Three Springs RiskWi$e Discussion Group - An Introduction
By Melanie Dixon, WMG Mixed Farming Systems Officer
WMG recently engaged with the Three Springs Farm Improvement Network (3FIN) and joined their committee meeting at the Commercial Hotel Three Springs on April 10th to discuss the GRDC RiskWi$e project.
The GRDC RiskWi$e project is a national initiative that aims to help farmers better assess the risk and reward of their farm management decisions. You can find out more about RiskWi$e here.
The introductory meeting allowed the WMG team to gain ideas and feedback from the committee, and to look for potential areas where we can support their members over the next few years as part of the project.
After the initial introduction of the project and the WMG team to the 3FIN committee, WMG CEO Nathan Craig led the group in a discussion around risk management, highlighting the balance between informed decision-making based on historical data and personal learning, the repercussions of poor decisions, and the subsequent financial setbacks, anxiety, and enduring impacts across multiple seasons from decisions that didn’t pan out.
The dialogue then transitioned to management decisions, where the farmers shared insights into complex and important matters such as run lines, variable rate applications, and crop nutrition. As the accumulation of data grows, so does the complexity of decisions, particularly in areas like soil testing and carbon emissions. Streamlining complexity whilst retaining the significance of these decisions is key to growing confidence in the choices made on farm.
Discussion moved on to machinery decisions, another of the RiskWi$e themes, highlighting the increasing complexity faced by farmers in choosing the right equipment. Factors such as size, type, and brand play a crucial role, as well as the growing need for clearer comparisons of machinery based on cost, efficiency, and productivity. The diversity of soil types on farms adds another layer of complexity, requiring multiple machines suited to different soils or alternatively versatile machinery that can perform well regardless of soil type. The conversation also touched on the broader implications of machinery decisions on other management areas like seeding, spraying, spreading, and harvesting.
Finally, the session moved into a focus on one of the current five themes of RiskWi$e, nitrogen (N) decisions. More specifically, N use efficiency and how to know when to push N applications for yield and when to hold back in an increasingly variable climate. Attending farmers discussed various factors that influence their strategies, including interactions with other nutrients (particularly K), input costs, and the impact of rainfall and soil moisture. The conversation also explored the challenges of nitrogen application, such as volatilization, and the impact of leasing land on risk-taking behavior.
During the discussion concerning nutrition decisions, WMG provided results from modelled simulations to supplement the conversation. The models presented showed nitrogen rate response in yield through rainfall deciles and soil types, specific to the Three Springs region. The importance of incorporating more variables into these models and considering factors beyond yield, such as grain quality and marketability, was noted. The event concluded with a consensus on the importance of identifying knowledge gaps and learning from the top 20% of producers to improve decision-making and reduce uncertainty in farming practices.
This discussion served as an important opportunity for WMG to connect with local Three Springs farmers and understand their region and the issues that matter to them most. WMG would like to thank 3FIN for the opportunity to connect and engage and are looking forward to working collaboratively and supporting their members through the RiskWi$e project over the next few years.
