Talkin' After Hours with the Lower Blackwood LCDC
Talkin After Hours with the Lower Blackwood LCDC is hosted by Jo Wren and Kate Tarrant from the Lower Blackwood LCDC who, each month, will be talking all things Sustainable Ag, bringing you an interesting and informative interview with an expert on a particular farming or landcare topic. The Lower Blackwood LCDC are a not-for-profit, community managed, independent Landcare and sustainable Ag organisation located in the South West of Western Australia.
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Leveraging Foliar Nutrition to Boost Fertility with Mark Tupman
04/30/2024
Leveraging Foliar Nutrition to Boost Fertility with Mark Tupman
In this Talkin' After Hours Episode Jo & Kate chat once again to local agroecologist Mark Tupman from Productive Ecology. This time we explore how to get a better band for your buck by including foliar nutrition to complement your soil fertility program.
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Talkin' Dung Beetles with Kathy Dawson & Kylie Cook
03/26/2024
Talkin' Dung Beetles with Kathy Dawson & Kylie Cook
In this month's episode Jo & Kate chat to two southwest WA landcarers who have been very active in working with livestock farmers to get some very handy ecosystem engineers working on their farms. We are talking about Dung Beetles and our local experts are Kathy Dawson from Southern Forests Community Landcare based in Manjimup and Kylie Cook from Wilson Inlet Catchment Committee, based in Denmark. Show notes available via , our online community & information hub.
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Talkin' Plant Diversity & Animal Nutrition with Fred Provenza.
02/29/2024
Talkin' Plant Diversity & Animal Nutrition with Fred Provenza.
In this Talkin After Hours Episode Jo & Kate chat to Fred Provenza, Professor Emeritus, Dept. Wildland Resources, Utah State University. For the past 30 years, Fred and his team have produced ground-breaking research that has laid the foundation for what is now known as behavior-based management of livestock, wildlife and landscapes. This research led to the creation in 2001 of a consortium of scientists and land managers from five continents called BEHAVE (Behavioral Education for Human, Animal, Vegetation and Ecosystem management). Fred has authored 3 books Foraging Behavior: Managing to Survive in a World of Change, The Science of Shepherding: Tapping the Wisdom of French Herder, and most recently published a book on his research titled Nourishment: What Animals Can Teach Us about Rediscovering Our Nutritional Wisdom. Our conversation delves into this fascinating research with a particular focus on the impact of plant diversity on livestock health.
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Talkin' Soil Function & Fertility with Mark Tupman
01/30/2024
Talkin' Soil Function & Fertility with Mark Tupman
In this months podcast Jo & Kate chat with Mark Tupman from Productive Ecology on a topic that is absolutely fundamental to agriculture – that of soil function & fertility. In our conversation we delve into what is actually meant by soil function, why and how it is so critical to soil fertility, and what are the most effective strategies we can implement to build soil fertility.
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Talkin' Nitrogen with Joel Williams
11/30/2023
Talkin' Nitrogen with Joel Williams
In this episode of Talkin’ After Hours Jo & Kate chat to Joel Williams on the hot topic of Nitrogen – how it works in the nutrient cycle and how can we best optimise its use – particularly in grazing systems.
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Talkin' On Farm Bugs & Brews with David Hardwick
10/31/2023
Talkin' On Farm Bugs & Brews with David Hardwick
In this months podcast we chat to agroecologist & partner in rural change management company Soil Land Food, David Hardwick on the hot topic of making your own biofertilisers .David learned the skills of making bugs and brews from the masters at Mas humas and has been passing on that information ever since. In the podcast David shares tips, tricks & recipes to make starter cultures, inoculants, bioferments and biofertilisers.
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Talkin' Ferals in the Frame - with Dr Heather Channon
09/29/2023
Talkin' Ferals in the Frame - with Dr Heather Channon
Feral Pigs are a major pest across a Australia and are in fact wreaking havoc right here in our backyard in the Lower Blackwood Catchment. Here at the LCDC we’ve been working with the Lower Blackwood Vertebrate Pest Management group for a number of years on controlling the local pig population and are coming into our third year of our State NRM funded project ‘Feral Pig Focus – Protecting the Scott Coastal Plain’. In this month's Talkin' Podcast we chat to Dr Heather Channon, the National Feral Pig Management Coordinator for the National Feral Pig Action Plan about the plan and how projects like ours fit in with her work on a National Scale. This podcast is supported by the Western Australian Government's State NRM Program.
