No-till farming talk, straight from the conference stage.
SANTFA tracks carries speeches from the South Australian No-Till Farmers Association's conferences, some split across two parts, along with a nitrogen debate and an interview on intercropping with Joel Williams of Integrated Soils. The subjects run from mycorrhizal fungi and deep soil testing to succession plans and dealing with banks.
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SANTFA tracks is the audio record of the South Australian No-Till Farmers Association: conference speeches, a nitrogen debate and a conversation with a visiting guest. The episodes follow the events. Talks from the 2018 and 2019 conferences are split into parts, so one speaker can fill two episodes, as with 'Nick Kelly part 2 SANTFA 2018 Conference' and the paired Michael Hancock episodes from 2019. The ground is Australian dryland cropping, and the soil is never far from the conversation. 'SANTFA Great Nitrogen Debate' puts three speakers in front of the room. Two of them are Professor James Hunt, an agronomist and crop physiologist who works on water-limited productivity, and Peter Treloar, a precision agriculture consultant who helps farmers and agronomists use variable rate on the farm. One speaker ties acidic soils on the local peninsula to nitrogen that is used inefficiently and lost to leaching. The same speaker picks favourite soils, praising a deep black clay and ranking a calcareous sand full of snails as the least favourite. The advice at the close is plain: go back to the four R's, and treat deep soil testing as the best return on money at current urea prices. Soil biology comes up in several talks. At the 2018 conference, Jill Clapperton argues that roots are the most biologically active part of the soil. She explains why tiny creatures such as mites matter: they open holes in crop residues that let fungi in. She also jokes about the podium, saying it makes her look like a talking head. In 'Joel Williams Intercropping', Greg Butler, R&D manager for the association, talks with Joel Williams of Integrated Soils about growing plant species together. Their conversation turns to mycorrhizal fungi, which can colonise the roots of both plants and form a bridge for nitrogen, moisture and other nutrients. Nick Kelly brings trial results, describing vetch and lupins sown into summer-active perennials with zero herbicide and zero synthetic fertiliser. He says the aim was not to go organic but to see how far the system could be pushed. His principles are short enough to remember: total soil cover, a living root all year, zero soil disturbance and diversity. Not every talk is about the ground. Michael Hancock, manager and part owner of Hancock Farming Enterprises on the Eyre Peninsula, speaks across two parts about succession, dealing with banks, decision-making and suicide. His advice gets down to gadgets, such as earpieces and a phone signal booster for the car. He is just as direct about what can happen to a family that has no succession plan. He ends by offering to take calls from farmers who need help. The result is a farming group sharing what it has learned, in the words of the people doing the work.
Made for: Suits a listener who farms, advises on or studies dryland cropping and wants practical talks on nitrogen, soil biology and intercropping. It also suits someone who values frank talk about farm succession and farmer wellbeing.
What sets it apart: It is built from a no-till farmers' association's own conference talks and interviews. That puts agronomy and soil microbiology next to a farmer's candid account of banks, succession and mental health.
Podcast about farming in Australia
One sand sample held more nitrogen than clay; your tidy soil assumptions may need a spade.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
Nitrogen management turns into a practical soil-root problem, with spading, lentils, acidity, and deep-soil testing in view.
This single episode keeps nitrogen management close to the paddock, where productivity, leaching risk, acidic soils, and seasonal decision-making all meet.
Joel Williams connects intercropping to soil biology, resource sharing, and farm economics.
Joel Williams gives intercropping a grounded, field-ready frame: a practical move from a single crop toward more plant diversity without losing sight of profitability.
A grounded farming conference talk linking succession planning with a candid commitment to farmers' mental health.
Michael Hancock's Sanford conference talk is grounded in the daily strain of farm life and the quieter work of keeping farmers connected to support.
A plain-spoken farm finance episode about confidence, family support, and asking for help.
Michael Hancock treats farm finances and mental health as connected pressures, not separate problems. His case is simple: spending money can be part of building a family farming legacy, but lenders need to see a clear long-term plan and a borrower who can explain the business…
A practical, crop-by-crop look at cover cropping, nitrogen goals, and the quality questions that follow strong yields.
Jill Clapperton's second part makes cover cropping feel less like a menu of options than a set of field choices shaped by soil, water, timing, and intent.
Research translated for working agriculture.
Field science for organic agriculture.
Practical agriculture guidance, one segment at a time.
Sugar beet research, delivered in step with the season.
Following Ohio's farm phosphorus from field to Lake Erie.
James Hunt argues that cropping systems need a positive nitrogen balance to maintain soil organic carbon and soil organic nitrogen, and he backs that claim with reviews, long-term experiments, and a Birchip Cropping Group trial.
Joel Williams tells Greg Butler that intercropping can start as a simple one-to-two species step rather than a full multi-species mix.
Michael Hancock's part-two talk at the 2019 SANTFA Conference starts with bank managers, high interest rates, and one lender telling him he was "actually rich." He moves into farm foreclosure, describing six cases where he walked sheds and paddocks with farmers before clearing sales.
Radio Sanford's 2019 Sanford Annual Conference recording features Michael Hancock speaking as a manager and part owner of Hancock Farming Enterprises at Loch on the Eyre Peninsula.
Jill Clapperton's 2018 SANTFA conference speech explains soil health through no-till farming, grazing management, roots, earthworms, fungi, and microbial communities.
Jill Clapperton's 2018 SANTFA conference speech connects soil health to roots, nematode communities, organic matter, crop rotations and integrated farm systems.
["Jill Clapperton's SANTFA 2018 afternoon talk argues that cover crops can change grain mineral density enough to matter for zinc, phosphorus balance, and human health.", "She grounds the claim in Green Cover Seed water-use trials from Baden, Nebraska, plus Lethbridge wheat data showing that multi-species mixes and companion crops alter water drawdown and mineral output.", "Her examples move through phacelia, woolly pod vetch, mustards, wild oats, peas, beans, and radishes to show how roots, exudates, and nitrogen forms interact.", "The closing argument is practical: use a $40,000 tracer that reads atomic composition in 30 seconds and market grain by quality, not yield alone."]
Jill Clapperton's 2018 Sanford Conference talk describes mycorrhizae as "first carbon traders" exchanging plant photosynthate for micronutrients and water.
A podcast featuring a speaker from a past conference discussing sustainable farming principles and adapting them to different environments.
Interview with a no-till farmer discussing his farm, cropping system, and use of disc seeders.
An interview with a farmer discussing her dryland farming practices, including cereal cropping, sheep production, and direct drilling in South Australia.