A CROP of knowledge was shared among regional farmers at the Victorian No-Till Farmers Association yesterday.
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Almost 200 people attended the 14th annual conference at the All Seasons Hotel in Bendigo.
It featured a number of guest speakers from Australia as well as visiting experts from Canada and North and South Dakota.
Topics included managing land, improving soils, rotating crops, implementing no-till systems and using insect to your advantage.
Victorian No-Till Farmers Association vice president Grant Sims said it was a great chance for local farmers to get more knowledge and exposure to no-till and zero-till farming.
No-till farming is a system where seeds are directly sown into untilled soil which has retained the previous crop residues.
Zero-till farming is a step beyond no-till where discs are used to distribute seeds and encourage minimal soil disturbance.
“There's a lot of knowledge out there in the Wimmera and that was once of the bases for bringing (the conference) here on the doorstep for local blokes. It’s a good chance to learn,” he said.
“The great thing with this organisation is that it is farmers helping farmers. No one is shy of asking questions and sharing.”
Mr Sims is a sixth generation farmer from Lockington whose farm began a no-till system in the 1980s.
For the last two years he has employed a zero-till system.
“We grow a lot of things and work to get a lot of diversity in to the system,” he said.
“This year we planted 10 different crops that we will harvest and five companion crops.”
Mr Sims had South Dakota ecologist Jonathan Lundgren visit his property earlier in the week.
Dr Lundgren spoke at the conference on natural cycles and the impact of insects.
“I’ll never look at insects the same way again,” Mr Sims said.
“People view them as a pest but insects can be a great help. Hopefully we can change people's understanding, which is what an event like this is about.”