A Merry Zoysia Christmas - HOT OFF THE PRESS

Surprise surprise.................yes we have finally some positive news!

The Compadre zoysia seed delayed in the US for biosecurity checks to allow entry to Australia has finally received the okay for movement towards Australia.

But..... remember it is approaching Christmas and logistics is mostly very crowded round this time, which may cause some delays in moving the seed.

It is hoped early in January 2018 will have the seed in Australia with public availability soon after that.

More information will be forthcoming, hopefully by just after the Christmas public holidays, and we shall provide information as it becomes available.

It is NOT too late to plant your zoysia lawn in early 2018.  Yes, for those in northern areas rainfall might be heavier which can be problematic at times, even though mostly warm enough for some time to come, while in temperate Australia summer is a time more easy to develop a new turf area with adequately warm weather and warm soil and with long days ......a very suitable combination to help speedily develop the lawn - but be aware of erosion issues with summer storms in both regions.

There are options to provide soil protection and mitigate erosion - we have a number of possible solutions if needed.

Email for further information.

Our business will only be able to respond to emails from 19 December through 1 January 2018, and cannot accept phone calls in that period.

To all those who have been patiently waiting for seed - please get in touch as we should have more details become available over that two week period on delivery and pricing. 

Zoysia Seed Situation Late October 2017 - revised update

An update for late October 2017.

It now seems that Zoysia seed of Compadre variety will be coming to Australia in late 2017, at least with a fair degree of certainty.  Zenith zoysia seed is unavailable for sowing in Australia in 2017/18.

The timing has not yet been absolutely verified but indications are that the end of November is a likely availability date.  Final timing is dependent on the US supplier, and it could be delayed.  Price not yet confirmed, but unlikely to be less than previous seasons.

However the positive is that seed is likely to be available for planting when most of Australia is best suited for planting warm season turf seed.  It may that northern areas should prepare for a planting period during wet stormy weather and think about precautions for dealing with erosion and storm driven soil movement that can easily shift planted seed.

For areas with a cooler period mid year and normal warm to hot summers, seed is expected by the time the soil has adequately warmed and quicker germination and establishment can be predicted.

All users need to consider the absolute necessity of keeping the soil surface damp - but not drowned - during the first 10 -18 days as seed is germinating.  Because seed is sown very close to the surface, supplying a short misting burst occasionally during the daylight period is very important - think 5-10 minutes every 1-2 hours, adjusted as necessary based on your sprinklers and weather.  Add a more normal irrigation at least once a day in this period and reduce irrigation once seedlings emerge.

Information sheets available on request.

If requiring seed please contact us for more details from early November.

office@abovecapricorn.com.au is the preferred contact address.  

Zoysia Seed Update - October 2017

Current news is not that good on the seed supply scene for 2017/ 2018.

While work is still continuing to try and source zoysia seed for use in Australia in 2017/ 2018, options are very limited.

The major US Seed company involved with seed production of zoysia seed - Patten Seed Company  - has totally failed Australian consumers once again with poor crops and a distinct lack of interest in supplying Australia, while continuing to have seed readily available in the USA.  No seed of either Compadre or Zenith zoysia seed from that source is possible!

There are issues with seed quality in that there are some difficulties in complying with biosecurity requirements for Australia, but they seem to ignore producing adequate seed quantity, let alone fixing weed issues in seed crops that would allow easier supply to markets outside the USA.  Weather has been an issue........but diversifying production locations can help overcome those problems.  They seem to have ignored real demand for the seed.

At this time, it is unknown whether there will be any seed available.

Low Emissions Cow - less Methane = better productivity

https://www.devex.com/news/the-pursuit-of-a-low-emissions-cow-90955

This is the link to a recent article in Devex, with a focus on work now commencing with a degree of urgency to find and breed from low emissions cows, especially in the developing world.

While some progress has been made in a number of countries incl NZ and Australia, the search is on for easy to use techniques to identify the genetics behind lower emissions in livestock.

