January 2020

 NEWSLETTER

A Message from the Managing Director

It was a challenging end to 2019 with prevailing drought conditions and our worst fears were realised at the start of 2020 with catastrophic fire conditions.  This has been a national emergency but at the same time showed the resilience of rural communities and mateship in times of crisis.   Australia and the rest of the world are coming to terms with the tragic loss of life and property and the devasting impacts to our flora and fauna on a horrific scale.  Our hearts go out to those who have been impacted by the bushfires and in our line of work we feel a deep responsibility to help where we can in the recovery of rural communities and fire ravaged landscapes.  

We know though our trials and research work that our soil treatments help to revive soil life and function.    It is our hope that we can play some small role in the recovery process and we look forward to the green shoots of hope in the paddocks of fire damaged lands.   You can find our bushfire support initiative below, it’s a small gesture and we hope that our existing customers will choose to buy online this year and therefore donate an equivalent product amount to farmers and rural communities in need.  We will be working with community and farmer linked organisations in impacted areas to ensure that appropriate products get to the right people in a timely manner.

Moving into 2020 we are seeing some pleasing rainfalls across the eastern states, long may that continue.   We will be out and about at our usual farmer field days and also holding soil health seminars in regional towns, see details below.  

Our newsletter provides a snap shot of our latest news and some exciting new product offerings.  Enjoy the read and do get in touch with any feedback or questions on our activities or product range. If you get a chance, please write a review for us on Facebook and follow Converte on Twitter @Convertehealth.   We look forward to an upbeat start to 2020 for all farmers across the country. 

best wishes from all the team at Converte 

4 things you should know about Converte Plantfood  

1.    The plantfood drives a positive fungal – bacteria ratio.   This is important because a common group of fungi, the mycorrhizal fungi, can sequester carbon in the soil.  Plants pull carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and send this carbon down to their roots as sugars which feed soil microbiology.  A good proportion of these sugars are taken up by mycorrhizal fungi that process the sugars and expel the residue into the soil in more stable forms of carbon that will stay in the soil for years possibility up to 100 years.   Soils with a higher level of carbon will function better, meaning more free nutrients and more available water.  

2.    Plantfood reduces soil compaction.  Typically our results show a 30% jump in soil biology abundance in the first season of application.  This comes with some balancing of the different microbiological groups and as noted above a preferential increase in soil fungi especially mycorrhizal fungi.  This is a positive boost for the entire soil food web and larger species such as earthworms help to open up the soil structure and allow greater water penetration.  The result is easily measured with a penetrometer pressure gauge with 350psi generally considered as compaction.  You can feel the softness of the soil under foot or when driving across the paddock.  Reducing compaction means that more of the soil profile is working for you and your plants will be accessing more nutrients and more water.  In tight years this can be the difference between harvesting a crop and cutting for hay.

3.    Plantfood improves soil moisture retention.  Improved biology with more fungal threads through the soil and less compaction as a result leads to improved moisture retention.  This is a consistent thread through all of our trial work and customer feedback.  It’s not rocket science but it is critical to building the resilience of your farming operation.  A simple moisture probe is a very useful tool to validate what you can usually pick up with the naked eye, such as changes in soil colouration, preferential feeding by stock, birds feeding on earth worms and other insects all signs of extra moisture.  

4.  Applied chemicals will be utilised more efficiently.  Major chemical inputs such as NPK formulations will be used more efficiently allowing the farmer to be more precise with applications and to save on input costs.  This can be measured by looking at changes in the presence of key enzymes in the soil such as those responsible for Nitrogen and Phosphorus availability and cycling.  A typical Converte customer will be able to reduce inputs by 10% per year for three years without loss of yield and whilst improving the quality of the soil and plant health. 

Where to meet our team in the coming months 

We are on the road over the coming months running seminars and attending field days, find our more here:

Free Soil Health Seminars - 24th and 25th February 2020

'How to farm profitably and sustainably with less'  

Manildra NSW Golf Club - 24th February 4pm until 6pm 

Lake Cargelligo Bowling Club NSW - 25th February 4pm until 6pm

Call 1800 108 940 to register your place or email info@converte.com.au

We are also looking at other seminars dates for NSW and Victoria in March 2020 so keep an eye out or give us a call to find out more or plan a seminar in your area.

Wimmera Machinery Field Days 3-5th March, Horsham VIC

https://wimmerafielddays.com.au

Talkin' Soil Health - York WA 11-13th March 

https://www.soilhealth.com.au

Your Converte Support Network

Julie  Vereker – Griffith, General Enquiries / Sales - 1800 108 940, julie.vereker@converte.com.au 
Mark Vereker - Griffith 0412 420 103  Product Enquiries and Orders 

Greg Thompson – Yoogali 0429 623 824 

Doug Best - Cessnock NSW (Special Projects Consultant)
Grahame Routley – Narrandera / Lockhart 0428 271 550
Luke Peacock – Perth WA 0428 542 776, luke.peacock@converte.com.au
 

John Ridley – other areas and international, 0419 120 447, john.ridley@converte.com.au

For information on Converte distributorships in your local area, please contact John.