South Australian growers explore ag tech, irrigation and integrated disease management
Earlier this month, South Australian potato growers and industry members gathered in Mount Gambier and Murray Bridge for two PotatoLink workshops focused on ag tech, irrigation, and integrated disease management.
In Mount Gambier, Michael Rettke who works on soilborne diseases of potatoes (South Australian Research and Development Institute, SARDI), introduced Hort Innovation’s new integrated disease management project. Growers also heard from Michael Dalton (Sentek Technologies), who presented on irrigation management and the movement of heat, water and fertiliser in potato hills.
Ag tech was a big focus, with Michael Dalton, Terry Buckley (J & FL Buckley & Son), Ryan Hall (AHR) and Lachlan Heysen (Heysen Partners) sharing insights on drones, NDVI, soil moisture sensing, and AI.
At Murray Bridge, Calum Wilson (Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture, University of Tasmania) introduced Hort Innovation’s new integrated disease management project and shared the latest insights on soilborne diseases in potato production. The event also featured an ag tech panel with Tom Jefferis (Elders), Pete Scaman (Mitolo Family Farms) and Michael Dalton, discussing technologies currently in use in the region, the opportunities and challenges, and what’s needed to support grower adoption. Highlights included variable rate applications, soil moisture probes, data interpretation, autonomous vehicles, and AI
Both events were facilitated by PotatoLink’s Ryan Hall and Peter O'Brien, who connected with growers and industry members throughout the sessions.
“These events really highlighted the importance of agricultural technology, especially AI, in the future of potato production. It was also fantastic to hear about the new IDM projects headed by Calum Wilson and Brajesh Singh (WSU), I encourage those interested in these projects to get involved and contact their teams" - Ryan Hall
The PotatoLink team would like to thank everyone who helped organise these events, the speakers, and the growers and industry members for their attendance and contributions.