Farming and Horticulture

By Jeanette Fitzsimons  Most of New Zealand’s pastoral hill country is badly infested with gorse. Brought by early settlers from the British Isles to make living fences for stock, in our climate it quickly spread everywhere. A small plant left alone can be a large bush in a year and a few of them can cover…

Organic NZ Magazine: Sept/Oct 2015 Section: Science Watch Author: Physicians and Scientists for Global Responsibility We hope you enjoy this free article from Organic NZ. Sign up now for a print or digital subscription and get the latest from us each issue. Glyphosate is the active ingredient in Monsanto’s herbicide Roundup, and other proprietary brands…

Organic NZ Magazine: May/June 2014 Section: Farming and horticulture Author: Dr Nick Waipara Dr Nick Waipara explores the biosecurity issues of introducing exotic dung beetles onto organic farms in New Zealand. Recent months have seen the first of a series of releases of exotic dung beetles on New Zealand farms. Organic farmers potentially have much…

Organic NZ Magazine: July/August 2013 Section: Farming and horticulture Author: Janette Perrett Janette Perrett shares her story of converting a Waikato dairy farm to organics As a family we have been dairy farming all our lives. Neil and I built our herd up over time in the Waikato as we worked up through the ranks…

Organic NZ Magazine: May/June 2013 Section: Farming and horticulture Author: Frank Rowson Frank Rowson, a veterinarian for 50 years, is a farm performance consultant for soil herbage, animals and humans. Growing reliance on supplementary feeds Because chemical farming is reducing the ability to grow quality feed and the ability to withstand the increasing number of…

Organic NZ Magazine: March/April 2013 Section: Farming and horticulture Author: Rebecca Reider Despite what the government would have you believe about the necessity of dumping a highly dangerous toxin from the sky, effective and safe alternatives to the poisonous war on possums are quietly springing up across the country. Rebecca Reider investigates. We knew there…

Organic NZ Magazine: January/February 2007 Section: Farming and Horticulture Author: Philippa Jamieson Tucked away in idyllic Karamea is New Zealand’s only certified organic producer of Australian tea tree oil. Philippa Jamieson visits on a rainy West Coast day. It’s not a place you simply pass through. Karamea is off the beaten track an hour and…

Organic NZ Magazine: November/December 2006 Section: Farming and Horticulture Author: Andrea Kydd-Law West Otago farmer Allan Richardson has an exciting vision for the future of livestock farming in New Zealand. He would like to see as many farmers as possible producing organically, or at least incorporating as many organic systems as possible into their farming…

Organic NZ Magazine: September/October 2006 Author: Andrea Kydd-Law The residents of North Otago have much to be grateful for: a wildly beautiful coastline, stunning mountain and river scenery, world-renowned Whitestone architecture and, of course, blue penguins. Added to this, as more and more people are discovering, they have Brydone Growers and Farm Shop on State…

Organic NZ Magazine: March/April 2005 Author: Dr Tim Jenkins Dr Tim Jenkins, of the Biological Husbandry Unit outlines strategies to develop great pastures Grazing management can include a regular pattern of shifting livestock onto clean pasture. In some cases this may be as often as shifting each day. This is an effective way of ensuring…

Organic NZ Magazine: March/April 2005 Author: Dr Michael Morris On conventional New Zealand farms fly strike is kept under control through a variety of means, including mulesing, tail docking, crutching and dagging sheep, and dipping and jetting with insecticides. The latter is not possible on organic farms, and other common techniques don’t fit well with…