Feed is also a critical issue with higher proportions of legume feed in the diet reducing methane emissons.  Development of tropical pastures had focussed on introducing legumes into the pasture planted and consumed by stock, but often maintaining the legumes is a problem, with grass often coming to dominate the pasture.  

A way forward can include growing and feeding fodder legume trees and shrubs with leucaena often a prime choice, although it cannot be grown everywhere.  Interestingly, more legume in the diet, can both reduce emissions and improve animal productivity due to higher protein in the legume feed consumed.  Or having a fodder legume in the herbaceous feed grown in the paddock.

This is one option, yet the real big need is to select naturally lower emitting animals.  Could it be these are naturally selecting better feed with higher legume composition confounding actual low emissions due to genetics?

This article fails to discuss feed composition as a major factor in managing emissions.

Consuming more livestock protein is a developing trend and is unlikely to change........there is a real need to ensure that protein is grown with lower emission livestock.  And remember that higher productivity reduces the influence of emissions per unit of food available / produced, whether milk or meat.

Compadre Zoysia Seed Available in Australia - SOON

After much drama, it seems more zoysia seed is coming to Australia late in October 2017.

Quantities expected to be modest, but hopefully adequate.  At this time the variety available will be Compadre zoysia only.

Price not yet confirmed, and more information expected shortly, and this will be provided as an update once more detail is available.

Future of Energy in Australia

It might be scary, but it is coming to somewhere near you soon.  Australia's energy systems are changing, and while the citizens seem to realise that, and broadly embracing renewables and battery storage, it seems that administrators may continue to dither, while failing to secure the future of energy in this country.

The following is based on a recent article bu Mike Wheeler, and is predicated on a presentation by Australia's Chief Scientist, Alan Finkel.  Fail to note the implications at your peril!
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Australia risks being left in the dark ages if it doesn’t start taking energy reforms seriously and begin implementing strategies that will secure Australia’s energy future, according to Australia’s chief scientist Alan Finkel.

Finkel made the observation at a keynote address at the National Press Club this week where he warned that energy generators, wholesalers and retailers need to futureproof the supply.

One the back of his recently released report on the energy sector, Blueprint for the future, he said a key to securing the supply is understanding the number of technological disruptions that need to be taken into consideration by the market as consumer demand patterns change.

“One technological disruption is that ever cheaper wind and large scale solar, even without subsidies, are dominating investor interest,” he said. “Investors prefer wind and solar because they are now cheaper to build than traditional generation such as hydro and coal. Investors also like wind and solar because they can be rolled out in small steps, say 100 megawatts at a time.

“A second disruption is the nearly two million rooftop solar generators that householders have installed. The electrical load curve and the generation mix now ramp rapidly up and down during the day to the extent that it becomes difficult for slow-responding baseload generation to cope. The market into which coal generation operates has been forever changed.”

A third disruption is just beginning, he said, delivered courtesy of stunning improvements in battery capacity and cost. This is a grassroots revolution. It’s driven by billions of people wanting their smart phones and laptop computers to last longer between charges.

“To meet that market pull, global manufacturers have invested massively to improve the performance and lower the price of rechargeable batteries,” he said. “Re-purposing these batteries has enabled manufacturers to configure grid scale batteries. These are now being installed internationally at a level and cost that were unimaginable five years ago.

A fourth technological disruption results from the fast evolving digital technologies that dominate our lives. Digital technologies are poised to enhance our electricity system, allowing it to flexibly accommodate millions of distributed rooftop solar generators, two-way current flows and the connection of microgrids.
“The final disruption is that homeowners are becoming market participants,” said Finkel. “Empowered by friendly software, they are keeping tabs on their own power generation, storage, demand management and electric heat-pump heating.”

While Finkel was at pains to point out the system is not broken, the energy sector – along with both state and local governments – need to start thinking ahead about the country’s energy needs, and not keep their heads buried in the sand that it will be business as usual over the next decade.

“[Our energy needs] are at a critical turning point,” he said. “We must improve on what we have. Globally, policy makers and market bodies understand that the key driver of that change – technology – cannot be reversed.

“When we met our counterparts overseas, the thing that made the biggest impact on me was the long-term policy certainty in other countries, which enables them to efficiently plan for the energy transition.

