ABARES has produced a series of individual profiles of the agricultural, forestry and fisheries industries in your region. Based on the regional boundaries set by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, each regional profile presents an overview of the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors in the region and the recent financial performance of the broadacre and,…
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A new government website dedicated to Climate Change for Australian Primary Producers
5 Major elements of THE LONG PADDOCK website include; Webinars.. read more Watch recorded webinars that showcase some science and products developed by our scientists. Topics include: remote sensing and ground cover, scientific capability in grazing land systems, a national grass production model (AussieGRASS), climate risk assessment, learning from history in climate & grazing management,…
Slick Extra Virgin» Interesting research results but don’t believe everything you read about olive oil
Olive fruit cultivar Arbequina was sampled every 15 days for 6 months from 6 trees at the perimeters of one conventional and one organic grove. With the exception of when the olives were totally black, the total polyphenols and the ability to act as antioxidants was the same or higher at all ripening stages in…
Discussion smoking point of olive oil…
Smoke point is the temperature at which oil shows a visible and continuous veil of visible smoke? The reason it does this is because the fatty acids break away from the glycerol as the oil is heated. Glycerol then goes through a transformation to form acrolein (it loses H2O). Free fatty acids can also be…
GROWING OLIVES: Research confirms importance of right Olive Oil Storage
When it comes to oil storage you need to consider the impacts on quality in relation to the proposed storage to be used. This article is about some of the latest research as funded by RIRDC to determine the best storage for your oil. Remember just because a manufacturer states the container(s) are food-grade doesn’t…
How to flush your irrigation lines?
Flushing constitutes an important maintenance routine. In micro-irrigation systems, provisions must be made to flush mains, submains and lateral lines to remove settled sediments. The mainline should be flushed at scour valve locations, whilst submains are flushed at slushing points usually located at the ends of the lines while the system is running and allow…
How to calculate Readily Available Water – RAW
What is RAW? Readily available water (RAW) is the water that a plant can easily extract from the soil. RAW is the soil moisture held between field capacity and a nominated refill point for unrestricted growth. In this range of soil moisture, plants are neither waterlogged or water-stressed. Plant roots will continue to take water…
The importance of Boron & Calcium in Olive Trees
In the lead up to flowering, you need to ensure your trees have adequate nutrition, particularly of Boron and Calcium. A lack of Boron and Calcium may lead to decreased fruit set, oil quality and oil stability. The application of Boron and Calcium can never be overstressed. It is a requirement for your olive trees. In Brief A…
Olive Growing: Soil biology as a part of soil health.
Soil organisms contribute to soil structure, water-holding capacity, pH, and nutrient availability, while the physical and chemical soil environment determines what organisms can live in the soil profile. There is a strong interaction between all of these components, where changes in one aspect will influence others! The holistic approach of looking at the soil as…
Discussion smoking point of olive oil…
Smoke point is the temperature at which oil shows a visible and continuous veil of visible smoke? The reason it does this is because the fatty acids break away from the glycerol as the oil is heated. Glycerol then goes through a transformation to form acrolein (it loses H2O). Free fatty acids can also be…
Can Olive Lace Bug defoliate olive trees?
Hi Amanda, About our recent phone call to sort out our issues with our trees. Just thought I would send you some photos of my trees at Temora. Not sure if they are past help or not, certainly very sad. Spent yesterday modifying my paddock spray boom to spray trees. It looks as though it…
Function of Nutrients and getting the right balance
Some of the Nutrients and what they do for your trees Nitrogen is needed to form the protein in the plant or the basis of cell multiplication as growth and life itself. An excess of nitrogen will cause potassium deficiency. Phosphorus like nitrogen is needed for growth. Potassium serves, particularly in carbohydrate production. Taken…
Amanda Bailey on Olives by The Olive Centre 