GRDC Podcast

Wanting to incorporate more legumes into the rotation, West Cranbrook grower Mark Preston has found faba beans were suited to more soil types on his farm than what lupins has been. He did a lot of research before starting to grow the new crop and has found they fit into the operation relatively seamlessly.  Mark is a member of Stirlings to Coast Farmers and is a part of the cohort of 'Legume Leade...

🎙 Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Maurice Hayes. Maurice Hayes pioneered a lot of spray machinery and was involved in the evolution of farming towards zero-till practices.   In this particularly insightful GRDC In Conversation episode with Oli Le Lievre, Maurice, or ‘Cutter’ as he is well known, shares his remarkable journey in the grains industry, which started off after...

What images or themes come to mind when you think Australian agriculture in 10…20….50 years’ time?   In this podcast Futurist at Work Futures, Reanna Browne, offers up new perspective and practical advice for the grains industry to approach the future as something in the present, not a distant concept. Reanna was the keynote speaker at the recent 2024 Victorian GRDC farm business updates and encou...

Agriculture and plants have been ingrained in Georgie Pengilley’s life since the beginning on a farm in Tasmania. In this GRDC In Conversation episode with Oli Le Lievre, Georgie talks about how her career progressed into agronomic research with the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries, a PhD and to now as the CEO of the Rice Breeding Australia. Georgie, her father and her husband have...

The Australian soybean industry has received a boost with a new online soybean manual and a series of workshops. The initiatives are part of GRDC’s investment which aims to reinvigorate the soybean industry, particularly in the northern region. The investment is also supporting growers to optimise the production and reliability of soybean yield and also identify the key agronomic practice and futu...

🎙Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with John Woods.  John is a business owner and farmer at his home property ‘Booroola’ in Northern New South Wales. He is well known to many in GRDC circles as the Chair of the Grains Research and Development Corporation.  He is a fun, charismatic person known for his ability to get things done and have a laugh along the way.   In this chat we ch...

GRDC invests in many different approaches to the control of weeds, pests and diseases, including crop protection products.  The world of chemical regulation can be complicated, and GRDC’s role in it is something many growers would like a better understanding of. In this episode, Bencubbin grower and GRDC Western Panel Member Nick Gillett interviews GRDC Manager Chemical Regulation Gordon Cumming a...

At Ravensthorpe in Western Australia, about 200km west of Esperance, field peas seem to grow well on the high pH, high clay content soils of Peter Daw's farm. While getting the legume established in the farming system involved a bit of trial and error, after more than ten years, they are now often Peter's highest gross margin crop.   Peter is a part of the cohort of 'Legume Leaders' that has been...

New research insights suggest that deep sown long coleoptile wheat (LCW) varieties is an effective way to avoid rhizoctonia infection.  It’s one of the many added benefits of LCW emerging as part of a $12.7 million GRDC investment to provide growers with the knowledge and tools to integrate LCW into their farming systems once the genetics become commercially available.   In this podcast we hear al...

The GRDC Emerging Leader Award recognises the commitment of a professional with less than ten years’ experience in the grains industry. At the Adelaide GRDC update event in February 2024, Jana Freebairn (nee Dixon) was presented with the Emerging Leader Award for her work as an agronomy consultant helping deliver benchmarking and on-farm management succession services. Since finishing a Bachelor o...

For the 2024 growing season, some Western Australian growers are chasing moisture deeper than ever before, by successfully planting conventional wheat varieties down to around 60 to 80mm.   This new thinking stems from positive findings from long coleoptile wheat (LCW) research. In this podcast, we hear from Tammin-based grower, Simon York, and SLR agriculture CEO Michael Lamond, on the benefits L...

In the Lake Grace area, grower Ed Naisbitt has been growing lupins on the family farm for 40 years. It was a crop initially established by his father, and one that has remained a constant in the rotation as the years have gone by.  Ed is a part of the cohort of 'Legume Leaders' that has been established by the Grower Group Alliance, with investment from GRDC. These leaders are sharing their insigh...

