MALLEE agricultural advisor Danny Conlan is the 2016 recipient of the David Roget Mallee Sustainable Farming Excellence Award.
Mr Conlan was recognised with the award at the recent MSF research updates in the Vic and SA Mallee.
In his work at ag consultancy company Dodgshun Medlin, Mr Conlan helped farmers to adopt more profitable and sustainable farming practices, such as no-till farming, variable rate technology, dry seeding, summer weed control, nitrogen management, and break crops.
Mr Conlan grew up in the Vic Mallee town of Nandaly, studied at Dookie College and graduated with an agricultural science degree majoring in crop production.
He then spent 10 years with IK Caldwell Rural at Cobram, Vic, where he was employed as a senior agronomist and seeds and biotechnology manager.
He returned to the Mallee in 2002 to work with Dodgshun Medlin and was instrumental in the development of cropping systems in the region.
Mr Conlan said he was honoured to receive such an award.
“David (Roget) had quite an influence on me and it was difficult not be inspired by his work and passion,” he said.
“David's legacy and contribution to sustainable agriculture is of significance, and influenced greatly the direction of change in farming systems and shaped the Mallee into a healthy and profitable landscape.”
Fellow Mallee agronomist Michael Moodie was the inaugural recipient of the award in 2015.
He was a guest speaker at the research updates, talking about Mallee break crop comparison trials in 2015.
“Field peas had the highest grain yield at any site (1.2 tonnes a hectare on Waikerie sands), but yields were inconsistent due to frost on lower lying flats,” he said.
“Lentils had the most consistent and highest average grain yields (0.73t/ha), while lupins and chickpeas averaged 0.5t/ha or less in 2015.”
SARDI National Variety Trials SA manager Rob Wheeler went through the top barley and wheat varieties in the Mallee in 2015, while Vic government senior research agronomist Jason Brand talked about the better performing pulses, including PBA Jumbo lentils and PBA Samira faba beans.
Insight Extension of Agriculture’s Chris McDonough gave an update on local chicken manure spading trials, which showed that yields could be improved significantly on sandy soils, as well as breaking up deep compaction, and increasing soil nutrition and organics.
CSIRO’s Therese McBeath also talked about how to improve sandy soils, through better nitrogen management.
On the livestock side, University of England’s Zach Economou talked about the first year of a GPS livestock tracking project, which highlighted how paddocks were being utilised or underutilised, and possible ways to address that, such as virtual fencing (still in development).
