ON FARM NORTHERN CATTLE The Rhode less travelled Irrigated Rhodes grass is helping underpin SNAPSHOT: the evolution of Pardoo Station in WA’s Pardoo Station, Pilbara into an export Wagyu enterprise. Port Hedland, Pardoo’s Technical Innovation Manager Kevin Pilbara, WA l Bell said there are now 16 centre pivots, each watering 40–50ha, which are further divided into four cells. Between 400 and 1,000 head of cattle are under each pivot, rotating through the cells. “You have to be on the ball with grazing management,” Kevin said. “If you’re two days late in moving the cattle on to the next cell, you’ve lost your advantage. It Area: doesn’t just affect the cell that they’re on, but 202,000ha flows on to the other cells as well. 840ha currently under “Over summer, we’re growing 130–150kg dry irrigation matter (DM)/ha/day, so in a week there’s an extra tonne per hectare of DM. That’s a lot of feed, Enterprise: and getting the grazing management right can Beef – transitioning to be difficult. You have to manage to minimise the Wagyu for export stem and maximise the leaf. Livestock: “One thing we’ve learned is that if you can see On irrigation over summer – the grass is going to get ahead of the cattle, 7,000 cattle (3,000 Wagyu you have to bring in the hay mower. You skip a breeders and followers; cell with the cattle, leave it for a week and cut some Santa Gertrudis) it for hay. The mower is a useful tool to reset the paddock.” Pasture: Rhodes grass on pivot; maize Cattle grazing on the irrigated Rhodes grass silage for supplementary are growing at rates up to 0.7kg/day with no feeding; scrublands with supplements (other than an annual long‑acting some native grasses selenium injection). The Rhodes grass offers 16–18% protein so the cattle don’t need anything Soil: else to meet their protein requirements. Pindan sand “We add trace elements to the pasture, and they’re Rainfall: top‑dressed with phosphorus and potassium 300mm about every three months,” Kevin said. ⊲ 23