After a successful bean crop in the 2024-2025 season, the three systems were planted in cover crops for the winter. The Conventional was planted with ryegrass, the Hybrid with ryegrass, Balansa clover and crimson clover, and the Regenerative was the same as the Hybrid but with the addition of vetch. The Canopeo phone app has…
Category: Cultivation
Cover Crops Survey
With funding from Te Ahikawariki, we teamed up with regional agronomists to ask a number of growers about cover cropping. We wanted to learn what the barriers were to new entrants, and what the ongoing headaches were for those who do use cover crops. Three-quarters of the 32 growers surveyed have been using cover crops…
Slakes: Soil aggregate stability testing
A Te Ahikawariki / VICE Project SLAKES: a cost effective measure of soil structural stability is one of two projects I have been running as a part of my Te Ahikawariki/VICE internship. A key part of the project was engaging with growers to demonstrate and support valid paddock sampling and correct use of the test…
LandWISE Conference Summary – Day 1
The LandWISE Conference, Getting to Carbon Positive, attracted more than 80 people who heard speakers on a wide range of topics related to ongoing sustainability. Day 1 discussed ways to assess our emissions levels, how we can reduce our environmental impact through diverse farming techniques including regenerative practices and soil health, and new research around…
Carbon Positive Field Walk
1:00 – 2:00 pm Tuesday 13 May at the MicroFarm Centre for Land and Water, 21 Ruahapia Rd A chance to see the emerging winter cover crops and discuss last season and preview plans for summer 2025-2026 Please register (free)
Green Beans and Carbon Positive
The Carbon Positive programme continues. Our McCain Foods green bean crop has been successfully harvested and yield and quality data captured. Post-harvest, Alex and Oliva completed VSA tests in all the plots, and those and other data are being collated and processed. All treatments achieved good yields, but we found significant differences between them. We…
Cyclone Gabrielle Project Updates
Since Cyclone Gabrielle hit in February 2023, LandWISE has been capturing data from impacted sites. Our aim has been to increase knowledge of flood and sediment deposition on highly productive land (HPL), particularly the Land Use Capability (LUC) Class 1 – 3 land that dominates the Heretaunga Plains. The initial project captured data from 110…
Bye & ka kite for now!
After a fun couple of years, I am leaving LandWISE. My partner Mitchell and I are taking a big leap and moving to the Netherlands to start the next chapter of our lives and careers. I spent a year studying in the Netherlands in 2016 and I am very excited to be heading back! I…
February 2025 MicroFarm Update
McCain Foods Green Beans Planting Dwarf green beans for McCain Foods were planted in all treatments on the 28th of December. All treatments were planted in beans, Conventional and Hybrid treatments ex. peas, and the Regen treatment ex. cover crop/fallow. All treatments were disc ripped and rolled one month before planting and regrowth sprayed out…
2024 McCains Pea Production
Peas were planted for McCain Foods on the 3rd of October as part of our Carbon Positive trial. This was a week after the target planting date due to wet soil conditions at the end of September. Planting Winter cover crops in both the Conventional and Hybrid treatments were sprayed out early, and the soil…