Country Life

The Sustainable Farming Fund is about to notch up its 1000th project. Since the fund's inception 17 years ago, $135 million has been allocated to projects initiated by farmers, foresters and horticulturalists across the country.

It's been foggy, frosty and wet in the North Island and belatedly the green kiwifruit harvest is starting to hum. Meanwhile in Central Otago, temperatures have been below zero and stock are being fed plenty of supplements.

Frans de Jong grows thousands of feijoa trees near Matamata in Waikato. He's keeping a close eye out for evidence of guava moth or myrtle rust in his orchard.

Country Life for Friday 26 May 2017.

The dairy season is coming to an abrupt halt in the North Island and in the South, winter's made an appearance.

This week the state owned farming company Landcorp came to the end of its four year sharemilking agreement to run 16 central and southern North Island farms for the Chinese company Shanghai Pengxin. The high profile farms were formerly owned by the Crafar family and went into receivership seven years ago. Turning the rundown farms around was much more difficult than either party predicted. It's been a testing time but both parties are proud of the progress that's been made.

Lyn Neeson and her daughter-in-law Monique Neeson were looking at the wool cheque from the family's remote King Country farm and thought there must be a way to earn more from wool. They now make old-fashioned lambs' wool blankets.

AgResearch scientist Nicole Schon works wonders with worms. Her research shows a healthy worm population can promote pasture growth as well as help water move through soils. As part of her work she set up The Great Kiwi Earthworm Survey in 2015 to find out where earthworms are located. Farmers were asked to participate in the survey to help build a national picture of earthworms.

Country Life finds out about the first ever major Chinese/NZ government pastoral farming joint venture and where it's at now as Landcorp hands the management of the former Crafar farms back to Shanghai Pengxin, AgResearch scientist Nicole Schon works wonders with worms and Lyn Neeson and her daughter-in-law Monique Neeson are making old-fashioned lambs' wool blankets.

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