“It is clear they are ahead of us. For example, Ireland has a multi-year program, Delivering a Secure, Sustainable Electricity System, to actively integrate renewables into the power system. The United States has the Quadrennial Energy Review, to enable the modernisation and transformation of the electricity system. And New York has the Reforming the Energy Vision strategy, which establishes targets for emissions reductions, renewable generation and energy efficiency in buildings. These examples illustrate the need for us to adopt a more proactive approach in Australia.”

The Review not only stipulated that the market had to think outside traditional spheres of generation. However, he also said fossils fuels were not to be taken out of the mix.

“Reliability, security, lowest cost, and reduced atmospheric emissions are the critically important outcomes,” said Finkel.

“The generation mix is an input. The exact mix of coal, gas, solar, wind and hydro is not important as long as the outcomes are met. To minimise future price increases we will need a diverse energy mix, including fossil fuels.”

Finkel believes if Australia doesn’t act now, its energy future will be less secure, more unreliable and potentially costly. He reiterated the point by stating that even though scientists use the term, business as usual when modelling in a specific way, there is actually no such thing because the system is dynamically evolving.

“The past is gone,” he said. “To preserve a stable system at lowest cost we need to embrace that future. Embrace. Not race. Move too slowly and we will miss out on what the future offers. Move too quickly and we put at risk the stability and affordability of our electricity system.”

Queensland and North Australia Rainfall Variability

Queensland experiences some of the highest rainfall variability in the world. The chart below shows an analysis of the historical rainfall records from 1889–2017 and reveals 9 sequences of wet and dry periods, each lasting from 5 to 13 years. Our variable climate, especially long periods of drought, is one of the biggest challenges when running a successful grazing property in north Australia.

The maps also indicate graphically the situation for north Australia and includes the Northern Territory.

The maps are easier to see if downloaded separately from the original website.

Queensland has had a recent extended period of low rainfall [ see reddish and brown areas], while north and northwest Australia has been wetter than normal [blue and green areas].

There are some indications that at least for Queensland it might be getting wetter. 

Queensland's Extended Wet/Dry Periods (1889-2017) (PDF, 2.1M, last updated 01:48PM, 21 June 2017)*

The Drought and Climate Adaptation Program (DCAP) is an initiative to improve drought preparedness and resilience for Queensland producers. The program aims to do this by delivering a range of research, development and extension projects.

The Queensland Drought Mitigation Centre is a collaboration of national and international climate modelling expertise and has been established to facilitate the research, development and extension projects under the DCAP program. The Centre is a collaboration between the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF), Department of Science, Information Technology and Innovation (DSITI) and the University of Southern Queensland (USQ).  It has a Queensland focus, but data tends to cover north Australia more generally.

Drought and Climate Adaptation Program

The research projects include:

• Managing for climate variability and improving drought preparedness in Queensland grazing enterprises: Rural specialists' perspectives and suggestions
• Quantifying and communicating risks associated with multi-year drought in Queensland
• Customised Pasture Alerts by email
• Redevelopment of the LongPaddock website
• Necessary climate change projections data for quantitative agricultural risk management
• Communicating climate change impacts on Queensland’s agricultural sectors
• Learning from the past – incorporating palaeoclimate data into water security planning and decision-making
• Improving seasonal forecasts
• Predicting multi-year droughts
• Quantifying multi-year droughts
• Enhanced multi-peril crop insurance
• Economic value of risk management from seasonal forecasts
• Developing drought monitoring indices
• Developing crop forecasting models

• Enhancing decision support tools
• Crop production modelling under climate change
• Regional climate change adaptation
• Managing for climate variability workshops

More details on the results of the projects will be available soon.

This type of approach may offer deeper insights for the rural communities in north Australia, as well as mining and other industries in the north.

Northern Territory - To Get Australasia 's Biggest Electricity Network Back Up Battery

Northern Territory seeks solution for battery storage

June 23, 2017

Vector has won a multi-million-dollar Australian contract to supply the Territory Generation Alice Springs Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project.

