Ashburton Courier: August 20, 2020

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14 Ashburton Courier, August 20, 2020 RURAL/LIFESTYLE www.ashburtoncourier.co.nz Dairy farmers still relishing early starts 2301008 2300734 DITCH WITCH R100 • Fully automatic laser controlled trencher •Able to lay pip in the most trying conditions ROBERTSON SHINGLE LAYER • No job is complete without shingle over the pipe Also operating Shingle Injecting Mole Plough system Ph Ken 027 201 3302 www.robertsoncontracting.co.nz AVAILABLE NOW... BALE FEEDER Heavyduty2.4m x1.4mwith 1.6mmsteel sheetbase. Competitiveprice –depending on quantity We canrepair and service: •Feed out wagons •Augers •Dairyyards •Palm kernel bins and more Anddon’t forget we repair rotaryboomirrigators Phone 308 5903 weekdays l Email: agserve@xtra.co.nz On call 7days: Doug: 027 282 2245, Matt (Tomo): 021 518 538 15 Malcolm McDowell Drive, Ashburton • DairyNZ accredited EffluentPondDesign andConstruction • Pond Constructionand Irrigation Development • Hedgeand Stump Removal • Farm Conversions • DairyTracks– Lime or Gravel • PumpHire Above: Dromore dairy farmers Jodi and Chris Ford complement each other working side by side on farm. They are busy calving, like most other dairy farmers in the district. • Wellsand Galleries • Bulk Earthworks • Subdivisions • Site Works • Tree Shear • Transportation 2300540 TONI.WILLIAMS @ashburtoncourier.co.nz Dromore dairyfarmersChris and Jodi Ford are midway through calving. It’s atestingtime; longdays with physically demanding work fit in aroundthedaily running of the farm. But they are making their way through, tryingtobe organised by the end of the weektoget somemuch neededtime offduring the weekend. The couple, who have daughters Tayla, 22 and Leah, 17,and son Alex, 15, are in a50:50 equity partnership farming at Kokura Farm on the Dromore MethvenRoad, in Mid Canterbury. Along with Chris, 43, and Jodi, 45, there are an additionalthreefulltime, and one parttime, staff working on farm. Chris’parents, Donald and Cheryl also live on farm, and Donaldoftenhelps out. The Fords supply Synlait, milking 930crossbred cows, from217 hectares (effective) using whatChris describes as the oldest 50 bail rotaryin the district. It mayhavebeenbuilt in 1978 but has had technology added and is now afully automated shed able to be manned by one person.They milk twice aday. There is also a75hectarerunoff block usedfor young stock and wintering young cows. On farm they also have chooks, sheep, pigs and a goat. They started as 50:50 sharemilkers around 2013 but two years later tookthe chancetogointo an equity partnership. It was an “awesome opportunity”,Chris said, and they made it work for both partiesinvolved. “You’ve gottolookoutside the square and take opportunitieswhenthey comeup.” It’s amantra he livesby when his name was putinthe hat for Federated Farmers early in his dairy farming career. Chris grewupinReporoa, halfway between Rotorua and Taupo. His firstdairy farm job was on akiwifruit andavocado farminTePuke, milking350 cows. He met Jodi, aqualified chef andtownie, on anight out more than 20 years ago. They were both out with friends, hit it off and the rest, as they say, is history. Jodi left her joband took up farming with Chris before they movedtoaproperty as lower order sharemilkers at Whakatane. “I loveit. Iwould never go back to the city,” she said. Chris andJodi complement each other on the farm working astaggered work day that startsat5am. Shealso runsthe officeand he manages thepeople, which includes takingonWilling Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOF)toexperience different cultures andopen Chris Ford their home, and dairy farm, to others. They rarely argue andlike to unwindtogether watching recorded episodes of Hawaii FiveO. Chris enjoysjetboating, playing squash and has a fascination with growinghot chillies withnames like ghost, yellow devil, kraken andCarolinareaper. Dairy farming forJodi allowsher to workoutside, with animals and she likes the flexibilityitoffers to raise afamily.They areable to be there for the children beforeand after school, and get time away when needed. It was while farmingat Whakatane that they entered the NewZealandDairy Industry Awardsand came away withacoupleof awards, including the leadership award. It saw Christapped on the shoulder to take on the Federated Farmers Bay of Plenty sharemilkers chair role. He did it for four years beforethey moved to the South Island,and afarm at Hinds around2007. “We were very luckyto work forsomegreat mentors especially