Cropping focus at Rand thrives on incremental gains

Working with the ebbs and flows of the season and having a sense of community is key for the Hamiltons at Rand. See what makes their farming operation a success.

Incremental gains, as small as 1 per cent, made sustainably over time, can provide significant rewards in agriculture.

This is the sentiment of Roy and Leanne Hamilton, who farm at Rand in southern NSW.

With an enterprise mix of 85 per cent cropping and the balance livestock, they have an ethos of managing and conserving every bit of soil moisture during the summer months to generate gains in their winter sowing program.

They farm 4400ha, of which 3800ha is sown to winter crops. Their family has been farming in the region for more than 100 years.

Roy Hamilton. Picture: Zoe Phillips

Their son Michael and his wife Hannah also help out on the farm. Michael is full time on the farm and Hannah is a vet who helps out when needed.

“We also have one full-time employee and a farm apprentice,” Roy said.

The Hamiltons run a flock of 1500 Merinos alongside the crops, and while they have adopted controlled-traffic-farming methods, Roy said he has consciously kept livestock in the equation, too.

“We don’t breed any sheep; we buy in replacements when needed,” he said.

A typical rotation consists of wheat, barley, faba beans, canola and then back to wheat. The percentage mix between crops varies however it might average 45 per cent cereal and then 55 per cent break crop.

The property’s annual average rainfall is 450mm, and 220mm generally arrives during the in-crop growing season.

The Rand country varies from creek flats to areas that are sometimes prone to flooding, and there are some heavy soil types across the holding too.

The Riverina plains country faces onto Billabong Creek.

“When God created the Riverina he made the best region on earth. He forgot to put enough slope on it though,” Roy said.

Roy Hamilton at Rand and his dog Dusty walk the paddocks. Picture: Zoe Phillips

SEASONAL VARIABILITY

The winter sowing season has been slow this year, with falls of about 30mm back in March, and dry conditions have followed since then.

The entire winter cropping program is in the ground and now it’s a matter of wait and see for the rain to arrive.

Sowing is done by the calendar with a start time of March 25 and an estimated finish of May 15.

Grazing crops, including vetch and canola, have been sown.

“They were planted into reasonable soil moisture,” Roy said.

The Hamiltons grow wheat, barley, canola, faba beans and sometimes chickpeas, depending on the market and seasonal conditions.

Roy said there had been a noticeable and measurable change in weather patterns at the Rand property, with more rain arriving in the summer months than in the winter growing period.

“The key for us has been summer weed management,” he said.

There was enough rain in the 1980s and 1990s to grow a winter crop based on in-crop falls.

However, changing weather patterns later “autumn” breaks and more summer rain made it crucial to capture rain in summer and store it in the soil profile.

“We will avoid burning (stubble) where I can to maintain any (ground) cover and control summer weeds,” he said.

Roy and his son Michael Hamilton. Picture: Zoe Phillips

Over the years, Roy has also adopted controlled-traffic farming methods on an incremental basis.

He initially went to 12-metre row spacings with a 36-metre boom spray on a 3:1 ratio.

On a 3:1 system, the aim is for the seeder to match the header and the boom spray in terms of the tracks that are followed.

More recently, the switch was made to an 18-metre seeder and a 48-metre boom.

“We are controlling our footprint wherever we can. Although the boom does not match up perfectly, we still have 25 per cent fewer tracks, and that still creates a net benefit,” he said.

“There is no perfect match, but we follow the same lines each year, and we do not do things randomly.”

Roy has been using controlled-traffic farming methods for 15 years and said it had taken a period to adopt.

“It is more than a feel-good measure, it is about our soil structure and we are absolutely minimum till, we didn’t cultivate after 2000,” he said.

For the past 30 years, the focus has been on stubble retention and minimising soil disturbance.

SUSTAINABLE APPROACH

While the emphasis is on cropping, the sheep operation complements the controlled traffic system.

“The sheep have a very light footprint over summer, and there are stubbles that can be grazed; it is a complementary operation,” he said.

“In agriculture now, I feel we are managing volatility more than variability.”

Shifts in harvest time has also varied.

“For instance, last year looked like it was going to be one of the earliest finishes for harvest, with everything completed in around November. However, it started to rain again and we only just finished at Christmas. Traditionally, we aim to finish harvesting by Christmas,” he said.

There have been changes in overall yield results too.

Up until 2000 the long-term wheat yield on the property was 3.6 tonnes/ha and canola was 1.6 tonnes/ha.

Wheat has since dropped closer to 3 tonnes/ha due to the changing rain patterns, with more now arriving during the summer months. And canola is now averaging 1.4 tonnes/ha.

Roy said he takes the changes and challenges as being part of agriculture.

For instance, 2022 was a challenging year due to widespread flooding, which all but wiped out some paddocks. However, 2021 and 2023 yielded rewarding results.

The aim overall is to minimise weed growth and maximise summer moisture to grow a crop from April to October.

There is always a focus on questioning results and driving better outcomes.

“If you can grow 16kg of wheat per mm of rain, there is the question of why didn’t you grow 18kg,” he said.

The fertiliser and input program involves virtual reality mapping by zones and application decisions are made on the results.

“We deep band urea at planting with 75kg under canola and 50kg under the wheat,” Roy said.

Vetch emerges at Rand in southern NSW. Picture: Zoe Phillips

FUTURE FARMING

“I think in agriculture, you have to enjoy what you do,” Roy said. 

He said if people don’t like sheep, then they probably shouldn’t run them. 

“You have to do what you like, and you will do a better job of it,” he said. 

Roy said community was important and interacting with others in the local area and also further afield was valuable. 

He said farmers didn’t hold their cards close to their chest and were happy to help each other out. 

“Community is not just an address. It is more about a common interest,” he said.

“Given the world that we live in ... if you have your family and your mates, have a sheep in the freezer, a beer in the fridge and you can fill your ute up, I reckon you are going OK,” he said.