![Grain and cattle producer Rodney Blanch and overseer Scott Lorkin "Silverwood" at Nanango, Qld check out crushes with Moira Condon from Cavalier Handling Equipment at Gympie. Grain and cattle producer Rodney Blanch and overseer Scott Lorkin "Silverwood" at Nanango, Qld check out crushes with Moira Condon from Cavalier Handling Equipment at Gympie.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-agfeed/2078909.jpg/r0_0_1024_685_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
THREE tough summer seasons in a row - two featuring floods and the last exceptionally dry - have taken their toll on cropping and grain production at Rodney Blanch's property "Silverwood", Nanango, Queensland.
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Cattle trading has always been a smaller sideline - Mr Blanch calls it his "hobby" - but it is that side of the business that has provided some optimism this year and sent Mr Blanch and his overseer Scott Lorkin shopping at this year's FarmFest.
While his irrigated lucerne yields were down 50 per cent and his soybeans yielded just one tonne to the hectare compared to the normal 4t/ha this summer, Mr Blanch has made a reasonable profit on the cattle he turned over.
"I was able to buy in $100 cheaper than the same time the year before and we had enough rain to keep the pasture up to them and kick oats along," he said.
After a good deal of comparing and testing, touching and negotiating, he left Farmfest with a new crush and sliding gate.
"It's a good place to buy cattle handling gear because you can look at everything that is available on the market in the one spot and you also get ideas that might not have otherwise crossed your mind," he said.
Mr Blanch is pictured at FarmFest with "Silverwood" overseer Scott Lorkin checking out crushes with Moira Condon from Cavalier Handling Equipment at Gympie.