Farm Tender Daily

No 158 - Monday's Club Notes

Dwain Duxson
March 18, 2024

The “Club Notes” for Monday, the 18th of March, 2024.

By Dwain Duxson

How's your Road?

We write about roads a bit, but we haven't for a while. I bet you one thing, though, that what you are driving on locally hasn't got better in the last 12 months. And if it has, it's been an isolated case. I was travelling out of Woodend (Vic) towards Daylesford yesterday morning, and it's got a 40km speed area; the road is rough, but it's not a 40km area, and people aren't driving at 40km. There are rougher spots in the 100km area. It's confusing. Our glory day of good Rural roads is over, and until the Government see the seriousness of the issues and starts again from scratch, then we are going to be writing about them in this column for 20 years to come. As things get worse, this will start affecting how we do business. Trucks are the enemy of a poorly constructed road. It's not the Truck's fault; it's the way we build things now, on the cheap and with only the short term in mind. Look how we build houses now; there is no foresight; they are built for today and will need to be replaced in 30 or 40 years' time. I see roads that have been redone only lasting a year or two now. Someone asked the question over the weekend. How is your local road? Reply to [email protected]

Finding a hobby or two

We talk about succession alot, and we spoke about how Farmers transition into their older age and either retire or hang around in a lesser type role and add value. One consultant who replied to one of our Notes said that if Farmers don't have a hobby or two by the age of 50, then they need to start developing one or a few. They need to have something they enjoy doing that is outside the Farm. Some would say that those straight laces, fully-fledged Farmers who don't have anything else in their lives can be a problem. The come-when-you're-required-and-go-when-you're-not older Farmer works well for the next generation, and for the older Farmer who is transitioning into what we call Farming retirement (it takes a while) seems to work well. However, I tend to agree that older Farmers need to develop some interests outside of Farming. If it's in you, it could be advocacy. We are screaming out for good people in this space. Anyway, if you are a Farmer that has reached your 50s, it's worth thinking about if you haven't already. What sort of interests have you already developed outside of Farming? Reply to [email protected]

Going Liquid

I was listening to Rob Dawes talk on the FarmTender2024 video over the weekend, and he mentioned that 80 percent of WA Farmers now do liquid Nitrogen. It's interesting how here, over East, it's never taken off. It got me thinking about both scenarios. Why has it over there and why hasn't it over here? Leadership and getting the system in the hands of the right people/business might be the catalyst to getting it going in the West. You see those liquid N tanks on Farms in WA everywhere, and Farmers have already adapted their Machinery. It looks to me like a more efficient process than granular, but I am happy to stand corrected there. So, two questions: this one for Farmers outside WA; why haven't you gone liquid yet? For the WA Farmers, why does liquid work for you? Reply to [email protected]

Your replies

Below are snippets from some of the replies you sent in. All quotes will remain nameless. See a few current ones below:

“Duxo, Yes, we all have pain, just to what level. In the last 3 years, 2 reco shoulders, and next is 2 knees and possibly a wrist reco. Now far from the wrecking yard 😂”. - In reply to our Farm Tender Daily story about Farmers who have injuries. Read the article here.
“Easier to mention what isn't”. - In regard to what part of the body isn’t broken……
“Hello, Dwain; I read with interest about the chore of greasing Machinery. l bought 2 Milwaukee electric grease guns for Machinery that don’t have auto greasing units, and the problem was solved with the workers. I am 76, and I find them really easy to use. They are not cheap to buy but after using one you will never go back to a hand pump model”. - In reply to our Farm Tender Daily story on Greasing Machinery. Read the story here.
“Not maybe my favourite tree, but this old Buloke at the back gate to the house, so handy for a bit of shade to park in. Gets very well used. Sounds nice with the breeze through it too”. - In reply to our Note on our favourite Trees. See the Buloke Tree in the images below.
“Coming up to 80, I'm finding it difficult to retire”. - In reply to our Nate asking if you were the retiring type of Farmer.
“Great words. Definitely think word of mouth is very valuable”. - In reply to our Note about how word of mouth works for Ag.
Tom: “I relocated this Tree from the Farm to my newly created part of my house yard. Admire it every day”. Me: "Was it the same when you transported it? Tom: “No Dwain, I had an excavator dig it out for me and laid it over. It was not looking good, and when I tried to shift it, it split into three, even with bands around it to try and keep it together. Then I had to shape the ground and the bottom of the Tree so it would stand. After using two front end loaders and a forklift, much juggling I got it to stand as it naturally did after shaping the roots and the soil to suit. The beauty of it is that you wouldn’t pick that it split into three. Very much worth the effort, though. I just love the character of it. I have another Tree that has recently fallen over, and it has so much character. It’s much bigger than this and has broken into a few pieces. I could move it with some persistence, but I don’t know where to put it”. - A bit of an email conversation between Tom and me about his Tree. See his Tree below under Tom’s favourite Tree.
“Hi Dwain. Dad is 89 and has just gone into a retirement home but still gets upset if someone doesn't go and pick him up when we are Shearing or anything else he thinks he can help with”. - He doesn’t want to miss the big things.
“In 2008, I marked 600 calves in my own. I couldn’t find any reliable help, so I decided to work through them on my own. Draughting, Drenching, Marking and Castrating took its toll that year. I was only saying the other day how tricky it could be at times being the only one on the Farm. Simple jobs like swinging a gate can turn into a time-consuming task”. - In reply to our note on the character building stuff we have done on the Farm.
“Word of mouth and firsthand experience from someone is definitely my most trusted source of information”. - In reply to our word-of-mouth note.
“Well done Dwain and Farm Tender team. Another great, informative and engaging lineup of guests with plenty of take-home massages. Looking for to FT25" - One of the Farmers who went to FarmTender2024
“Evening Dwain, I could not imagine retiring. I love getting out in the paddocks with the Livestock or the Tractor and making a positive difference, improving or restoring the place. EG: I’m about to trench in about 2klm of Ag pipe to further improve the reliability of clean water for the stock. Sitting about or looking out into a beach from an apartment with noisy annoying neighbours would kill me”. - A Farmer who doesn’t want to retire.
“Hi Dwain. My work as a Farm business advisor includes helping families with succession. Some of the most difficult are those where the male retiring has no hobbies or interests other than Farming. It is most important that during their 50s, Farmers develop interests away from the farm – golf, bowls, regular travel, AFL football membership, Rotary, or Lions”. - Someone advocating that Farmers find a hobby or two outside Farming. See the story above.
“About old Farmers leaving the Land and going cold turkey. Often, it may not do them any good as they need to keep their minds going”. - Someone who says retirement from the Farm needs to be gradual.
“My father had a couple of Farm hands, and they used to keep me in line. They taught me all sorts of Farm work such as Fencing, Sheep handling, Mustering, Cattle work, cleaning up fallen trees, picking up rocks, etc. Not only they taught me those skills, they also taught me about work ethics so that I can be part of the team. “Hurry up!” “Too slow!” etc, in a humorous way. Also, if I did the wrong thing, they would let me know that which was good. Great memories working with them. I ended up in the Federal Public Service and worked there for 31 years. Now on my own property, those skills I learned from those two men are still with me. - In reply to our Character-building Note.
“I, too, love my 9G, although mine is a Cat D9G” - This Farmer loves his big Bulldozer.