Every grain lost during harvest represents a missed opportunity for income. By understanding how to measure and adjust equipment settings, growers can significantly cut losses, ensuring that more grain makes it to storage or market.
Local grain growers gained valuable insights into optimising their harvest operations through a series of Harvester Setup Workshops held on the 24th and 26th of September. The workshops, funded by the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) and held in collaboration with Primary Sales Australia, provided practical, hands-on advice for reducing harvest losses, improving weed seed control, and enhancing the overall efficiency of harvest processes.
Featuring an impressive lineup of Australian and international harvest experts including Brett Asphar, Ben White, Murray Skayman, Kassie van der Westerhuizen, Peter Broley, and Chris Warrick, growers engaged in interactive presentations and demonstrations tailored to harvesters they commonly operate on their farms.
“These workshops are invaluable for growers as they offer practical, hands-on advice that can be immediately applied in the paddock,” said Kelly Angel, BCG Research and Extension Officer and event coordinator. “The interactive nature of these sessions allows growers to see the techniques in action and ask questions relevant to their own equipment. Harvest losses can significantly impact their bottom line, and by learning to measure those losses and make the necessary changes to reduce them, growers can ensure they’re getting the most out of every hectare.”
Driver behind the Stewarton workshop and farmer host, Jack Gall, felt passionately about holding one of the harvester setup workshops: “The speakers had a lot to bring to the region to increase the knowledge of harvest operations.”
Attracting over 200 growers from surrounding areas, key topics of the workshops included:
- Reducing harvest losses: Understanding the causes and impact of harvest loss, measuring it, and adjusting harvester settings to mitigate it.
- Harvest weed seed control (HWSC): Latest insights into HWSC practices, including setup tips for effective use of mill systems such as iHSD, Seed Terminator, SCU, and tools like chaff decks and chaff lining.
- Harvester fire prevention: Strategies to minimise the risk of harvester fires, crucial in the hot, dry conditions often encountered during harvest season.
- Optimising harvester capacity and efficiency: Practical advice for improving harvester performance to boost capacity without compromising grain quality.
- Grain storage considerations: Exploring the value of aeration cooling and how it can optimise on-farm grain storage.
Continuing to ensure farmers across the Wimmera Mallee maximise their productivity and profitability, BCG will host a pre-harvest workshop on 15 October at Warakirri at Donald. The event will explore topics such as harvester maintenance, safe auger and chaser bin use, safely recovering machinery, fatigue management and more. Growers are encouraged to RSVP on the BCG website at bcg.org.au/event/bcg-pre-harvest-safety-day/.