Long coleoptile wheat (LCW) varieties are proving to be a good insurance policy to ensure emergence in ameliorated soil.   This is one of the many positive findings so far from the national $12.7m GRDC investment to help Australian growers integrate long coleoptile wheat into their farming systems once the genetics are commercially available.  In this podcast, we hear from Dr Stephen Davies from t...

Does the term 'regenerative agriculture' make you want to high-five the farmer next to you, or send you running for the hills? In this week's podcast we talk to Dr Hanabeth Luke (Southern Cross University) and Victorian grain grower and GRDC Southern Panel member Tim McClelland about regenerative agriculture - what it means and what indicators we could use to measure progress towards improved soil...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Steve Madden  Steve Madden has over 30 years experience as an agronomist and is the inventor of an insect management device called Crop Capsule. In this GRDC in Conversation episode with Oli Le Lievre, Steve discusses his career progression, advancements in agricultural technology, using beneficial insects to manage pests in crops, the pr...

The GRDC Emerging Leader Award recognises the commitment of a professional with less than ten years’ experience in the grains industry. At the Perth GRDC update event in February 2024, Robert Harrison was presented with the Emerging Leader Award for his valuable work in legume and pasture agronomy.   Robert is a research scientist at the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (D...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Tony Lockrey Tony Lockrey is both a farmer and agronomist based in the farming community of Moree, New South Wales. Tony's contributions extend beyond aiding farmers with their cropping programs; he has emerged as a prominent figure in fostering safe spaces and facilitating important conversations. In this GRDC in Conversation episode wit...

Precision agriculture has been around for a while and it's meant to make a difference for the better, but does it always? In this episode we’re joined by two growers in similar parts of South Australia who have different takes on the value of precision ag or PA. James Venning, near Bute, has continually experimented with everything from variable-rate seeders to protein monitors. Nearby at Crystal...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with John Hamparsum   John Hamparsum farms on black soil plains near Gunnedah, New South Wales, in partnership with his sister. His father purchased the property from a soldier-settler in 1961 and it is now 1500 hectares of mostly irrigated land. In this GRDC in Conversation episode with Oli Le Lievre, John discusses his family history, the ch...

Research into snails over the past decade has largely focussed on baiting and while a lot has been learned, baiting is only one part of an effective integrated management strategy for snails.  That's why a new national GRDC investment is tackling the snail problem from multiple angles by combining technology and biological research to inform control management.  The project is being led by the Uni...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Matthew Durack Matthew Durack started his career as a Veterinarian, but always wanted to try his hand at farming. When he was offered the management position on a property near Moree, New South Wales, he jumped at the opportunity and has been addicted ever since. In this GRDC in Conversation episode with Oli Le Lievre, Matthew discusses d...

What are the reasons to use fallow in rotations and just what is the economic value of this farming practice? These are just some of the questions asked by growers in the west – questions that are now being answered by a current GRDC investment - Maximising the profitability of fallow. Dr Darren Hughes from Laconik – is leading this investment – and has some advice for growers on how to get the mo...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Ben taylor.   Ben Taylor returned to the family farm near Condamine in 2000. They operate a structured cropping program in their broadacre operation and have some irrigated country. In the last ~20 years, they have invested heavily in a levelling program to mitigate the impact of Summer storms on their dryland country. In this GRDC In Con...

The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting a dry start to Western Australia's 2024 growing season. It's a prediction that’s seeing many growers kick into gear early with dry seeding. But without the knock down herbicide opportunity, growers are relying heavily on their pre-emergent herbicide choice to remove weeds from the system after the breaking rain. In this podcast, we hear from consultant Blak...

🎙️ Today's 'GRDC in Conversation' podcast interview is with Stuart and Lyndall Tighe Stuart and Lyndall Tighe found home farming in Moree, New South Wales. They built their farming scale through share-farming, contracting and more recently a direct to customer business model. In this GRDC in Conversation episode with Oli Le Lievre, Stuart and Lyndall Tighe discuss their backgrounds, supply chain o...