.preview.JPG "Jenny on the walkway around the lake.")
With the stock fenced out and the willows gone, cabbage trees and other natives have regenerated naturally.preview.jpg "With the stock fenced out and the willows gone, cabbage trees and other natives have regenerated naturally.")
...and the stock are back where they should be. (Goes right after shot of birds).preview.JPG "...and the stock are back where they should be.")
Horsham Downs, just north of Hamilton, lakearjr [at] xtra [dot] co [dot] nz
90 ha, 300 cross bred cows. Associated 20 ha runoff for heifers, make 100 round bale silage.
Lake Kaituna and Lake Komakorau.
"When we started here, the ducks were in the water troughs and the cows were in the lake" says Jenny. It's a good intro to the work the Hayes have done to protect water, wildlife and soils.
The farm, and neighbouring farms, drain into a peat lake which in 1998 was dead - silting up, smelly, with dead eels and shags. Between 1999 and 2004 the Hayes removed the grey willows around the edge and fenced off a generous riparian margin - minimum 20 metres from the water. With the willows gone, the natives that had been suppressed underneath came away and there is a vigorous fringe of cabbage trees, Carryx, sedges and reeds, which have established naturally. A little planting has been done to help them along.
None of the farm's drains now discharge directly into the lake, but go through silt traps and then percolate through the wetland fringes of the lake. Now, the lake is covered with water fowl that don't stray on to the farm because there is so much food for them in the restored habitat. The ducks stay on the lake, and the cows stay out of it.
There is a problem with koi carp and gambusi, both pest fish, but efforts are underway to remove them, and native mudfish are being released to restore a more balanced ecosystem.
The cost of fencing, a little planting and weed spraying which was $9,000 a year during the establishment phase, was met a third each by the farm, Environment Waikato through its Clean Streams funding, and the Department of Conservation, and the ongoing spray programme is now costing $1,000 p.a. In addition Honda provides 3 trees for each car they sell and 35,000 of these go to Environment Waikato for its Clean Streams programme.
Andrew and Jenny were prepared for a drop in production because of the five hectares no longer in grazing, but this has not occurred. The slower release of water into the lake means the pastures uphill dry out more slowly in the summer, and the silt captured from the traps and spread on the farm returns a number of minerals that improve fertility.
A key milestone was entering the Ballance Farm Environment Awards in 2004. While they didn't win the main farm award, they won the restoration award. Andrew says they learned a lot, and shortly after were given the 2007 Green Ribbon rural sustainability award, by the Minister for the Environment. The encouragement this provided was very important.
About the same time Andrew tackled the fertiliser regime with a nutrient budget for the farm. Urea inputs have reduced, over time, from 180 kg/ha N to just 24 kg/ha N by using a low rate of sulphate ammonia. "It's important to recognise that you can't just go cold turkey" says Andrew. "It takes the soil at least 2 years to adjust, and you have to reduce slowly". The clover has flourished. This is an area that had clover weevil early and badly, and it seems now to have stabilised and the clover is less affected.
Andrew is using Clovertone to encourage the clover. He has not used potash since 1984. Not only has this been a huge cost saving, but there has been no drop in production and animal health is improved. Vet bills are very low, due to no Bloat Drench, no Causemag, just a little magnesium with molasses. Profit per ha is up because input costs are down.
Soil tests show very high levels of organic carbon; 20-40% compared with typical Waikato levels of 2-4%. Accordingly, microbial life has greatly increased too. This will be one reason for the low leaching into water ways, and the high retention of nutrients. Measurements show that the area near the lake which is regularly flooded in heavy rain is not leaching N. P. K. S. Mg. Ca. or Na.
This is a great example of how farming methods can protect water quality, wildlife habitat, stock health and profitability at the same time.
Many thanks to Jenny and Andrew for their warm hospitality - and congratulations for taking a big step towards sustainability. Harry and Russel and I really enjoyed meeting you.
Thanks also to Bala Tikisetty from Environment Waikato who arranged the visit and took us to the farm.
