Help to manage riparian margins

The DairyNZ Farmfacts have been created by DairyLink, made up of representatives from Horizons, DairyNZ, Federated Farmers and Fonterra. The group was set up to enable the organisations to work more closely together to provide dairy farmers in the Lower North Island with more workable and consistent information.

The fact sheets, available to farmers nationwide at dairynz.co.nz, include advice on appropriate plant species, pest and weed control and methods to maintain stream banks.

DairyNZ Lower North Island regional leader Scott Ridsdale says the Farmfacts are a good starting point for farmers with questions on riparian planting.

"The first step in creating the Farmfacts was to invite farmer input. We used the experience of a range of farmers from those who had carried out a lot of fencing to those who were still in the early stages of a riparian planting plan," says Scott. "That way we were better able to anticipate the kind of knowledge farmers would want access to no matter what their situation."

A riparian margin provides a buffer by reducing the amount of sediment, phosphate, dung and E.coli washing off land and entering waterways.

There are many benefits from protecting and managing farm waterways, says Horizons rural advisor Peter Taylor.

"Time and resources put into this is an investment which creates direct benefits for the farm, for the waterways and for the broader environment."

Horizons has not only lent their knowledge to farmers wishing to plant riparian margins, last year they helped plant over 7000 plants along streambanks in their region.

"Everyone in our region benefits from cleaner waterways not just farmers, so in recognition of that, each year we have a small pool of funding available to support riparian planting on farms," explains Mr Taylor.

The Farmfacts, part of a wider library covering a range of subjects, are available online at dairynz.co.nz/farmfacts.