Information and Articles

Bore water on small farms

As I’ve written previously, secure water on your small farm is one of the most important inputs no matter if you just want a small vegetable garden or to keep livestock as well. One option is dam water, but on some properties the soil doesn’t hold water, and if you don’t get regular rain, dams can dry up.

If you can find good bore water on your property, you are guaranteed a supply of water, even through a drought, however it is not always easy to find water underground.

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Planning & management

Prohibited food waste (commonly called swill) is food waste containing meat or any other mammalian products or by-products including imported milk products.

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Pigs

If you only have a few dairy or beef cows on your farm, it is possible to keep your cows in calf using artificial insemination (AI) and not own a bull at all. A bull can be extra work and an extra mouth to feed, but there are some advantages to keeping a bull, even on a small farm.

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Cattle

A new product launched by NOV Mono offers an effective solution for pumping water on small-scale farms and rural lifestyle properties.

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Machinery & products

Leasing land can be a great way to get into agriculture or expand your existing business without the high capital cost of purchasing land. For the landowner, it can also provide a steady income from land they are not currently farming.

Before you enter into any agreement you should consider the length of the lease, the cost, each parties' responsibilities, restrictions on the property and what should happen in the case of a default or dispute.

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Getting started

A key factor in minimising risk to stock during a bush fire is to identify safer areas on the farm where livestock can be moved.

The area you choose will depend on the type of livestock you are farming and their expected behaviour during a fire.

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News

While I like to use electric fencing for quick temporary fences, I do think its important to have a strong permanent fence for the boundary, around the house yard and, on a larger property, other fences to divide the property into paddocks.

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Planning & management

If you are interested in growing anything on your small farm, whether its just a vegetable garden, an orchard, or you want to keep some animals, you’re going to need to organise a source of water.

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Planning & management

I am often asked if its really worth raising a beef steer for home meat consumption, so when we had a steer butchered a few weeks ago, I decided to weigh all the cuts of meat and calculate the value of the product versus the approximate cost to raise the steer, so that I could work out if it was worth doing.
Costs

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Self / Farm Sustainability

Chickens are a great addition to the family and will contribute in many ways, such as producing eggs, fertilising your garden and devouring food scraps.

The most trouble-free chickens are bought from a reliable commercial supplier and are vaccinated and at the point of lay (16–18 weeks).

Chickens need to be kept in a well-drained and well-ventilated pen and it’s vital to make the pen safe from all potential predators.

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Poultry