Farming in Focus Summer 2020/21

Farming in Focus Summer 2020/21

IN FOCUS FARMING SUMMER 20/21

FARR OUT! The Speedtiller ® can handle it

SEEDING 2021 Consider all the tools in the box

YOUR FARM, OUR FOCUS

(L-R) Peter Bray, Temora was pleased with the delivery of his new 14 Reel Delta Hay Pro from Gavin Duffey at Temora Truck and Tractor (AEH Group).

With what will be a year that is firmly etched in our memories, for good and bad, coming to an end, I’d like to pass on the very best wishes for an enjoyable and safe festive season. We look forward to continuing our commitment to working closely with Australian farming families in 2021. On behalf of the entire team at K-Line Ag I’d like to wish you all the very best for Christmas. Bill Larsen Sales & Marketing Manager K-Line Agriculture

AUSTRALIAN AG - A TIME TO REFLECT

Well, what a year it has been, it will be firmly etched in history as a year that threw many a challenge, many a change and many an opportunity. Fortunately across our Ag industries the effects of Covid 19 have not created significant change and rainfall has been kinder for many areas in 2020.

whether to mulch stubbles using the header during harvest or alternatively to get the crop off as quickly as possible and use a Speedtiller ® to incorporate stubbles in the new year. In developing machines that suit the needs of our farmers we are continually discussing and reviewing what is the most efficient and suitable machinery options for these types of decisions. With the grain harvest drawing to a close across the Australian wheatbelt, Christmas is a good time to reflect on how fortunate we are to work in the Agriculture industry in this country and also to soak up and enjoy some time with our family and friends. Having been family farmers and working with family farmers for the last 20 years, I can honestly say how proud I am that we design, test and manufacture farm machinery in Australia for Australian farmers.

Looking back on 2020 gives a valuable perspective on the importance of becoming less

reliant on overseas machinery and commodities and more focused on developing and manufacturing our own. What a fantastic opportunity this presents for the future of Australian manufactured brands and our farming communities. A much stronger season for many grain growers across Australia has seen farmers considering the best options for their farming system to optimize yields and efficiencies. One of the most recent of these being

FARR OUT! The Speedtiller ® can handle it!

David and Tamie Farr and their daughters Emylee and Matilda run “Farr Contracting”, a family owned contracting business in North West NSW. From their hometown of Narrabri they primarily have work within a 100km radius of the town but are more than happy to travel to where the work is! In 2016 they purchased a Case IH Rowtrac 500 tractor on 3m centres and a 12.5m K-Line Speedtiller Powerflex ® from their local Case IH Dealer in Wee Waa. “The demand for work was instant, so we went to work straight away,” commented Tamie. As a small business the Farr family are hands on in every aspect, from talking to growers, organising work, escorting trucks to move gear to operating the machinery and maintaining the equipment.

“We like to run it as a real family business, everyone pitches in. Our eldest daughter drove for us in the first season and our youngest designed our logo.” David and Tamie place a high importance and value on being reliable and efficient. “Communication is key! We know the gear and take pride in maintaining our assets. It is important to us to provide the very best service to the growers.” “We are always pleased when we get repeat business and when growers are able to see for themselves the benefits of using the Speedtiller ® ,” said David. “We never get tired of seeing just how well the Speedtiller ® incorporates residue into the soil…we are yet to find a stubble the Speedtiller ® can’t handle.”

also been important in gaining work, farmers talking to farmers and seeing the benefits is always powerful”. Having only established the business in 2016, the biggest challenge, as for so many farmers and rural businesses, has been the drought, lack of rain in 2017/18/19 brought the business to a screaming halt. With the Speedtiller ® and tractor in the shed, they travelled to Griffith in southern NSW, Queensland and Southern Victoria looking for work. Although there was a lot of interest in the Speedtiller ® the drought was too widespread. “Not much you can do to manage a drought”, says Tamie. “Thank goodness for rain! We have had some work this year and things are now looking the most promising since we started! Depending on the season our work really picks up from December through to June. We are really hopeful that this season continues on the positive note it has started”

