86 | Father and son team Sue Russell Tasman agricultural contracting business Fry Contracting is lead by a Father-Son duo, Kevin and Andrew Fry. Previously having their own independent businesses, Kevin with his Drilling and Mowing, Andrew with his spraying, they decided it was time to offer their services as a package and add in some new exciting equipment. The company offers a broad range of services to farmers in the district, including spraying, baling, harvesting, drilling and chopping crops. Based in Tapawera, Andrew says while they’ve been contracting for some 20 years, both his father and grandfather had been farming before this time, growing tobacco, which was common in the day. Today, along with the contracting activity, the family has a third generation cropping farm of 12ha, with a further 100ha spread out through the Motupiko and Ngatimoti areas. “Dad remembers plowing a field with a horse and considering how sophisticated the machinery we have today is, he’s coped really well. All our tractors have touch screens and are highly computerised.” Asked how busy he has been, when Rural South caught up with Andrew before Christmas, he said activity was a little quieter than typically. “Our maize crops didn’t go in until November. We’ve had a pretty hard month or six weeks without rain and these dryer conditions are becoming a trend. We were definitely wetter 5 – 10 years ago.” Andrew and the team got into baling in 2011 and in terms of machinery in the fleet, the company can engage up to 9 operators. “We’re fortunate that we have two guys who jump on the tractors just when we need them.” As the only contractor in the district offering a full range of services, Andrew says they have gathered a good core of loyal customers through the years. Andrew has a strong passion for John Deere equipment, and was stoked when long-time friend and John Deere mechanic James Taylor said he’d come work with him. The majority of the working fleet are John Deere with the exception of a Fendt 720 and the “Baby Fendt” 209. RURAL SERVICES » Fry Contracting / Wendon Creek Contracting A love for old farm machinery by both Kevin and Andrew has resulted in a rather special museum on the home farm. Stored inside a building measuring 36m x 15m is a variety of old-time equipment, the oldest of which is a 1929 John Deere ‘D’ tractor. “Since we’ve put the shed up we have had quite a few visitors who are keen to see these old machines up close. Two tractors are in the process of being rebuilt at this moment, so there’s always something going on.” Andrew is also growing hops as well. Trenches, irrigation pipes and large hop poles covered the 11ha hop garden in 2019. What was looking like a promising year for the hops took a down turn when the world fell into a pandemic. Demand for the well sought-after NZ hop’s plummeted as a result. Though the unfortunate timing didn’t stop Andrew and his wife Laura pushing on, eventually becoming 2024 NZ Hop Grower Of The Year, also achieving recognition for Master Grower, having scored in the top 85% in hop quality for the last 3 consecutive years. According to Andrew there are three critical qualities in a good machinery operator. First, you have to be willing to work, and then be prepared to put your hand up when you have made a mistake and above all, be willing to learn. “The industry is pretty challenging with ongoing staffing shortages of experienced operators and with government policies impacting the sector. We’ve always had a couple of overseas workers.” The problem, Andrew says, with recruiting staff from overseas has been the time spent waiting for visas to be approved. “It has been hard because we need help in the pinches just for short periods of time. The system hasn’t been flexible or very responsive to this reality for us.” Andrew himself did two stints in Texas and six seeding seasons in Western Australia, gaining knowledge and sharing his own skills with others. But as the business and family at home grew, so did the demand for Andrew’s time. He still speaks fondly about those experiences and how he’d like to return to visit one day, perhaps even showing his two Sons, Lex and CJ, also tractor enthusiasts, that things are always bigger in Texas. A new crop option Johny continues to trial different maize varieties, with Pioneer Brand Products variety 7524 proving particularly successful. Karen Phelps A Southland agricultural contractor is successfully challenging long-held assumptions about maize cultivation in the region, offering farmers a potentially game- changing crop option with higher yields than traditional forage. “Cows love it. After the first trial it was fed out by the sharemilker on my parents’ dairy farm and the cows were beating up the silage wagon to get the maize out of it,” says Johny Shallard, owner of Wendon Creek