products to feed the nation.