University of Waikato research reveals 2050 drought threats
New research could help farmers prepare for a future where summer rainfall is increasingly unpredictable and where drought risk is rising, no matter what.
Climate change may force the kiwifruit industry to look for new places to grow its vines – especially the green hayward variety.
NIWA’s new chief scientist for climate, atmosphere and hazards, Dr Andrew Tait, says the hayward variety needs a cold winter to induce bud break and flowering in spring. But as Bay of Plenty becomes warmer in winter, achieving this will naturally become more difficult, he says.
“At present, one of the adaptation strategies to counter the warmer winters is to apply a chemical called Hi Cane, short for hydrogen cyanimide, used to stimulate some of that bud break when they don’t get the sufficient winter chilling they want naturally,” Tait told Hort News.
“There are ways of fooling the plant to do what nature does, but during our study of the kiwifruit industry there were questions being asked about the use of this chemical in respect of the market accepting it.”
Tait says the use of chemical could become a food safety issue and so the industry may need to look at other adaptation responses, e.g. looking at regions with cooler winters which could naturally trigger bud break and spring flowering.
Applications have now opened for the 2026 Meat Industry Association scholarships.
Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) says it is backing aspiring dairy farmers through a new initiative designed to make the first step to farm ownership or sharemilking easier.
OPINION: While farmers are busy and diligently doing their best to deal with unwanted gasses, the opponents of farming - namely the Greens and their mates - are busy polluting the atmosphere with tirades of hot air about what farmers supposedly aren't doing.
OPINION: For close to eight years now, I have found myself talking about methane quite a lot.
The Royal A&P Show of New Zealand, hosted by the Canterbury A&P Association, is back next month, bigger and better after the uncertainty of last year.
Claims that farmers are polluters of waterways and aquifers and 'don't care' still ring out from environmental groups and individuals. The phrase 'dirty dairying' continues to surface from time to time. But as reporter Peter Burke points out, quite the opposite is the case. He says, quietly and behind the scenes, farmers are embracing new ideas and technologies to make their farms sustainable, resilient, environmentally friendly and profitable.
OPINION: The Greens have taken the high moral ground on the Palestine issue and been leading political agitators in related…
One of the most galling aspects of the tariffs whacked on our farm exports to the US is the fact…