Vector was one of a number of Australian and international firms bidding for the contract that will see it supply Australasia’s largest grid-tied lithium ion battery storage solution to stabilise and enhance generation on the Alice Springs electricity network.

The 5MW battery system will improve reliability on the network while helping smoothly switch energy use between renewable sources and the grid as needed. Vector will be responsible for the design, engineering, construction, and installation of the system and once commissioned, will also be responsible for ongoing maintenance.

Vector Chief Executive, Simon Mackenzie, said this contract further endorses Vector’s strategy and commitment to delivering customers world class sustainable energy solutions.

“It’s not just the technology Vector’s using that is innovative, it is the way we’re tailoring the solutions to meet quite specific and widely varied customer needs that is the game changer,” says Mackenzie. “It’s our mindset that is proving as innovative as the technology we’re using to meet the unique challenges and aspirations of the Alice Springs network.”

“When we complete this contract, Vector will have delivered the two largest grid-tied battery storage projects in Australasia. It’s a great endorsement of our expertise.”

Sort of nice to see the NT in the spotlight for renewable energy - in a positive story!!

Rural America is Stranded in the Dial-Up Age

This is the heading for a pertinent article in the Wall Street Journal [ www.wsj.com ] of 16 June 2017. 

It highlights the deplorable plight of rural America in regards to decent internet coverage, now seen as a necessity for business, education, healthcare and rural properties, let alone households.

While Australia has made considerable efforts to provide a decent service through the NBN, the once great US of A is struggling with services to rural areas.

We are not doing fantastically in Australia, but may be doing a great deal better than the USA it seems.

Read here - https://www.wsj.com/articles/rural-america-is-stranded-in-the-dial-up-age-1497535841 

This should be relevant reading for all those outside capital cities in Australia, in terms of pursuing additional pressure on the Australian government to really consider rural Australia in NBN planning.

Renewable Energy Jobs Exceed Fossil Fuel Generation Work

Champions of fossil-fuel generation have long complained that jobs losses have been one of the biggest detriments to the decommissioning of coal-fired power plants. And renewable energy sources do nothing to help replace those jobs.

Not so, according to a panel of experts at the recent Australian Energy Storage Conference and Exhibition held at the International Convention in Sydney. At the Q&A after The Benefits of Microgrids for Urban, Rural and Off-Grid Applications seminar, the question of how many jobs are created by renewables was raised by moderator Mark Higgins, COO of clean energy consultancy Strategen.

“In the United States there is a lot of hand wringing over the loss of jobs in the conventional fossil fuel industry,” said Higgins. “In California this issue is finally starting to come to light where statistics are showing that within the renewable energy industry there are more renewable energy jobs than the entire coal industry in the United States.”

This is backed up by a recent report from the U.S. Department of Energy that shows that solar power employed 43 percent of the electricity sector’s workforce in 2016, while fossil fuels combined accounted for 22 percent.

Almost 374,000 people were employed in solar energy, whereas gas, oil and coal power generation combined had a workforce of slightly more than 187,000.

While offering no hard data to back up his point of view, Michael Ottaviano, CEO of Carnegie Clean Energy, said anecdotal evidence suggested that clean energy job opportunities were on the rise.

“If you think about it, since 2010 we’ve retired about 5000 MW of coal-fired power stations,” said Ottaviano. “We haven’t built any coal-fired power stations in about seven years but we’ve built about 10,000MW of renewable [plant]. In terms of job creation, we’ve created no new jobs in the construction of coal-fired power stations in the last seven years, but an enormous amount of jobs to create 10,000MW of renewables. I think the battery storage space is about to take off so we’ll do something similar. Politically the argument doesn’t get much traction in Australia but it should. We’re hearing a lot even in the Finkler report that came out recently about the need for coal-fired power stations to give three years notice partly to allow people to be retrained. That’s a real problem that needs to be addressed.”

ESS vice president of business development, Bill Sproull, said not only did renewables create jobs, but tended to make them localised, which in a country like Australia, is a good thing for regional economies.

