THE CHALLENGE facing Ken and Ingrid Bascomb, Mount Wedge, Eyre Peninsula and their family is multi-faceted to make best productive use of their available resources, to make a profit, and do it all in a sustainable manner.
For the Bascomb family, growing alternative pastures which best match their livestock enterprises might just be the solution they have been looking for.
Their 8100-hectare property comprises only 1200ha arable land, and Ken says the soil type makes it difficult to be cropped successfully.
"The soil is just too alkaline - getting up around a pH of 9 or higher" Ken said. "We've struggled to grow good crops regardless of the inputs so we've had to look at ways of using our land profitably."
A number of pasture and grazing trials are underway to determine the best pasture performers for their conditions, and the best fit for their livestock enterprises.
Apart from the 40ha of barley and oats, the Bascombs trash-in for sheep feed. In mid-May this year they sowed 6ha of Tetrone Italian ryegrass at a rate of 16 kilograms/ha with 70kg/ha DAP fertiliser. Sown with a precision seeder, it established well, and apart from some major issues with pests such as red-legged earth mite and lucerne flea, it has responded well to grazing.
"We are currently grazing 450 Suffolk-Dorper crosses on it and it is keeping up really well," he said.
In addition, Ken has put 10ha under lucerne and sown a tall wheat grass and kikuyu blend as a trial.
"Initially we found kikuyu from the front lawn growing in really hostile areas including a rocky hill," Ken said. "We have high hopes of rehabilitating 40ha of saline scald with this blend and eventually using it to fatten Dorper lambs."
Despite trialling a number of different options, the Bascombs have already ruled out some species, including saltbush and vetch.
"We've got approximately 24ha of Old Man Saltbush divided into three lots but we haven't had success with sheep eating it," Ken said. "I've tried a number of different sheep types including Merinos, Dorpers and Damaras, and they just don't seem to eat it. Sure, they nibble a bit at it but they don't just go in and clean it up."
* Full Livestock report in Stock Journal, September 23 issue.