in theNorth Island whenwewere growing our business,” he said. It spurredhim on to becoming amentortohis staff andothers in the community. Chris’s only regret wasthey hadn’t movedtothe South Island sooner,“when land prices were cheaper”. In his role as Federated Farmers MidCanterbury dairy sector chair, which he has donefor the past three years,Chris enjoys helping people and havinginfluence overpolicy work with government. “Mentor roles, that’s my passion. That’s my buzz to really help peopleand mentor them,” he said. Chrisand Jodi have been working withMinistry of SocialDevelopment and offering asnapshotof dairyingtopeople whohad losttheir jobs due to Covid 19.Itwas an idea Chris had dealing with theCovid19 community welfare response group during lockdown. “I just thought that’s something we can do,” he said. They have hadthree on farm taster courses, hosting between six to 15 people fora farm tour and milking session. “It’s showing them what farm life is like in anutshell. Atwohour snapshot,” Chris said. He thoughtgetting Kiwis into farming wasone positive to come out of the pandemic. It is on holdduringcalving, but he is hopeful it will continue after calving finishesaround October 5. He says it is importantfor urban people to see farming in action. “Farmers are really trying to bridgethegap between the urban and rural divide. “There are just aselect few running down farmers, which are most vocal,” he said. “Urban (people)ingeneral are supportive and understandwhat we do.” He saiddairy farmers were facing afew issues including thefreshwater accord –an82 page document which may dampen MidCanterbury’s economy“because we just don’tknowwhere it’s going to end up”. It was hard to planafuture whenmore and more regulations were hitting farmers, he said. There was also aneed for more awareness around mental wellbeing, Mycoplasma bovis continued to affect MidCanterbury farmers and there was likely to be ashortage of immigration workers due to covid to work on farms. It was all causingconsiderable financialpressure and at huge personalcost, Chris said. On apositive feed has held up. ‘‘Alot of farmers thought we’d be short of crop feed, but dry matter yields were up, so it hasbeenavailable. It’s been areally kind winter.” Herding cows to rejoin the milking herd on the main farm block.
www.ashburtoncourier.co.nz RURAL/LIFESTYLE Ashburton Courier, August 20, 2020 15 Blackgrassfoundinlocal seed TONI.WILLIAMS @ashburtoncourier.co.nz Blackgrass pest weed has been found again in Mid Canterbury. It was found in ryegrass seed grown in the Ashburton district, and being tested at a seed processingplant for purity and germinationas part of routine preexport certification. It was not part of aspill that occurred between Tinwald and Methvenin2013. Biosecurity New Zealand principal response manager David Yard said the farm was one of anumberofproperties under routine surveillance for blackgrass after planting contaminated seed back in 2007. It was imported. “Biosecurity New Zealand is still investigating but we believethe discovery is connected to the importation of contaminated seed in 2007. ‘‘Blackgrass was detectedina 2016 ryegrass harvestand we commencedaresponse with the seed sector, Federated Farmers and local authorities to eliminate blackgrass. Mid Canterbury farmers need to keep an eye out for the blackgrass weed which has been foundinthe area again. “Initially, threeblackgrass (Alopecurus myosuroides) seeds were found in a100g sample of ryegrass seed. Subsequent testing of the remainderofthe harvest (approximately 14 tonnes) foundfurther lowlevel contamination with blackgrass seeds,” he said. Blackgrass seed was known to survive in the ground for many years and it was likely this incursion had come from the sowingofcontaminated seed in 2007/2008. “This detection, while disappointing, was not unexpected given the ability of blackgrass seed to persistin the environment for many years. This is why Biosecurity New Zealand and the seed growingindustry had been carryingout ongoing surveillancefor this weed,” he said. “Blackgrass has been found on only three properties, so we do not believethe pest is widespread.” Blackgrass was aserious pest weed in Europe and the United Kingdom, especially as it was resistanttomany herbicides making it difficult to control. However, it was not expectedtotake hold in New Zealand with Biosecurity New Zealand,farmersand the seed industrytaking any incursion seriously from the outset. Mr Yardsaid since the discovery BiosecurityNew Zealand has had all affected ryegrass