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Talkin' Composting for Farms with Mark Tupman
08/23/2023
Talkin' Composting for Farms with Mark Tupman
In this episode Jo & Kate talk to Agroecologist Mark Tupman on all things composting for farms - what the options are, how to make them, and how to best utilise the compost on your farm. This podcast is supported though funding from Soil Wise. Soil Wise is funded by the National Landcare Program Smart Farms Small Grants – an Australian Government initiative. It is supported by Healthy Estuaries WA – a State Government program.
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Driving Plant Health through Nutrition with Grant Sims
07/31/2023
Driving Plant Health through Nutrition with Grant Sims
In this Talkin’ After Hours Podcast Jo & Kate chat once again to Victorian cropper, seed grower & beef farmer Grant Sims. Grant has driven farm health and productivity gains on his farm through adhering to a set of principles that have included the use of multi species cover crops, eliminating the use of 'icides' and largely replacing high input synthetic fertilisers with foliar fed biofertilisers. This is our second podcast with Grant, last time we focused on multispecies cover cropping, this time around we decided to pick his brains on his other passion – and that is driving plant health through nutrition. Listen in, we know you'll enjoy it! This podcast is supported though funding from Soil Wise. Soil Wise is funded by the National Landcare Program Smart Farms Small Grants – an Australian Government initiative. It is supported by Healthy Estuaries WA – a State Government program.
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Biodiverse Pastures - Challenges & Techniques with Jade Killoran
06/29/2023
Biodiverse Pastures - Challenges & Techniques with Jade Killoran
In this Talkin' podcast Jo & Kate chat to Jade Killoran, Victorian independent multispecies cover crop advisor, researcher and founder of Healthy Farming Systems. Although the Victorian climate is slightly different to ours, it is similar enough that so much of what Jade has researched is very applicable in our environment. In this episode we explore with Jade her research and trial findings and what strategies land managers can use to get diverse & perennial plants established in their annual grazing systems. This podcast is delivered in partnership with the Lower South West Growers Group and is supported though funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund, the Augusta Margaret River Shire Environmental Management Fund, and Soil Wise. Soil Wise is funded by the National Landcare Program Smart Farms Small Grants – an Australian Government initiative. It is supported by Healthy Estuaries WA – a State Government program.
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A Regenerative Journey with Blythe Calnan
05/29/2023
A Regenerative Journey with Blythe Calnan
In this podcast episode Jo & Kate talk with South West farmer Blythe Calnan about her regenerative journey with her partner Greg Hooper - their motivations, the challenges and the opportunities in running 'Runnymede', a commercial regenerative farm. This podcast is supported by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development as part of a collaboration bringing Dr Christine Jones to Western Australia in February 2023.
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Talkin' Horses, Pastures & Soil with Belinda Taylor
05/25/2023
Talkin' Horses, Pastures & Soil with Belinda Taylor
In this episode Jo & Kate talk with South West equine agronomist Belinda Taylor on horses, pastures & soil - including how to get more diversity into equine systems and what that means for management of your horse or horses. This podcast is supported by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development as part of a collaboration bringing Dr Christine Jones to Western Australia in February 2023.
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Talkin' Soil Secrets with Dr Christine Jones
04/28/2023
Talkin' Soil Secrets with Dr Christine Jones
In this Talkin' episode Jo & Kate talk with internationally renowned soils ecologist Dr Christine on the secrets that make healthy soils tick and the soil as a living system - including a dive into the ‘liquid carbon pathway’ – what it is, why we need it, how to help it and how to avoid hindering it. This podcast is supported by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development as part of a collaboration bringing Dr Christine Jones to Western Australia in February 2023.
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Grazing to Regenerate Your Land with Dr Judi Earl
03/30/2023
Grazing to Regenerate Your Land with Dr Judi Earl
In this Talkin' episode we talk to Holistic Grazing expert Dr Judi Earl on the principles of grazing management and how grazing livestock can be used to regenerate their land. This is our second podcast with Judi, we chatted to her last year all about Grass – in fact that podcast is a ‘must listen to’ as a good understanding of how grasses grow and respond to being grazed is key to understanding how livestock can be used to enhance soil health and pasture production. This podcast is supported by Soil Wise. Soil Wise is funded by the National Landcare Program Smart Farms Small Grants – an Australian Government initiative. It is supported by Healthy Estuaries WA – a State Government program.
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Talkin' Carbon Farming - A DIY Case Study with Brett Hazelden and Jennifer West
02/16/2023
Talkin' Carbon Farming - A DIY Case Study with Brett Hazelden and Jennifer West
In this Talkin' episode we delve into ‘warts & all’ exploration on the planning, preparation & implementation of a ‘Do it yourself’ Soil Carbon project. Our guests are Jennifer West from Carbon West, founder of Carbon West, an independent carbon services consultancy specialising in soil carbon project research, assessment, and development, and Brett Hazelden, a Lower Blackwood sheep farmer who is undertaking an independent soil carbon project on his Warner Glen property.