FARR CONTRACTING USE THE SPEEDTILLER POWERFLEX ® FOR THE FOLLOWING: • RESISTANT WEED CONTROL • LEVELLING PADDOCKS ESPECIALLY AFTER WATER INUNDATION • INCORPORATION OF PLANT RESIDUE • ONE-PASS PADDOCK PREP FOR PLANTING You can see more about Farr Contracting and what the Speedtiller Powerflex ® can do on Instagram @ farrcontracting and feel free to DM Tamie or David for information about rates and availability. impressed with the structural integrity of the implement. We have seen the results. The ability to incorporate stubbles of various sizes and materials, and leave the field levelled is an invaluable asset to any strategic tillage program,” commented David. Farr contracting use the Speedtiller ® as a true multipurpose, one pass machine. “Our clients use it primarily for one-pass seedbed preparation in wheat/barley/canola/sunflower/ sorghum stubbles and in native grasses. It’s hard to determine the opportunities for next year. Growers are still cautious to use tillage equipment coming out of the drought. We are hopeful that there will be growers that see the advantage of using the Speedtiller ® to prepare paddocks for winter cropping. “After looking at other machines we were impressed with the superior job that the K-line Speedtiller Powerflex ® was able to do. We were also

“Although during the drought the tractor and tiller sat for most of the time in the shed, we travelled from Dalby to Roma, down to Griffith and to Southern Victoria talking to agronomists and growers. We dropped flyers in mailboxes as we travelled. We are convinced there is a place for strategic tillage in most farming programs.” Our biggest challenge is growers understanding what the Speedtiller ® can do, how it works and the results it can achieve. The Farr’s worked closely with a local agronomist to investigate and support the value of using strategic tillage in a cropping system. He was trusted by growers across the region and had valuable experience and knowledge in soil health and management actions to maximise yields. “Our Agro encouraged growers to try speedtilling. Once the growers could see the benefits of the Speedtiller ® others became interested. Word of mouth has

“We never get tired of seeing just how well the Speedtiller ® incorporates residue into the soil… we are yet to find a stubble the Speedtiller ® can’t handle.”

SPEEDTILLER POWERFLEX ® POPULAR IN MOORA, WA TIM KING – Salesman, Redmac Ag Services, Moora, WA

Tim King is a Salesman at Redmac Ag Services in Moora, WA. He has been with Redmac for 17 years with 9 years as a Service Technician and then 7 as Service Manager. Two years ago, Tim was appointed the product specialist and moved into sales and is has also been the Precision Ag specialist for a number of years. Tim says, “It gets pretty busy with all that.” Moora is 200km north of Perth and has predominantly traditional mixed farming enterprises, but like in many areas, grain and hay production are getting bigger every year. It is a pretty reliable area with average annual rainfall of 450mm. Canola, wheat, barley, lupins & peas are all grown and export hay is increasing in ha each year. “The variety of my role is great. You never know where you will go on any day,” said Tim. “I also really enjoy working with my clients, we have strong relationship. Having worked in this business for 17 years I have developed a pretty good understanding of the way their farms operate.”

lime. He was also impressed with how the crumble roller worked leaving a nice smooth finish out the back. The customer commented, “It’s a robust machine and we are very happy with it”. In the fast-paced evolving industry of farm machinery, everyone’s expectations are high and technology is moving fast. Keeping up with change can be testing for all aspects of machinery dealerships. “We are getting more and more customer enquiry on the K-Line 12.5m Speedtiller Powerflex ® . It has a good reputation. Customers are wanting to incorporate lime & gypsum into the soil, manage their stubble trash and turn their non- wetting soils”, said Tim.

Tim has been a strong advocate of K-Line Ag machinery over the years. “I love the K-Line brand. It’s built for our conditions and extremely reliable. There is never any trouble with their product. It always arrives on time and built strong. The technical and sales support from K-Line is great. Every year one of the K-Line team has visited our dealership and those customers who have either bought one of the machines or wanting to buy one. We get technical support from Rob Williams who has come over for the three field days each year and Carolyn Larson is number 1 when it comes to customer and dealer support, she is excellent. All my customers are very happy with the K-Line machine especially the 12.5m Speedtiller Powerflex ® . I delivered one to one of our corporate companies who have called me to say how good the Powerflex is. They have used it for a few different applications already. Levelling bogg holes and removing contour banks before they had started incorporating

TIM’S TIP Service it, use it as it was

supposed to be used and look after it. If you look after your gear it will look after you.

