A spotlight on Tasmanian research for onion growers

This article was produced as part of the Hort Innovation Onion Fund project Australian onion industry communications program (VN18003).

The Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA) is a joint venture between the Tasmanian Government and the University of Tasmania. The research body is active at state, national and international level to provide solution-oriented research, development, extension and education.

TIA regularly post informative and insightful videos on its YouTube channel including some interesting pieces relevant for onion growers. Some of the particularly interesting videos include:

1. Managing soils for high productivity – Mark Kable, Agricultural Director at Harvest Moon, a large vegetable producer in Tasmania, explains some of the most important aspects of managing soil for productivity. Mark talks about the importance of timing, planning and preparation in vegetable production and shares some valuable insights for all growers including onion producers.
   
   
2. Biosecurity – Marybrook farmer, Darryl Smith was the first potato grower to detect the tomato-potato psyllid here in Australia. Darryl provides an intriguing recount of his experience with quarantine once the insect was discovered. Since the discovery, Darryl has implemented some small changes on farm prevent future incidents, but the most important lesson from his presentation is simple: Biosecurity starts and ends with the grower themselves.
   
   
3. Cover crops – James Addison, a grower from North West Tasmania, talks about the importance of cover crops to improve soil health. Although the focus at Addison Farm Produce is its potato crop, there are some solid lessons in this case study for all growers. According to James, soil health is incredibly important not just for the quality of the crops, but also to negate the effects of soil erosion, something no grower wants to see on their property.

For more videos on the wider agriculture industry, subscribe to the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture YouTube Channel.