“When I think about renewables and microgrids, it’s really decentralising energy generation and control that’s been prevalent in most of our countries. With that, jobs become very much more local, even down to the community level,” he said.

Another panellist, Giin Sia, the Asia Pacific regional sales director for NEC Energy Solutions, sees nothing but positive outcomes in the near future.

“If I could provide feedback from the rest of the Asia Pacific, [renewable] projects are seen as progressive,” he said, “particularly with an existing structure where there is a big dependence on fossil fuel. When talking to some of the utility companies, as well as governments and ministries, I do not get the impression that energy storage or micro grids are going to take away any jobs at all. In fact, it’s going to be able to put in more jobs, specifically in areas that are not seen as traditional skills.”

Battery energy storage should also contribute to new jobs in renewables in coming years. 

So for all you young and work aspiring people, the renewable energy industry might just be the place to seek and build skills that would translate into jobs......real jobs, particularly in regional cities, where living costs might also be lower than state capital cities. 

 [based on article by Mike Wheeler in PACE magazine, June 2016]

Green Wall by Elmich Survives Strong Typhoon

Elmich Green Wall Braves Strongest Typhoon of 2016By ELMICH AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

News Date: 05 Jun 2017

Category: Buildings

Elmich's VersiWall GM (VGM) Green Wall at JI Hotel Xiamen Zhongshan Road Pedestrian Street survived the strongest typhoon to hit China in nearly 70 years.

Super typhoon ‘Meranti’ made landfall in Xiamen City, Fujian with a wind gust speed of around 170 km/h bringing heavy downpours and causing major disruptions to the electricity and water supplies affecting more than 3.2 million homes located in the region.

Elmich VGM mounting system is equipped with anti-lift arms and proprietary anchoring pilaster system, and certified by independent international test authority to withstand wind uplift from various directions up to 110km/h.

In this application, the real test of nature has proven that a product of quality can withstand the strongest typhoon.

For more information regarding the Green Wall at JI Hotel Xiamen, click here.

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Quite a positive outcome with implications for many other tropical areas where the security of tall green walls has been quite a bit of a worry in cyclonic / hurricane / typhoon conditions around the world.

Zoysia Seed - Compadre and Zenith - UNAVAILABLE in AUSTRALIA

We have been lead to believe by the US supplier Patten Seeds in the last quarter of 2016 - that seed of both varieties would be available in Australia for use in 2016/ 2017 summer planting periods, through sales to a single nominated importer in Australia.

This story - saga maybe is better- developed from late 2016.  Through numerous updates and apparent recleaning plus further seed testing it festered along over many months, with an expectation that seed would be able to meet Australian biosecurity requirements and market quality requirements, and ship to Australia.

Our business continued to inform users, based on expectations that seed would make the grade and get shipped.

As April rolled around it had reached the stage where use in northern Australia was about the only place where sowing was considered possible, even there growth would be in a period of much cooler nights and predicted to be much slower such that waiting for warmer weather in August / September might be a better option.

However, the Australian importer has been informed recently that seed would not be coming to Australia at this time - it did not make the quality cut for import.

So all potential clients ........... it is NOT going to happen anytime soon - availability of both varieties in Australia is still some time away.  Do not be misled by overseas or international web sites offering zoysia seed for sale at this time - it is unlikely to be acceptable for use in Australia, and offers are really directed at US spring sowing options.

New season's production is likely to be harvested by June/ July and maybe this seed might get to Australia by the Australian temperate regions spring sowing period.

We are keen to assist potential growers of this class turf from seed, as we think it offers many advantages, both in quality of turf and costs, albeit with more time required to develop a full turf cover compared to laying full turf sod.  Most of our previous purchasers are extremely impressed with the outcome, independent of whether Zenith or Compadre variety was used.

As users and promoters of zoysia turf in Australia it is a significant setback to get so seriously screwed around by the major seed producer in the US who seems to not acknowledge that there is burgeoning demand outside of the US market including Australia.  If seed is not produced that market will die, yet the specialised and quality production areas cannot meet demand  of a quality product for the Australian market!

We hope to keep the users and potential users informed, but it is unlikely much news will be available before June or July.

