On the 3rd Oct, NAG collaborated with YFIG to run a pre-harvest Thirsty Thursday, focusing on topics relevant to the upcoming harvest. The event was well attended, with over 60 people from both grower groups attending.

Ben White from Kondinin Group travelled up to give his “Best Practice Grain Storage” presentation which covered off on topics such as pests, moisture, fumigation, seed storage, temporary storage and silo safety.

Ciara Beard from DPIRD and Peter Elliott-Lockhart from Elders were available to discuss flag smut and similar diseases, as well as seed dressing treatment options for these diseases which have been prevalent for growers across the groups.

Peter Newman from Planfarm / AHRI, along with Ben White, ran through harvest weed seed control options, with displays of mill system, chaff decks and chaff liners there kindly provided by grower members. Through this segment, an informal grower panel discussion on header set-up was also included, guided by Peter and Ben, with a lot of discussion and input regarding settings to minimize losses and increase capacity for the different models of headers used in the area.

Dirk from Harvestaire also attended with a display of different concaves and other items for growers to look at. A BBQ of scotch fillet steaks and sausages, and refreshments, were supplied afterwards courtesy of YFIG and NAG for members to enjoy.

Feedback from the event was positive from the professionals and growers who were able to make it.