Business Rural Autumn 2021

48 | ARABLE » Michael & Lynne Porter Benefits flow from no-till drilling Header on kopje at Lyalldale, south of Timaru. Use of multi-species cover crops improves soil quality and health. Direct drilling increases soil stability. Inset: Mike and Lynne Porter. T hird generation South-Canterbury farmer Michael Porter says adapting to an extreme environment has been a major factor in his family’s survival as arable farmers. “You have to ask yourself the right questions and recognise where the opportunities are. The best thing I did was accept we weren’t a flat irrigated Mid-Canterbury cropping farm. It wasn’t until I recognised and accepted our constraints, threats and opportunities and adapted to them that we started moving ahead.” Inland from St Andrews, the Porters farm is located in the little farming community of Lyalldale about 20 kilometres south of Timaru. The farm embraces 480 hectares of which 30% is virtually flat with the balance marginal land with slopes up to 30 degrees — not ideal for arable farming and impossible to harvest without the use of hydraulics. Stone free, silt loam soils in a deep clay base provide good water retention of 525mm average rainfall each year but erosion from cultivation in the past has resulted in extremely variable soil depths. Michael explains that while the soil depth is supposed to be a constant 200mm, the actual soil depth ranges from 0 to 1000mm. To address that issue cultivation was ceased. “In 1998 we decided to go 100% no-tillage and have been growing arable crops ever since using a specialist direct drill. “That methodology increases soil stability, de- creases erosion by about 95% and increases soil health and biological activity. It also lowers our crop growing cost per hectare and tractor hours to a third of what they were because we are only doing one pass.” While not a Regen Ag farm, Michael adheres strictly to the five main tenets; no soil disturbance, no bare soil anywhere at any time of year, diverse cropping rotations and pasture mixes, living roots for as much of the season as possible and a pres- ence of livestock in the system. “Soil quality and health is very important to us and one of the best ways to improve soil health and function is by maintaining living roots in the ground for as much of the season as possible, which we do through the extensive use of short and long term multi-species cover crops all in the one seed mix.” Included in the Porters farming mix is a 400-hectare harvest, 40 – 80 trading cattle and 700 Coopdale capital stock ewes. “We grow dryland commodity crops including feed wheat and barley, perennial rye grass seed crop, oil seed rape, peas, beans, linseed, radish and vetch. Everything is grown for grain and seed. Virtually all ryegrass goes to the Northern Hemi- sphere seed multiplication market or Australia. Feed wheat and barley goes to poultry, pigs or dairy here in New Zealand, the oil seed rape goes to Pure Oil New Zealand.” Clearing a path through adversity is nothing new to the Porter family. Deregulation and economic reforms of the Lange/Douglas Labour Government in the 1980s coupled with a major drought resulted in severe financial pressure with the Porters suffering hard- ship. “In 1998 we decided to go 100% no-tillage and have been growing arable crops ever since using a specialist direct drill. That methodology increases soil stability, decreases erosion by about 95% and increases soil health and biological activity. • to page 49 Maize & Fodder Beet Precision Plan�ng Chopping - Grass, Maize & Wholecrop Baling - Squares & Rounds - Balage, Hay, Straw Ag Work - Ploughing, Ripping, Direct & Roller Drilling Cartage - Feed Sales - Woodchip Jamie: 027 200 8872 Brad: 027 200 8871 Main Road, St. Andrews PO Box 137, Timaru Cell: 027 4329 555 Phone: 03 612 6605 Fax: 03 612 6614 Email: www.standrewstransport .co.nz satrans@xtra.co.nz Proud to be associated with The Porters Peter McPherson, Chris Heath, Peter Cockburn, Wayne Morgan, SandraWiggins & Supporting Sta Proud to support The Porters GRAIN | SEED | BROKERS Grow with us... For All Your Seed Requirements • Regen Seed Specialist • We Freight Nationally 022 464 2243 www.gsbrokers.co.nz craig@gsbrokers.co.nz Richard Loader