Achieving Sustainable Development Goals through Agriculture

29 March 2017

This year, more grain will be harvested than at any time in history. And yet, in this era of plenty, one in nine people do not have enough food to eat. Another two billion may eat, but their meals lack the nutrition necessary for proper health and development. Rapid population growth, dietary shifts towards meat and dairy products, and expanding food production are putting enormous pressure on our ecosystems. If these trends continue, we will be surpassing our planetary boundaries.

And yet, it is not too late to reshape agriculture and food systems to better feed the world and deliver sustainable development. No doubt, governments must play a critical role, but it is not their responsibility alone. It requires an unprecedented effort by all sectors in society, and business must be at the heart of this endeavour. I would like to highlight five priority areas where action is particularly urgently required to shift to more sustainable food systems.

First, we need greater investment, particularly in developing countries where the need and potential for increasing agricultural productivity and production are greatest. This would help feed growing populations sustainably, while creating jobs and incomes across rural areas.

Second, we have to make sure that smallholder farmers, who produce nearly 70% of all food consumed worldwide, are at the heart of all our efforts. Governments and the private sector can and must form innovative partnerships with farmers’ organizations, small farmers, and local agribusinesses, providing access to better seeds, sustainable farming techniques, and modern technologies.

Third, we must ensure that agriculture and food systems become nutrition-smart, because it’s not just about the amount of food we grow, it’s also about the type of food that we consume. Evidence shows that nutrition is crucial for economic growth as better nourished populations are more productive.

Fourth, we need food systems that produce more food but with fewer resources. This requires enforcing policies that promote responsible natural resource management and prevent the loss of natural habitats, forests and biodiversity. It is crucial that businesses source, process and manage resources efficiently to meet growing demand, while preserving our environment and climate.

Fifth, we must seize the moment to push for climate-smart agriculture and food systems. Cutting down agriculture’s climate footprint and shifting towards renewable energy sources will not only help avert climate catastrophe, but also create new opportunities for investment, growth and employment.

I have set out an ambitious agenda. With courage, vision, and bold leadership from every sector, we can move decisively towards truly sustainable food systems and agriculture. We have no time to waste. So let us turn aspiration into action and build a food secure, sustainable, and prosperous world for everybody.

Copy of presentation by Kofi Annan [former UN Head] to the Forum for the Future of Agriculture.

Agriculture [ and horticulture] has had a lot of activity of late with some very successful harvest outcomes around the world, and a trend to finally develop and use some new genetic tools for gains in performance of new varieties, while GM related developments are thriving, even if use can be curtailed in a number of countries [ think the EU], and it is using new technology avidly [ drones, precision agriculture etc].  And importantly, a new cohort of clever young students are again choosing agriculture as a career of choice.  But this has to translate into real improvements in African agriculture where need is still high.  If the continent can be a leader in small scale finance it can improve agriculture too! 

The Wet Season 2017

Certainly been a very wet season across most of north Australia, in contrast to the past few seasons.

In Darwin there has been few dry days since Christmas 2016, and among the wet days some VERY wet run of days, with a few 3-4 day periods exceeding 150- 200 mm totals, with some locations receiving double that.

Really only been one notable cyclone across the north coast areas of Australia with another cyclone a small Category 1 in the lower reaches of the Gulf of Carpentaria.  The blow that went across north of the north coast of the Top End was most of the time a tropical depression but there was strong winds and a lot of rain, with a cyclone declared once the system moved west into the Timor Sea, and then landfall happened as a Category 2 system in the north of WA between Wyndham / Kalumburu.  Relatively minor damage occurred thankfully from both systems.

The wet season is far from over, and it is still raining with showers and storms predicted for the Top End this week and into next week.  It is still too early to think there is no chance of another cyclone.

Importantly, soil moisture and aquifer recharge has been steadily occurring, and many of the shallow local aquifers are overflowing with excess being discharged as surface flow.  Of considerable importance the Darwin River dam has overflowed and is actually overflowing this week again for the 2nd or 3rd time this wet season.  A full dam going into the dry is a critical and positive factor for local water supply.

