A TRUST in the natural process has led Clarence - Tablelands grazier Glenn Morris on a journey of organic discovery.
Along the way he has been recognised for his work with sustainable agriculture, the latest being listed as one of three semifinalists in the Bob Hawke Landcare Award to be announced September 22.
Born on the land Mr Morris was taken away to Sydney as a young child in tragic circumstances but managed to find his way back at the age of 19 when he answered an advertisement calling for a hand to work with Simmentals at Dunmore Station, Halls Creek via Manilla.
The person conducting the interview was none other than owner Harry M Miller and despite the volume of applicants the great entertainment manager liked what he saw in the young man.
“As a result of my background I definitely wasn’t bound by any tradition and was able to look outside the square,” Mr Morris recalled of his production education.
As his knowledge of ecology grew in relation to the commercial practice of grazing he put elements together to create a new look at an old fashioned way of doing things.
“I had to go back to some really good old books to find out the right information,” he recalled.
And when he asked soil scientists about organic processes they admitted they had ‘dropped the ball’ when it came to soil health during the 50 or so years of chemical ag revolution.
At the turn of this millennium Mr Morris got the chance to put his ideas into practice when he accepted the job as manager of Figtree farms, encompassing 400ha of grazing country on light soil at Waterview Heights west of Grafton with another 1000ha of finishing country near Inverell.
Central to the production of organic beef at Figtree Farms is the role plants play in sequestering carbon in the soil. As grazing plants grow they exude helpful sugars from their roots that feed microbes which mineralise nitrogen and other elements, making them available to plants. “It’s a big feedback loop, explains Mr Morris.
When it comes to proof that the process produces results Mr Morris points to the 20 dry sheep equivalent units that Figtree Farms now carry, which is three times what it was before Mr Morris began the organic process seven years ago.
