Farmers celebrate a year of growth with sundowner

Last week provided the perfect balmy summer evening for GeoCatch’s annual Farmer Sundowner at Lentedal Winery.

The rural setting of Marybrook provided the perfect setting for farmers, industry, and government partners to gather and reflect on the collaborative efforts of the past 12 months.

The evening, hosted by GeoCatch and supported by RegenWA, Lottery West and Perth NRM, gave farmers a chance to catch up with neighbours and friends from across the catchment and share their experiences.

Agro-ecology and holistic land management expert, Mark Tupman from Productive Ecology, presented on the benefits of adopting regenerative agricultural practices on farms.

“The sundowner gives farmers involved with GeoCatch programs such as soil testing and stream restoration, the opportunity to catch up off-farm and reflect on what they have achieved this year,” GeoCatch Sustainable Agriculture Project Officer, Jenelle Schult said.

“Since 2009, over 40 percent of the Geographe catchment has been soil tested, contributing to an annual reduction of 3.5 tonnes of phosphorus entering Geographe Bay.

“This year GeoCatch has also held a series of workshops and events that have explored regenerative farming practices that aim to build up organic matter in the soil.”

Yoongarillup dairy farmer, Neville Haddon, commented on the changes he’s made in some of his paddocks including incorporating multi-species pastures to improve soil structure and health, increasing water infiltration, and attracting beneficial insects.

“Over my farming career of 50 years, I am still learning how to farm,” he said.

“For our grandkids, they should to be eating food that comes from a biological background.

“The microbes and everything in the soil that grows our food, that grows the cattle, produces the milk, and produces everything that we eat, has got to come from a less-chemical background.”

The work Neville has been experimenting with on his farm have yielded some encouraging results.

“The growth that we got out of those paddocks has been outstanding,” he said.

“We see what grows on the top of the ground and that is very visual. But it is what is growing under the ground that is the most exciting part for the future.”

GeoCatch has been working with the Geographe community for 26 years, with the first sustainable agriculture project being undertaken back in 1997.

For more information about GeoCatch and its sustainable agriculture programs visit geocatch.asn.au