Family rotates crops as way to improve yields
SUNFLOWERS and soy beans are taking over sugar cane paddocks on an Innisfail l family’s farms, bringing both h cane and environmental gains.
Planting about 80ha of cane a year, fourth-generation grower David Cecchi has increased his fallow crops to more than 30 per cent to increase production.
Mr Cecchi said his brother Paul and father Arthur had also upped their mill ash usage on fallow land and were experimenting with mixed species as fallow crops.
He said the results were “extremely promising”.
“We are seeing much bigger (cane) crops, with much more vigour – we’ve gone from 30 or 32 tonnes to at least 50 tonnes for our plant crop,’’ he said.
“We reduced our nitrogen gradually.
“We started with a change to sub-surface application five years ago.
“Now we’ve pulled back about 50kg (of nitrogen) per hectare for plant cane in fallow, going to 90kg to account for the nitrogen supplied by the legume crop.
“There have been no adverse effects and we’re happy with where we’re at now.”
The initiatives being adopted by the Cecchi family are part of the Australian Government’s Reef Trust IV tender program.
Delivered through the Wet Tropics Sugar Industry Partnership, the innovative program helps growers cover the costs of changes that reduce artificial fertiliser usage and improve the health of the Great Barrier Reef.
Mr Cecchi said his longterm goal was to make the fallow crops cost-neutral or, better still, make inroads on them becoming a secondary income by investigating different fallow crop options and market interest.
“It’s about asking for advice, considering things and at the end of the day making your own decisions for your business,” he said.
“We’re up for trying new things. With a bit of help, good ideas can be put into practice.”