Contracting. The Gore-based contractor, who established his business in 2018, initially planted a 5-hectare trial crop on his father’s property, which yielded impressive results and sparked widespread interest. “I had a field day just before harvesting and over 100 people turned up. Since then word’s got around and other contractors and farmers have jumped on the bandwagon and been growing it,” explains Johny. Despite initial scepticism from many in the agricultural community who believed the crop wouldn’t thrive in Southland’s climate, Johny persevered with his experiments, even finding that allowing the crop to experience frost can boost dry matter content. He says the nutritional benefits of maize silage appear significant for dairy operations, noting its high starch content compared to other forage crops makes it particularly digestible and palatable for cows. What started as a small experimental trial has expanded considerably, with Wendon Creek Contracting now planting 80-90 hectares of maize across the district for various clients. “Maize is high yield compared with a whole crop or oat. We’re getting around 20-25 tonnes per hectare. Whereas a whole crop or oat you’ll get 13-14 tonne to the hectare. We got 300 tonnes of dry matter off 15 hectares last year - 1000 wet tonnes. It’s a bit of a game changer for down here,” says Johny. Wendon Creek Contracting also offers construction of silage pits, lanes and a new earthmoving service as well as precision drilling of maize crops and fodder beet. Wendon Creek Contracting operates from its base north of Gore, covering eastern and northern Southland and West Otago. The business has mowers, balers, wrappers and tedders and also Proud to b associated with Fry Contracting 24 Hour / 7 Days* tyregeneral.co.nz *CALLOUT FEES MAY APPLY. Tyre General Nelson 118 Tahunanui Drive, Tāhunanui, Nelson 03 539 6408 offers a full cultivation service including ploughing, heavy discing, multiple discing and direct drilling. It has four John Deere tractors and one Case Puma ranging from 150 to 200 horsepower, operated by Johny, casual seasonal staff and Johny’s partner Beatrice Freer. Collaboration with seed specialists has been crucial to the success of the maize project. Johny has worked closely with Pioneer Brand Products to identify suitable varieties for Southland’s shorter growing season. “From the word go I’ve said we’ve got to follow every instruction from agronomists. We use Pioneer Brand Products and soil test with Ballance Agri-Nutrients to get the crop to the optimum yield it needs to be. It’s all down to paddock and variety selection and fertiliser recommendations,” explains Johny. He believes Wendon’s microclimate contributes to the crop’s success but cautions that coastal areas might be less suitable. After harvesting, the crop is chopped and treated with an inoculant to activate bacteria for fermentation before being ensiled. “It’s a relatively easy crop to grow once you get the basics nailed,” says Johny, noting that maize silage ferments in just seven days compared to three to four weeks for grass silage. Looking ahead, Johny continues to trial different maize varieties, with Pioneer Brand Products variety 7524 proving particularly successful last season. “Pioneer Brand Products are looking for the next variety for down here so hopefully next season they will potentially have another trial variety that could be harvested a week or two weeks earlier.” The Complete Financial Management Service for Agribusiness AgriFocus Limited is a financial management service & Chartered Accountants that provides specialist advice & offers a comprehensive range of services for farmers in the Southland/Otago region. At AgriFocus we will: • Put in place a financial management plan • Monitor progress • Complete annual accounts and tax planning AgriFocus Services Include • Coaching for first time farmers • Cashflow Budgeting • Proposal analysis • GST and Payroll • Monthly variance reporting • Annual accounting require ments • Accounts analysis • Tax planning and Ownership structure • Provide benchmarking comparisons Why AgriFocus? • Extensive experience in the rural financial servicing industry • Proactive approach to financial management • Strong relationships with industry specialists • Strong practical farming background • Personalised service with an excellent backup team who understand farming • Excellent rapport with associated government departments 027 681 5002 Togeth Cr eati So il ballance.co.nz | 0800 222 090 At Ballance, we believe that a thriving agricultural community can only exist with the support of all who live and work in it. As a result, we invest both time and money to help secure the future of New Zealand farmers. ProudlySupporting WendonCreekContractingLtd
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