NEWS
Media Release
Recent research suggests major barriers to the adoption of regenerative agriculture include limited access to advice, limited support for knowledge sharing, and financial risk. The RegenWA membership database tells a similar story, with 61 producers declaring ‘education/knowledge’ as their primary barrier, and 25 citing finances.
Our ‘Accelerating the Adoption of Regenerative Agriculture’ project was designed to address exactly this. The project aims to abate financial risk by providing a series of $5000 grants for demonstration sites, and address gaps in knowledge by providing support for growers to collect locally relevant research and extend learnings through field days, case studies, and reports.
One grant recipient, Carolyn Dowley, said, “This $5000 grant from RegenWA is a great boost to get things moving straight away on the regeneration of the bushland.”
Carolyn wasted no time after purchasing her York property in 2024, securing the grant just three months later, then seeking out fencing quotes, establishing monitoring sites, carrying out baseline surveys, and planting seedlings all in the following month. Eager to restore the land’s remnant wandoo and marri woodland and demonstrate small steps towards big landscape change, Carolyn is creating the conditions for natural regeneration by excluding stock with fencing and planting local provenance species.
Carolyn has been giving both planted species and naturally regenerating species every possible chance at survival, regularly watering over summer, adding slow-release watering methods, installing tree guards, strategically placing fallen branches, and conducting thorough research into appropriate species. Despite these efforts, the regeneration hasn’t been without its challenges. Trail plantings both with and without tree guards resulted in many seedlings without guards struggling or dying, wildlife was drawn to the seedlings’ water reservoirs which resulted in some damage to seedlings and guards, and monitoring swiftly indicated just how much more resilient the local provenance species were compared to externally-sourced seedlings, which performed poorly over summer. Carolyn quickly adapted to these challenges, sourcing tree guards for the remaining seedlings, placing a designated wildlife watering point close to the plantings, and even undertaking seed collection training then commissioning a grower to raise 200 wandoo from seed off the property.
Regular monitoring and camera traps have revealed that the woodland is already supporting a surprising amount of biodiversity after a break from stock, including orchids, grasses, echidnas, possums, black cockatoos, robins, ducks, frogs, and more. In September, the first natural recruitment of a wandoo seedling was spotted!
Of her project so far, Carolyn says, “So much good change has already occurred in a little more than a year…The next steps are to continue finding out how to make this a home that endemic species will thrive in, be safe in, be protected for future generations.” With fencing of 2.8ha now underway, the habitat value of these woodlands is set to increase even further.
To learn more, you can read Carolyn’s full account of the project here.
Up on Gabyon Station, near Yalgoo, Gemma Cripps put her grants funds towards buying 220 more virtual fencing collars (plus base stations and Starlink units for internet connectivity), to add to her existing 172 collars. Gemma’s project tests the efficacy of virtual fencing collars in the southern rangelands to support strategic grazing, paddock spelling, improved vegetation recovery, and more flexible movement of cattle, while evaluating the practical considerations for broader adoption in extensive pastoral landscapes.
The existing collars have been performing well over large paddocks, and cattle movements are easily controlled. Acquiring the additional system will allow Gemma to run cattle in paddocks that have been inaccessible for 8 years due to inadequate fencing, significantly expanding grazing options. Over summer, once the new collars have been fitted, Gemma will trial less intensive grazing, allowing around 150ha per move to maintain body condition. Gemma is pleased with the performance of Starlink, noting it has increased flexibility where coverage is limited. Its 12-volt system, however, does come at a significant cost, including additional batteries, solar panels, components, and monthly subscription fees. The base stations (which allow the collars to communicate with transmitter towers and the fencing app) have also raised some concerns. One base station required replacing after it failed, releasing the entire herd as a result, but they have otherwise proved reliable. Given Gemma’s cattle operation is complemented by regenerative goals and a carbon project, she feels confident about the value of virtual fencing. The feasibility of such a system within a cattle-only operation, however, is one of the questions being examined throughout this project.
Meanwhile in Meckering, David Storer has been trailing the efficacy of Veolia Vitagro composted product. David’s demonstration is intended to determine if the addition of the Veolia product can enhance and/or replace conventional inputs to improve production and profitability in Rockstar Wheat.
The Veolia product was spread at application rates of 0, 3, 5, and 10 tonne/ha across 12 plots, and incorporated into existing soil prior to fertiliser, which was applied at rates of 0%, 50% and 100%. Early observations of root growth at tillering suggested compost alone, or compost combined with a 50% application of fertiliser may promote better root growth than 100% fertiliser alone. At the flowering stage, biomass cuts were taken and weighed. Among treatment plots, 10t/ha compost and 100% fertiliser yielded the most biomass, followed by 10t/ha compost and 50% fertiliser, then 5t/ha compost and 100% fertiliser and 5t/ha compost and 50% fertiliser. Control plot b (0t/ha compost and 50% fertiliser) had the highest biomass of all plots, while control plot a (0t/ha compost and 0% fertiliser) had the lowest. Such observations and data collection will ensure David is able to make informed management decisions on input use following the trial.
As these demonstrations continue to evolve, interested parties will have opportunities to learn more by attending field days and reading the case studies and reports to be published following each demonstration’s finalisation. Three successful cover crop demonstration field days have already been held – on Murray Gomm’s vineyard in Marbelup, Karlee Bertola’s avocado orchard in King River, and Murray Grey’s cattle property in Dandaragan. A video of Murray and Karlee’s field day is available to view here, and you can stay up to date with future field days via the RegenWA website.
This project is supported by funding through the Western Australian Government’s State NRM Program.
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