After training with Elaine, Tony Evans started off with a worm composting facility which quickly expanded into supplying compost and on-farm making of thermal compost. His company now works mainly with dairy farmers getting rid of effluent and advising on reducing their reliance on chemicals, particularly urea. When Elaine visited Tony there were only a handful of farmers willing to give this ‘new’ method a go. Tony took Elaine to 4 of the dairy farms who were following a practice of making compost and reducing urea. Andrew Whiting is one of the dairy farmers who pioneered using compost. He is here with Elaine and tells her of the benefits of change.
There are literally 1000’s of Elaine’s students just like Tony, Reggie, Andrew, Darren and Rob who now have the confidence to farm biologically with the knowledge to apply and solve their problems. There is a joy in seeing a healthy soil reappear and to be able to farm profitably and simply with health. Watch some of our participants here:
Here’s Andrew Whiting and Reggie Davis with other farmers and their families at the launch of the “Green Pastures Movement” Dairy Company in the centre of Melbourne last year. These farmers are all part of the pioneering group of dairy farmers who worked alongside Camperdown Compost. Through their research, commitment and working with like-minded farmers, the results have been dramatic. The farms have:
They were looking for better, healthier options for solving their farming problems of which a major one was getting rid of their effluent. They felt that chemical based methods were not working for their animals, plants, soil or their own health. It has taken a huge amount of courage for them to make the move to sustainable farming, shifting from the known to the unknown, from practices that had been ingrained over decades to test a new method hoping for better results on farm and better quality produce.
Rob Sutherland is instrumental in taking an organic approach at de Bortoli’s, a boutique vineyard in the Yarra Valley, Victoria. Starting with making his own compost using a lot of the grape marc, he has extended to making compost teas, incorporated a biodiversity of companion plants around the perimeter of the vineyard as well as legumes and cereal crops in the interrows. He is loving the challenge to grow the best grapes with the least amount of chemicals.
As Soil Lovers we respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of all the lands on which we work and pay our respects to the Elders past present and emerging.
When caring for your land take a moment in stillness to respect the wisdom your land is sharing with you.
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