Tim King, Salesman at Redmac Ag Services, Moora next to a 12.5m Speedtiller Powerflex®

SEEDING 2021 – CONSIDER ALL THE TOOLS IN THE BOX

The 2020 year has certainly been one to remember. The phenomenal seasonal conditions across NSW and other areas through late Winter and Spring have produced enormous pasture growth and crop yield potential. The threat of a wetter than average La Nina period is at present holding back allowing growers to doggedly persevere with fodder conservation, harvest operations and paddock preparation for 2021 rotations. While the Covid-19 pandemic was blamed for the slow supply of crop inputs earlier in the year, the ever-increasing limited supply of machinery parts and the huge loads being placed on harvesting machinery has certainly tested growers, contractors, technicians & machinery suppliers to keep the gear rolling. The exceptional livestock prices recorded especially over the last 3 to 4 months has certainly paid back those producers that were able to successfully manage the drought period. Long periods of hand feeding to maintain core breeding stock came at a price, however those that stuck at it are certainly able to capitalise on supplying the current market opportunities. Grain yields have been excellent across vast areas, albeit with varying quality parameters, and with prices holding throughout the harvest & delivery period it has been a much-needed combination for all agricultural businesses. The high potential export of soil nutrients out the gate this year with record yields will test nutrition programs in 2021. That combined with the management of crop residue and the likelihood of La Nina summer weed burdens that will need to be

Matt McRae and Brad Shephard

• Huge loads being placed on harvesting machinery

• Stubble management will be crucial

• High potential export of soil nutrients out the gate

• Herbicide programs for 2021 will need to be carefully analysed

proactively managed to maintain ground cover, retain soil moisture, and enable nutrient cycling. Herbicide programs for 2021 will also have to be carefully analysed to ensure the weed seed escapees this year will not jeopardise the tireless efforts over many years of planning and executing rotations. There are many useful herbicide actives available that allow sufficient solubility to get through large ground cover loadings, but we can’t rely on them entirely.

A successful seeding operation in 2021 may need to consider all the tools in the box. Stubble management will be crucial for effective crop establishment and minimise early weed pressure. The option of a drip torch may not be available to all so many may need to consider cultivation, slashing/mulching, prickle & disc chains or a stubble cruncher. Strategic agronomic decisions will need to consider seeder configuration, disease inoculum, weed species and resistance status, insect & pest burdens, crop and variety specifics and fertiliser placement to minimise seed burn. I hope everyone has a safe and successful harvest. Remember to ask your mates are they OK, and listen if they want to talk. Spend quality time with family & friends cause that is why we do what we do to. Good luck to all. Matt McRae

COME AND JOIN OUR TEAM AT K-LINE AG

HIRING NOW!

• Welders/Fabricators • MRP and Systems Administrator • Sales Manager

• Quality Assurance (QA) Officer • Assembly Operator

For more information or to apply for these positions, visit k-line.net.au/careers/

STAFF SPOTLIGHT Geoff Wilton Sales & Admin Assistant, K-Line Ag

Geoff has been at K-Line for the past 3 years and is an integral part of the Sales and Admin Team. If you send an enquiry through the K-Line website contact form, Geoff is likely to have been the one to follow up your request. Geoff is located in the K-Line office in Cowra NSW. His day consists of processing Sales orders, taking care of warranty claims, allocation of serial no’s, assisting with sales enquiries and assisting with parts enquiries. He also arranges the Shipping containers for our export.

‘I enjoy working at K-Line Ag and am proud of the quality and strength of machinery that is manufactured here at the K-Line site in Cowra. The machines are built to last and quality is second to none. The best part about my job is the daily interaction I have with farmers and the variety of jobs I do. During my spare time I like to try and play golf, spend time with the family and look after our small 25 acre property.

My joke of the season A blonde and a redhead have a ranch. They have just lost their bull. The women need to buy another, but only have $500. The redhead tells the blonde, “I will go to the market and see if I can find one for under that amount. If I can, I will send you a telegram.” She goes to the market and finds one for $499. Having only one dollar left, she goes to the telegraph office and finds out that it costs one dollar per word. She is stumped on how to tell the blonde to bring the truck and trailer. Finally, she tells the telegraph operator to send the word “comfortable”. Skeptical, the operator asks, “How will she know to come with the trailer from just that word?” The redhead replies, “She’s a blonde so she reads slow: ‘Come for ta bull.’”

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DEALER NETWORK K-Line Ag products are sold under the K-Line Ag name in Australia and New Zealand through our existing network of Case IH, New Holland and selected independent dealers. If unsure who your nearest dealer is call us on 1800 194 131

Ph: 1800 194 131 +61 (2) 6340 0400 www.k-line.net.au

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