Seeds for Success

Hamish Wald is a Farmer and Stud Owner at ‘Tullinga Dorper Studs’ outside Condobolin. For generations, Hamish’s family have farmed their property and he continues their work with his wife Penny, their two children, a studmaster, and a couple of handy backpackers.  In this episode, Hamish shares the story of multi-generational farming and how their business has changed. He explains why they changed...

Craig Whiteley is a Farmer on his family’s 700-acre farm, "The Oaks", outside Geary. For almost a hundred years, the Whiteley family have raised sheep and experimented with crops including cherries, potatoes, and lucerne. In this episode, Craig shares how his family's long history in ag allowed them to try different crops in response to market demand. He emphasises the importance of balancing mark...

It feels like just yesterday we sat down with our first farmer to talk about dryland cropping, sheep, and feedlotting but here we are 100 episodes later! In this extra special episode, Neroli sat down with Rohan, Tim, and Jas to reflect on what they learnt by making 100 episodes of Seeds for Success. They share the grains of wisdom that have stuck with them, the behind-the-scenes moments that didn...

Beck and Brad Hurley own and operate 22,000 acres on their properties, “Eremeran” and “Kalabra”, a hundred kilometres outside Condobolin. Their farm has changed a lot over the years, and they currently run a mixed cattle and sheep operation with miniature donkeys for herd protection. In this episode, Beck and Brad expand on how their operation has changed from their early days running the farm, ho...

John Murdoch is a Farmer and rural mental health advocate from Bombala. John runs a mixed farming operation with his wife and father focused on merinos, first cross ewes, Angus cattle, and fodder cropping. He is also an outspoken advocate for mental health awareness and support for farmers. In this episode, John provides insight into farming in the Monaro and explains one of the major projects he...

JB and Alison Tancred are the husband and wife duo behind ‘The Maze’ near Gulargambone and G.R.A.S.S. Merinos at Armatree. G.R.A.S.S. Merinos is a cooperative stud breeding program, and ‘The Maze’ is an 8,000-acre farming operation with 5,000 acres dedicated to a cropping program based on wheat, barley, and pulse crops with a commercial merino flock. In this episode, JB and Alison talk about the c...

This episode is part two of our two-part chat with Harry Pye. In the last episode, Harry discussed the ag labour shortage and how his family has turned to robotics and automation for their mixed farming operation near Walgett.  In this episode, Harry sheds some light on his sheep enterprise and how labour shortages influenced their decision to switch from Merinos to Dorpers. He also discusses drou...

Harry Pye is the Owner of Gingie Pastoral near Walgett. Harry's 26,000-hectare property is split between arable cropping country and grazing for Dorper ewes and wagyu cattle. Due to the skilled labour shortage, Harry and his family have embraced automation and robotics in their operation. In this episode, Harry explains how SwarmFarm has changed his cropping operation and the impact he believes dr...

Stan Noonan is a Crop Protection Specialist and Farmer at ‘Retford Park’, a small property along the Macquarie River near Dubbo. With the help of his family, Stan focuses on buying calves and growing them out with introduced pastures and grazing crops. In this episode, Stan explains how he achieves high growth rates by focusing on quality feed for his livestock to reach their weight targets quickl...

Sherrie Whitty, alongside her husband Luke, runs Mount Pleasant Limousins, a robust herd of 100 stud cows on a sprawling 2,000-acre property near the Jemalong Range, near Forbes. Their commitment to quality and animal welfare shines through in their operation, which stands as a beacon of excellence in the industry. In this episode, Sherrie emphasises the significance of selecting for temperament a...

Peter Grant and his wife Samantha own and operate “Nerreman”, a 530-hectare property on the Lachlan River, west of Forbes. They run a mixed farming enterprise, which includes irrigation, crops, and cattle.  In this episode, Peter shares his passion for growing different crops, especially his favourite one, sweetcorn. He also reveals how he has improved his water use efficiency and how he is dealin...

Kylie Matthews and her husband Adrian own “Kooyong”, just off the highway between Forbes and West Wyalong. Kylie manages their cattle and chicken meat operation and keeps the wheels turning while Adrian works full-time away from the farm. In this episode, Kylie explains how they built up their farming operation to incorporate cattle and chickens, and how their massive 3-kilometre vegetation corrid...

