Magnificent setting for Bellata field day

The Outlook Ag field day was held at ‘Lochearn’ Bellata, a magnificent setting with trial crop plots thriving and the Nanedwar Ranges as a backdrop on a cracking spring day.

The field day attracted an impressive crowd of growers, agronomists, and agricultural representatives.

“We’re very happy with the roll-up today; there are growers and people from all around the region,” said Mitch Cuell, agronomist and Outlook Ag director for the Narrabri region.

“We’ve got agronomists from Moree, Walgett, Gunnedah and similarly with the growers, they’ve come from Spring Ridge, Narrabri, Moree to Walgett.

“We’ve got a good bunch of agros from all around the place, which is what we want; we don’t want to keep this information in-house, it’s good to extend it all.

“Today, we’re at Drew Penberthy’s farm ‘Lochearn’, he’s been hosting trials here for 20 years, Kalyx sow them all, and there are trials here with seed companies, chemical companies, nutrition companies. So, they do their work here and then when it comes to Outlook Ag’s role – we then try and make sure the information is delivered to growers in this sort of platform.”

The field day included discussions about Outlook Ag’s national grower network (NGN) cereal fertiliser trials funded by the Grains Research and Development Corporation, the GRDC-funded national variety trials, Loam Bio carbon trials, Syngenta Victrato seed treatment, Imtrade herbicidal work, ADAMA chickpea disease and grass weed control trials and a drone weed mapping demonstration.

A stand-out feature was an engaging presentation by Outlook Ag agronomist Drew Penberthy from a large soil pit that had been dug out to clearly demonstrate what happens underground as crops grow and to show the root development within the soil profile.

Other speakers at the event included Dr Steven Simpfendorfer and Dr Zorica Duric from the NSW Department of Primary Industries.

Mr Cuell said one of the field day’s highlights was the opportunity to “interact and network with everyone because that’s where and how you learn.

“You’re talking to your peers and hearing about what’s working for them, what they’re struggling with, and what they’re doing – it’s pretty interactive.”