seed held securely at the seed facility. “We are workingtohave the seed approved for shipment to another country which already has blackgrass and has no restrictions on these imports. This seed cannot be sold in New Zealand. “We have also directed seed offal (waste material from the seed processing) to be destroyed securely by deep burial.” Avisit to the farm concerned noted the farmer had very good biosecurity practices in place and the processing company did exactly the right thing notifying Biosecurity New Zealandofthe detection and securingstock on the premises,hesaid. Mr Yard said Canterbury farmers should continue to keep alookout for blackgrass. If they believe they have foundit, they shouldnot disturb the seedhead, but take aphoto and call the Pest and Disease Hotline on 0800 80 99 66 and report the suspected find. IN BRIEF DAIRYNZ BOARD DairyNZ is seeking farmers with an interest in shaping the futureofthe New Zealanddairy sectortojoin theirboard. They arehave two directorroles to fill withdirector and chair Jim van der Poeland directorColin Glass retiring by rotationafter three years; both willstand for re-election. Details canbefoundatwww. dairynz.co.nz/agm DairyNZ board memberPeter Schuytsaid it was an important time forthe dairy sector, and theboard will playakey role in settingstrategy in arapidlychanging environment. DairyNZ was in aunique position to advocate forfarmerstoinfluence future policy and support farmers with solutions to adapt their farming systems, he said. LEVYFARMERS DairyNZisseeking applications from farmers to fill oneposition on the Directors’ Remuneration Committee whichindependently sets boardfees. The role is open to current levy paying dairyfarmers but must be nominatedbytwo currentlevy payers. More information on the rolescan be foundwww.dairynz.co. nz/agm.Nominations must be received by noon,onSeptember 3. Chiropractors are healthcare professionals whose focus is on the health and function of the spine and the nervous system. Chiropractic is knowntohelpwith back andneck pain together with headaches but it is moreabout total healthand wellbeing. It is about getting people functioning at their best to get the most out of their daily lives. Chiropractic is about having ahealthy spine that allows forthe free flow ofnerve signals from the body tothe brain, so that the brain caninterruptthese messages and respond. The role ofthe spine is to act asprotection to the central nervous system with each vertebral segment being able to bend and move with the bodies daily movements. The central nervous system is the message information highway ofsending and receiving communication from the body to the brain forinterpretation and response. What we do and how weuse our body inour everyday life can impactonthe spine. This maylead to changesinthe way spinal segments move resulting in abnormal or dysfunction spinal movements and spinal wear and tear. This can occur gradually from bad posture orrepetitive movements or from asuddenonset of asporting injuryormotor vehicle accident. This everyday wear and tear to the spine may impact the messages travelling through the central nervous system, resulting in a change and & Health Wellbeing Chiropractic fortotalhealth and wellbeing miscommunicationbetween the brain and the body. When we get miscommunication due to abnormal spinal segment movements, chiropractors call this aChiropractic Vertebral Subluxation. Thechiropractors role is to restorethe normal spinal movement so that communication between the body and the brain is unimpeded. Debraisavailable forhealthcoaching forpeople who want to improve their lifestyle, starting with an in-depth look at diet, exercise,sleep hygiene and stress management. Injury Prevention HolisticHealth • Relief from back/spinalpain • Improvedhealth and injury prevention • Move, heal,rest, digestbetter • ACC registered • Reiki • Massage •Nutritionals •Weight Management Phone or text 027 282 1585 • Skin and Body Care • Self Hypnosis •Vibrational Energy Healing •Spiritual Guidance •Group Meditation Annie OUR FOCUS •Quality assured •Comprehensive checks •Personalised services •Trendy styles •Affordable pricing Monday-Wednesday9:30am -4pm Thursday&Friday10am -2:30pm Saturdayand Sundaybyappointment *Wetakeaerhoursby appointment 2300957 03 308 9516 www.ashburtonchiropractic.co.nz First Floor Smith &Church Building Moore Street, Ashburton 2300754 David Atkinson, Optometrist 65 Tancred Street,Ashburton Phone: 307 8988 www.nzfocusoptometry.co.nz 2300962
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