Wagga CSU students to celebrate National Ag Day, make most of training opportunities

Ms McTavish is studying a Bachelor of Veterinary Biology/Bachelor of Veterinary Science at Charles Sturt University in Wagga and said she believes agriculture is an important industry when it comes to the economy and providing jobs.

"It is a way of life for many Australians that should be embraced and encouraged, and we should be promoting the development of rural industries," she said.

This Friday is National Ag Day and Ms McTavish said it is the perfect opportunity to celebrate the industry.

Senior research fellow with the Gulbali Institute of Agriculture, Water and Environment, Shawn McGrath, said the day is an opportunity for residents to highlight the importance of agriculture.

"It's a big part of our economies out here in the regions and when you're out in the regions everyone has a connection to agriculture somehow," Dr McGrath said.

"We're an important export industry for Australia, so it's a great opportunity to highlight and celebrate the impact agriculture has on Australia."

The university has been going above and beyond to ensure its agriculture students receive the best hands-on training to ensure the future of the industry is bright.

One of the ways they are doing so is through the Empowering Generation Z Drought Resilience Farmlets established at the Wagga campus in 2022 and 2023.

The nine farmlets are each 6.5 hectares in size, with 50 per cent established pastures and 50 per cent sown to dual purpose crops. Each farmlet is stocked with 18 Composite ewes and their progeny.

Three farmlets are designated 'best practice' for rotational grazing of lucerne, early sowing of crops and use of drought lots for feeding sheep off the pastures.

These have been pivotal for students like Ms McTavish by complementing their learning in pasture and livestock management, and recognising different pasture types and animal husbandry with sheep.

"This hands-on learning has reinforced concepts learnt in class by applying them in a real-world situation," she said.

"It will also help me give advice to farmers about the management of their livestock and pastures once I have graduated and will hopefully help them be more productive and profitable."

Another three farmlets are designated 'conservative practice' while the rest allow for some level of experimentation for the students.

Dr McGrath said the farmlets give students studying veterinary science, animal science, agricultural science or agribusiness degrees hands-on experience with grazing management, animal husbandry and crop management.

"Students graduating in these disciplines will be future farm and business managers, leaders and consultants, therefore, providing students with hands-on experience through the drought resilience farmlets will mean graduates are well prepared for a future career in agriculture that will operate in a more challenging and variable climate," he said.

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Tasks able to be carried out in the farmlets include animal husbandry, body condition scoring and weighing of sheep, measuring pasture and crop biomass, pasture and weed species identification, Fit to Join assessment of sheep, welfare assessments and crop management.

With El Nino expected for the coming months, Dr McGrath said the farmlets will allow students to gain knowledge in managing livestock, pastures and crops through variable seasons, including periods when rainfall is below average.

The forecast for November to January rainfall is 60 to 80 per cent below the average for most of western, southern and north-eastern Australia.

"Students have been considering the implications of poor rainfall in spring and summer on management of weaned lambs and ewes in the lead up to joining," he said.

"After assessing the feed on offer, students used fodder budgeting to consider the effects on production under poor compared to average pasture growth conditions from weaning in October through until joining in January."

The farmlets were enabled through funding from the Federal Government's Future Drought Fund.

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