Department of Agriculture

The truth behind the rainforest battles in NSW (part 1) – the historical background

7 July 2023 / 3 Comments

“History will be kind to me for I intend to write it” ― Winston S. Churchill

Introduction

One of the great joys I have experienced during my working career and travels around Australia has been the opportunity to walk through rainforests. There is no better feeling. While protected from the heat of the day, or from bitterly cold winds, the chance to walk beneath the towering trees under a closed canopy of large shady leaves allows the opportunity to listen to the cacophonous bird songs.… Read more

Squeezing yield from rain – the Wheatbelt story

10 October 2022 / 5 Comments

Tho’ it ain’t a life o’ pleasure, An’ there’s little time for leisure, It’s contentin’, in a measure, is the game of growin’ Wheat.

C. J. Dennis ‘Wheat’ 1918

Introduction

The Wheatbelt region in southern Western Australia extends across a large area as a crescent and is one of the few major agricultural regions in the world viewed from space.… Read more

Sod seeding on Surrey Hills in 1960

25 June 2022 / 6 Comments

Bob Hardy was born and grew up in Burnie. His mother, a Jones, came from a mixed farm at Cuprona, with her Jones line going back to Britton Jones, the ex-convict who built Franklin House. As a twenty-year-old graduate from Hawkesbury Agricultural College, Bob first started working on Surrey Hills in 1960.… Read more