Strathalbyn field day and 20-year anniversary celebration
Strathalbyn Station grazier Bristow Hughes explains to attendees at the field day the history of the remediated large-scale gully on which they were standing. The gully was the first of several locations the convoy of buses, 4WDs and a truck visited to appreciate the efficacy of the work undertaken in the past decade on the 32,000ha property to improve landscape function, soil health and pasture.
IT was a day when Strathalbyn Station took a very rare operational pause to mark 20 years since Wentworth Station graziers Richard and Dyan Hughes bought the property as a breeding block.
In 2004, vendors Jim and Linda Dunn had established 10 paddocks when they sold the 32,000ha property, up from three, when they arrived.
The Hughes continued that work and they now rotate their wagyu herd through 78 paddocks on the property.
Richard said the family had never before paused to celebrate a milestone and the opportunity to “tack a celebration onto the back of an NQ Dry Tropics Field Day” was too good to pass up.
The Wentworth Cattle Co team, or most of them. Richard Hughes is pictured in the centre with Bristow to his left and Dyan in front of her son.
Bankers, financial advisors and property valuers joined graziers among the 80-plus people who piled onto buses or joined the 4WD convoy throughout the day to see firsthand various sites on Strathalbyn that had received special attention, particularly in the past 10 years.
Son Bristow and his wife Ureisha took the reins of the Wentworth Cattle Co operation in 2015.
The biggest challenges presented to the extended operation of the company, particularly at Strathalbyn, were actively eroding gullies, declining land condition and weeds.
They joined the MLA War on Weeds project, making Strathalbyn a Producer Demonstration Site evaluating various techniques to combat heavy weed infestations.
They joined the NQ Dry Tropics Stomping Out Sediment project to trial various methods of gully remediation, including using cattle as a tool to reshape gullies, restart vegetation and repair landscapes affected by erosion.
The Hughes undertook several large-scale gully remediation projects supported by different investors, making a spectacular difference to parts of their property.
They participated in a number of NQ Dry Tropics-led “wire and water” projects to enable better management of grazing pressure and were generous hosts of a number of field events including a Young Guns field day and a Mulloon Institute landscape rehydration training event.
MLA Project Manager Rod Kerr said a lot had been invested in weed eradication and that was now beginning to pay dividends.
He said successfully recovering the use of paddocks previously covered in rubber vine and bellyache bush, coupled with astute rotation of grazing pressure was paying off.
Pasture budgeting is constantly reviewed and updated. Everybody working on Strathalbyn knows how to estimate feed available using the STAC method and the grazing schedules are constantly revised.
Time for old friends to catch up. Dr Christine Jones, left, and Dyan Hughes are all smiles as they catch up at lunch during the field day.
Money talkers… Jamie Walker, NAB; Bristow Hughes Strathalbyn; Ben Barrett ANZ; and property valuer Malcom Malone.
Richard Hughes opened the field day by explaining what the day meant to his family.
Dyan Hughes, with a microphone in each hand, explains the arrangements for travel around the property during the field day.
Chris Francis, Greentop Grazing, Bowen joins the discussion.
Grazing consultant Dick Richardson explained that the aim was to keep the grass in a vegetative or growing phase for as long as possible.
This is achieved by grazing targeted paddocks intensely, resting them, then returning again and again during the growing season.
“The targeted paddock would probably get a 12 month rest after the intense grazing program,” Mr Richardson said.
“And the pasture responds. After resting and going to seed, it will come back bigger and more tightly spaced than it was the previous year.”
At the field day, Mr Richardson presented the results of the stock records for Strathalbyn demonstrating that the stocking rtate had been doubled since 2015.
Because this was when the herd was transitioning from a Brahman-based herd to a Wagyu herd, Mr Richardson said he did the comparative numbers by ignoring head counts and simply calculating kilograms of beef to show the upward trend.
“Even in an average season like this past season, we don’t know what the carrying capacity of Strathalbyn is now, because, as we have increased the stocking rate, we have stayed well behind the capacity of the property,” Mr Richardson said.
“Right now, there aren’t enough mouths available to be able to properly respond to the change in the country, but that will sort itself out.”
The field day began with presentations from some of the “influencers” in North Australian agriculture: scientist Dr Christine Jones, Amazing Carbon and educator Raymond Stacey, RCS Australia.
Glenalpine grazier Leanne O’Sullivan, who, with husband Barry, has adopted an environment-first management style gave a presentation about an often overlooked aspect of regenerative agriculture — economics.
Ms O’Sullivan presented a financial analysis of Glenalpine Station showing the number of cattle in their enterprise had trended up by more than 30 per cent in the past 15 years and the kilograms per hectare of beef produced had also steadily increased.
She gave an overview of the experience in their business that showed the more they developed diversity in the environment, particularly in relation to their new approach to pasture management, the more it benefited their business.
Presenters at the field are, from left, Dick Richardson Nature’s Equity; Dr Christine Jones Amazing Carbon; Rod Kerr NQ Dry Tropics; Leanne O’Sullivan, Glenalpine Station and Raymond Stacey, RCS.
Buses, 4WDs, utes, even a cattle truck formed a convoy to move from site to site on Strathalbyn during the day.
Last working day for popular retirees
MLA Project Manager Rod Kerr and Amazing Carbon principal Dr Christine Jones (pictured) didn’t let on until the end of the day when each indicated the field day was their last.
Dr Jones, now a respected authority on soil health and pasture management, was considered controversial when she suggested practice change would address salinity problems.
Rod Kerr worked in the meat industry here and in England, the government, Greening Australia and, since 2013, with NQ Dry Tropics.
They have made a lot of life-long friends in the grazing industry across the North and their contributions will be sorely missed.