Trent Frazer is a Producer on his family farm “Warree”, southwest of Stuart Town. Trent and his family run a predominantly sheep and cattle operation with a little bit of cropping. In this episode, Trent lets the cat out of the bag about his passion for wool and the challenges and rewards of being part of this staple industry. He reflects on how producers can use local trials to give themselves th...

Summer’s not quite over yet and we’re revisiting more farmers who’ve lived through drought and the lessons they’ve learnt along the way. In this episode, these farmers will explain how you can “minimise your geographic risk” to your herds by spreading them across properties, how tagging can be used to identify your highest performing breeding stock, and one option for keeping your stock fed during...

With another hot, dry summer on the cards for Australia, we’re continuing to look back at our early episodes to glean the best knowledge from farmers who lived through the last drought. In this episode, these farmers will emphasise the importance of flexibility on the farm and adapting their business practices during a drought. They’ll also share the vital lessons they learned from the mistakes th...

We’re doing something a little bit different this summer! With another hot, dry outlook for Australia in 2024, we’re revisiting some of our early podcast episodes to hear how farmers fared through the last drought. In this episode, these farmers are opening up about how they managed their properties through the drought and the lessons they learned along the way. From destocking, alternative herd m...

Nicole Samodol is the owner of Rowlee Wines near Orange. Rowlee Wines is a boutique winery with a huge variety of wines made using grapes from their vineyard and locally sourced additional grapes. In this episode, Nicole shares how “smoke taint” from bushfires in 2018 led to the diversification and restructuring of her family’s vineyard. She explains how a strong business plan was vital for achiev...

Tony Horan is a Farmer at “Briar Rose” just west of Bedgerabong. Tony operates a cattle enterprise along with cereal cropping for hay and silage production.  In this episode. Tony explains how the Travelling Stock Reserves near his property reduce grazing pressures on his farm and how they’ve helped him out through both floods and drought. Tony will also share the number one thing a cattle farmer...

Scott Vincent is a Farmer at “Wirragai” just outside Narromine in NSW. Scott and his family run a mixed farming operation of beef cattle along with both irrigated and broadacre cropping.  In this episode, Scott digs into soil health, how he uses chaff lining to improve weed control, and how his management has changed in the last few seasons. He also walks through how a flexible production system a...

Will Lambell is a Farmer at “Weenya” and a Board Member of Tooraweenah Prime Lamb Marketing Co-Op. Will and his family run a mixed farming operation with cropping, shorthorn cattle, and over 2,000 head of self-replacing merino sheep. He is particularly focused on the livestock side of the business and sits on the board of the local marketing cooperative. In this episode, Will explains how “strengt...

Nathan and Kieran Simpson are Farmers at “Binginbar Farms” at Gollan, 50km east of Dubbo. Together the brothers run a cropping and grazing enterprise that has been in the family for 155 years. Kieran is in charge of the livestock enterprise and Nathan is in charge of the cropping side of the business.  In this episode, Nathan and Kieran explore how their business has changed since the drought. Kie...

Rodney Guest, along with his wife Leonie, owns and manages "Thornburn" near Rankin Springs. This year, the pair celebrate the milestone of 100 years of family farm ownership. In this episode, Rodney shares how he's been enjoying the recent good seasons, and how the introduction of technology such as WEED-IT has been a game changer in their cropping operation. Rod also explains how over the last 40...

Ed Blackburn is the Manager of “Wongaboori Station”, a 23,000-acre farm near Mendooran. He's also heavily involved with his family's nearby operation, “Gowenbrae”. As a former commercial agronomist, Ed has relished the opportunity to oversee the livestock production and cropping enterprises on "Wongaboori Station". In this episode, Ed explores the world of dual-purpose cropping and explains the pr...

Ambrose Doolan and his wife Lisa run a commercial Angus cattle enterprise and a small stud bull operation, alongside some fodder cropping, on their property “Toorawandi” near Coonabarabran. On top of his family farming endeavours, Ambrose is also the proud Mayor of Warrumbungle Shire. In this episode, Ambrose explains the pros and cons of family farming in the Central West, and shares how the fail...

Nathan Border is an Agronomist and Broadacre cropper, who farms alongside his family on their property "Oriel", just outside of Parkes near Goonumbla. In the last 15 years, the family has shifted from a mixed-farming system to a cropping-only enterprise, following the mindset of doing "As much as you can, as quickly as you can." In this episode, Nathan shares how the family has shifted to a croppi...