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Talkin' Weeds - a new perspective with Nicole Masters
11/24/2022
Talkin' Weeds - a new perspective with Nicole Masters
In this podcast episode we chat with New Zealand agroecologist, author & educator, & the perennially effervescent Nicole Masters, on the topic of weeds & their management - not in the conventional way, but through the lens of ecosystem health. In this perspective weeds are not seen as the ‘foe’, nor is there a need to 'wage war’ on them, instead an ecosystems approach seeks to understand what their role is in the system, with the ' why' providing the key to their management in your overall system.
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Talkin' Harnessing Nature to Manage Vineyard Pests
10/27/2022
Talkin' Harnessing Nature to Manage Vineyard Pests
In this month’s podcast episode we talk to South Australian viticulturist, natural systems thinker, scientist & educator, Dr Mary Retallack. In 2012 Mary undertook a PhD research study which really challenged the conventions of viticulture by harnessing the power of native insectary plants as a key to managing vineyard pests naturally. Her research, and passion for the topic has culminated in an exciting new project that Mary is spearheading, the funded by Wine Australia & supported by the Wine Grape Council of South Australia. Tune in as we take a dive into Mary’s research, the world of native insectaries and why growers are sitting up and listening...
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Talkin' Water on the Farm with Warren Pensini
09/28/2022
Talkin' Water on the Farm with Warren Pensini
In this episode of Talkin' After Hours we talk to south west farmer and grass fed beef producer Warren Pensini. Warren is a a 4th generation cattle farmer &, together with his wife Lori, manages ‘Paraway’, a 664 ha property in Boyup Brook. Warren & Lori’s philosophy is to produce quality food ethically in a manner that has minimal impact and stress on their animals, community and environment, while creating a positive financial outcome for their family. Up until 2018 the Pensini’s sold their beef direct to customer via their beef brand, Blackwood Valley Beef, now they do so in partnership with and . Jo & Kate chat to Warren about his most recent venture - a landscape rehydration project he has started in partnership with the and . Warren’s farm is the first of four demonstration sites for Mulloon’s landscape rehydration model in WA and aims to showcase a method to reverse salinity and restore unproductive &/ or degraded land through restoring natural ecosystem function.
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Alternative Dairy Effluent Management with farmer Brad Boley & Dr Stephan Tait
08/30/2022
Alternative Dairy Effluent Management with farmer Brad Boley & Dr Stephan Tait
In this Talkin' After Hours podcast , Jo & Kate talk to A2 milk producer Brad Boley, & University of Southern Queensland Research Fellow, Dr Stephan Tait about an alternative way to manage dairy effluent. In 2019 a trial of manure separation was conducted on Brad’s farm using a commercial dewatering/filtering equipment called the Z-Filter. The aim of manure separation is to provide options for dairy farmers to beneficially utilise nutrients and organic material in effluent, whilst simultaneously reducing the risk of causing environmental harm to waterways and groundwater.
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Talkin' Compost with the Johnson Su's
08/01/2022
Talkin' Compost with the Johnson Su's
In this episode of Talkin’ After Hours Jo & Kate chatted to molecular biologist, Dr David Johnson & his wife Hui-Chun Su Johnson about David’s research and development of an agricultural management method called BEAM (Biologically Enhanced Agricultural Management) and the now renowned composting system he devised with Hui-Chun called the Johnson-Su Compost Bioreactor. This composting process produces biologically diverse, fungal-dominated compost for helping to improve soil health & consequential associated benefits.
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Talkin' Grass with Dr Judi Earl
06/29/2022
Talkin' Grass with Dr Judi Earl
In this episode of Talkin’ After Hours Jo & Kate tapped into Dr Judi Earl’s PhD on Pasture Ecology to talk grass, and also how land managers can enhance the condition and productivity of their land through improved ecosystem function, and more effective utilisation of their pasture.
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Transitioning Your Pasture to Perennials with David Hardwick
05/30/2022
Transitioning Your Pasture to Perennials with David Hardwick
In this Talkin' After Hours Podcast, Jo & Kate chat to agroecologist David Hardwick from Soil Land Food. The topic for this episode is something of a conundrum for this neck of the woods... that is, how do we go about transitioning from a primarily annual & low diversity pasture system to a multispecies & perennial system in a Mediterranean climate...and why we should consider doing it? This podcast forms part of the Lower Blackwood LCDC's Project 'Pasture Biodiversity to Build Soil Health & Resilience in the Lower Blackwood'. The project received funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund.