Elsewhere.......the mighty Ord Dam is seriously overflowing..........with water likely to flow over the spillway for some months yet.  Last data I checked, the amount of water in the main dam was more than 153% of design capacity, up over 72% from this time last year.  There will be some great photos no doubt of this event.

Livestock prices are still very good, and there are some mostly positive changes for cattle weights going into the Indonesian market.  Local stock producers are generally very positive over these changes but supply is tight.......as a lot have already been sold in earlier years and replacements have been slower to arrive.

A good wet season generally is a positive feature in the north.  Now lets look forward to a great dry season.  I am sure most residents would like to see and appreciate some cooler and drier weather over the next month or so as it certainly has been hot and wet.

NEW - Bee Safe Insect Control

A recently announced Australian product has proven effective for insect control in macadamias while also allowing bee pollinators to remain active and effective.

The product is derived from blue pea - Clitoria ternatea a tropical legume with a blue flower that thrives on heavy black soils in tropical areas.

A regional Australian company behind a game-changing bio insecticide that is safe for bees and other beneficial insects has secured funding to ensure its production remains on home soil.

Innovate Ag from Wee Waa in northern New South Wales has spent 15 years developing Sero-X, a pesticide using peptides from the butterfly pea legume as its active ingredient.

Last year the product was used under permit on macadamia crops and the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority recently registered it for use by cotton growers.

The company this week announced a partnership deal with the Belgium based Biological Products of Agriculture (Bi-PA) to help commercialise its invention and distribute it globally.

There is a lot of science behind the product and it is worthwhile knowing about it for use where bees are important and active.  That may include vegetables.

Innovate Ag's project director Nick Watts said Sero-X had huge potential for improving the environmental sustainability and ethical production of food and fibre globally.

"The secret behind this innovative product comes straight from nature itself in the form of cyclotides," Mr Watts said.

"Cyclotides are peptides, or mini-proteins, that are naturally found in plants and have a range of biological activities, including insecticidal and antimicrobial."

They also have great pharmaceutical potential.

"Footy players have given peptides a bad name, but they are fantastic, potent natural compounds that can perform all sorts of functions," Mr Watts said.

Sero-X is already shaping up as a game changer in the macadamia industry which relies on honey bees for pollination but is susceptible to heavy losses from insect pests.

Until now, growers could lose up to 50 per cent of their crop if they did not use broad spectrum synthetic pesticides, Macadamia Industry Board agronomist Neil Innes said.

"There's more reliance on less specific, more broader spectrum synthetic pesticides which have a lot more affect on our pollinators," Mr Innes said.

"There's three basic pesticides and they all have major constraints and it's a big juggling act to not damage pollinators, moving hives around lots of growers have had issues with bee kills."

Biofumigation - Is it An Option?

Biofumigation is relatively new, although a few growers have been involved for maybe 10 years plus here in Australia.  Many that trial the concept are vegetable growers with strong pressure from soil borne diseases or nematodes on their operations that can be controlled at times, but with expensive agrochemicals.  However, there is concern that the products might disappear due to regulatory issues.

The idea of using biofumigation then becomes a viable option to test / evaluate and maybe, implement.

Both nematodes and some soil borne diseases have been controlled / managed successfully, and areas in SW WA, Tasmania and Victoria are actively engaged while R and D is also occurring in SE Queensland areas eg Lockyer Valley, a big vegetable growing area.  There is also some evidence of effects on seed in the soil and small seedlings. 

Essentially it involves using highly specific cover crops that are mulched into the ground.  The factor that offers the help is the production of highly complex sulfur compounds that act as seed and seedling, disease and nematode “killers” with these compounds released during the cutting and maceration  by incorporation into the top 50 – 200mm of the ground where most of the target organisms are present.

Probably too complex to discuss here in detail, but more information is readily available.

http://ausveg.com.au/SW-ICP%20biofumigation%20factsheet%20low%20res%20FINAL.pdf

This offers a good overview of the technology, and there are more farmer fact sheets available from a number of sources.

