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Planting a crop of fodder beet for harvest at the Field Days
Preparations for the South Island Agricultural Field Days in March are already well underway, with the venue shifting from Lincoln to Kirwee this year.
According to organising committee member Daniel Schat , the field days had out-grown the site it leased near Lincoln University, so the committee decided to purchase its own property.
The new site, a 40-hectare property on Courtenay Road, near Kirwee township, still needs quite a bit of work to get it up to scratch, but Schat says that volunteers have been busy getting the property ready for the March 25th-27th event.
Work on the site has included putting up fences, prepared the way for water and irrigation lines, and planted oats, fodder beet and other crops for machinery demonstrations.
Think Water Leeson has provided and installed pump and irrigation equipment and will maintain an irrigator to ensure the crops are in top condition.
Power for the event will come from generators this year, but hopes are that in future the Kirwee site can connect to the main grid.
"South Island Field Days 2015 will be bigger and better than ever," says Schat.
"It will to provide visitors the same mix of displays and agricultural machinery, and fencing demonstrations that has made the event such a success in the past.
"We will also have the Agri-Innovation competition, with awards for best New Zealand-made machine, best farm invention, and best imported farm machine. We expect to see a range of new companies and new technologies this year."
With more than 25,000 people expected to attend South Island Field Days, the event should to give a boost to the local economy of Kirwee and its surrounding towns.
The future of New Zealand’s agricultural sector grew a little brighter, with the South Island Agricultural Field Days (SIAFD) now accepting applications for its scholarships through Lincoln University, offering $10,500 to up to six exceptional students who are poised to become the next leaders in the primary industries.
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