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Carbon Farming Unpacked with Lachy Ritche
04/28/2022
Carbon Farming Unpacked with Lachy Ritche
When done right, carbon projects boost a farm’s bottom line and increase the productivity of the land. The key is carefully integrating carbon farming projects within an existing production system, but navigating the process can be confusing. In this episode Jo & Kate talk to Carbon Farming Foundation (CFF) Founder & CEO Lachy Ritchie about the Carbon Farming landscape in Australia and how CFF’s Do-It-Yourself model works.
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Priming Your Seeds for Success with Mark Tupman
03/28/2022
Priming Your Seeds for Success with Mark Tupman
In this Talkin’ After Hours Podcast Jo and Kate talk to Mark Tupman from Productive Ecology. For over two decades Mark has been active in the fields of organic/biodynamic production, permaculture, sustainability, agro-ecology and holistic management and in between times managed an orchard, animals and food gardens on his own property. Recently Mark has been working with the LCDC as a project consultant on a couple of Lower Blackwood projects - Regenerative Agriculture in Practice & Pasture Biodiversity to Build Soil Health & Resilience Today's conversation is going to zero in on what some say is possibly the single most important thing you can do to set seeds up for germination and early growth success – that is coating seeds with biostimulants prior to seeding them in the paddock. With a lot of farmers now planning their autumn seeding it’s a pretty timely topic! This podcast forms part of the Lower Blackwood LCDC's Project 'Pasture Biodiversity to Build Soil Health & Resilience in the Lower Blackwood'. The project received funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund.
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Talkin' Multispecies Pastures with Grant Sims
02/28/2022
Talkin' Multispecies Pastures with Grant Sims
In this episode, Kate and Jo talk to beef farmer, cropper & seed grower Grant Sims from Down Under Covers. Grant Sims is a sixth-generation farmer running the family farm with his wife Naomi and 4 children in Northcentral Victoria Australia. The farm is 8500 acres of dryland and some irrigation. When Grant took over the farm full time he started looking at ways to improve the life and function of the soil through biology. One of the key tools that Grant has been using to do that is companion and cover cropping, and over time has seen many positive changes in the health or their soils and plants. Grant has generously been sharing his knowledge and experience with farmers on the East Coast, and, although the climate in Northcentral Victoria is a little different to ours in the South west of western Australia, there are many practical lessons that can be learnt from Grant on using multispecies mixes on pasture to improve soil health. Our conversation with Grant delves into the practical nitty gritty of planning, seeding & establishing a multispecies & perennial pasture. This podcast forms part of the Lower Blackwood LCDC's Project 'Pasture Biodiversity to Build Soil Health & Resilience in the Lower Blackwood'. The project received funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund.
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Talkin' Agroforestry with Rowan Reid
01/25/2022
Talkin' Agroforestry with Rowan Reid
In this episode of Talkin' After Hours, Jo & Kate talk to Rowan Reid from Bambra Agroforestry Farms. Rowan is the Managing Director of the Australian Agroforestry Foundation and co-founder of one of Australia's largest and most successful Landcare groups, the Otway Agroforestry Network. Their conversation with Rowan dives into the world of agroforestry & the topic of 'trees in farm for a purpose' - the what, why & how!
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Talkin' Grazing to Regenerate Soils with Dick Richardson
12/14/2021
Talkin' Grazing to Regenerate Soils with Dick Richardson
Dick Richardson is an internationally recognised leader in the practice of natural grazing to improve soil depth and health, water retention, increased biodiversity and animal production.
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Talkin' Pasture Renovation with Niels Olsen
12/10/2021
Talkin' Pasture Renovation with Niels Olsen
In just six years, Niel Olsen used his invention, the Soilkee Renovator in combination with multispecies cover cropping, to lift soil organic matter levels from 2% to 10% on his beef property in Gippsland, Victoria.
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On Farm Biodiversity & Soil Health with Dr Christine Jones
11/25/2021
On Farm Biodiversity & Soil Health with Dr Christine Jones
In this episode Jo & Kate talk to internationally renowned and highly respected groundcover and soils ecologist Dr Christine Jones about biodiversity on the farm, why it’s important and how it can impact on soil health.
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Revegetating Your Farm & Waterways with Brooke Devine
10/26/2021
Revegetating Your Farm & Waterways with Brooke Devine
In this episode we talk to revegetation expert Brook Devine from Cape Life, on how to successfully revegetate areas of your farm & farm waterways.
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