The Italians are very active in R and D and moving steadily towards wider use of the techniques, as are some other European areas, with Australia and NZ also active.

Unfortunately, not so much development seems to be occurring in warmer regions eg subtropical and tropical areas, where some of the species used may not be so easily grown.

More sophisticated technology used on the farm, once again.  Very cunning application of a simple technology.

A recent webinar should be available to view in the next week or so - the technology is worth investigating for growers of vegetables and similar crops.  It might also have applicaton for turf crops, as commercial products made of pelletted crop materials are also becoming available.  

Exotic invasive ants

24 January, 2017

The Plant Biosecurity CRC is involved with stakeholders around the country in tackling the problem of exotic invasive ants. Here is an overview about the problem in Australia.

The invasive ant problem

Exotic invasive ants are an environmental and social amenity pest with the potential to cause significant negative impacts on Australia’s unique biodiversity and to human health. Australia’s National Biosecurity Committee has identified exotic invasive ants as high priority, and they have been placed on the national priority pest list endorsed by the Plant Health Committee.

There are many types of exotic invasive ant species which have been detected in Australia. Those that are of most concern include:

• Yellow crazy ant (Anoplolepis gracilipes)
• Tropical fire ant (Solenopsis geminata)
• Electric ant (Wasmannia auropunctata)
• Argentine ant (Linepithema humile)
• African Big-Headed ant (Pheidole megacephala)
• Red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta)
• Browsing ant (Lepisiota frauenfeldi)

These ants can transform ecosystems, deplete insect life from an area and even kill small animals. Economically invasive ants can compromise eco-tourism and recreation, reduce crop yields and lead to the death of farm animals. The economic costs associated with control programs are substantial – the national cost of the red imported fire ant control program in Queensland has amounted to almost $330 million over a 16 year period.

Red imported fire ants attack ground-nesting bird chicks as they try to peck their way out of their eggs. Photo credit: Brad Dabbert, www.bugmugs.org

A dead gecko being dragged away by yellow crazy ants. Photo credit: Dinakarr (CC0), via Wikimedia

Management

The entry pathways for exotic invasive ants include sea and air cargo, imported machinery, shipping containers, nursery stock imports, international mail, imported scrap metal and air passenger baggage; however there are activities being undertaken to minimise the risk of incursions and to review current border control measures.

There are now eight separate exotic invasive ant eradication programs underway in Australia. Yellow crazy ant is considered established in Australia, and so not able to be eradicated, and is managed by the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy.

National plan

The National Biosecurity Committee has agreed to the development of a national plan to prevent, prepare and respond to exotic invasive ant incursions and detections. This includes the establishment of a national surveillance program.

Achieving this requires the development of a comprehensive research, development and extension plan to identify and address gaps in research needs. Additionally, the plan will support decisions around allocation of resources for effective exotic invasive ant surveillance operations and the development of risk-based approach to surveillance.

Ant specialists from agriculture and environment agencies, researchers, international experts and the Invasive Species Council met in November 2016. This workshop was the first meeting of Australian and international experts to develop a national Tramp Ant Biosecurity Plan and to identify key research needs for national surveillance activities.

The workshop was organised by the Plant Biosecurity CRC on behalf of the Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources in response to the increasing number, currently eight, of emergency response plans underway for exotic invasive ants.

The next step will be the compilation and analysis of the outputs from the workshop to be used in the development of a draft national biosecurity plan for exotic invasive ants. The draft plan will be considered by the National Biosecurity Committee in early 2017.

You can read the communique from the workshop here.

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The item above came from the CRC on Biosecurity.

This is very relevant across northern Australia, including many urban areas.  Vigilance in managing ants is vital.

However, while there are some excellent products available to really knock over colonies of ants through accumulation of insecticides in the nest, so many homeowners and property managers do not take that step to actually do it. The process is relatively easy and small amounts of insecticides do a great job.

Watch out for denuded areas, often a sure sign of established colonies - in urban areas it can be denuded areas of turf / grass.  Closer inspection usually shows ant access spots or nests.  Then add modest amounts of suitable ant bait.  And watch for more!