Subject: Tagasaste

From: "Australia Felix" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 8 Jan 1998 18:42:22 +1100

AUSTRALIA FELIX

LandPlanning Consultants

Project Management, Design & Planning Services & Products

for Sustainable & Productive Land-Use 

since 1993 

Re: Tagasaste

Hello Everyone,

I trust that this greets you all well! We have had some experience here with Tag. Last year we direct sowed with a Roden Direct Seeding Machine 175kms of Tag on one sheep property alone, and sourced the seed from: 

Kimseed Pty Ltd
Division of Australian Revegetation Corp. Ltd
42 Sarich Court, Osborne Park WA 6017
Tel (Aus 09)(Internat +619) 4464377
Fax (Aus 09)(Internat +619) 4463444
Email: [email-masked]
Contact: Stephen Hill or Greg Hill

Supply: Producers and exporters of all Australian tree, shrub and pasture seeds. Specialists in agroforestry, fodder, arid and saltland species and provenance collection. Machinery for seed collection, processing, treatment, planting, revegetation and tree harvesting. Consulting and
contracting services

The seed cost us around AU$36/kg scarified from this mob. We also for the money recieved special Tag inoculant which we applied as a slurry to the seed before putting it in the hopper. Preparation for the job included ripping with the Yeomans Keyline Plow to around 400mm. The farmer had already applied dolomite, gypsum and lime. Mounding on soils with suspect drainage will improve the situation no-end. Conversely, pitting the soil in low rainfall sands we have seen to work well. 

Another method to get Tag growing in a nursery situation with limited seed is to pour boiling water over the seed and let it sit in the water till the next day, and then sow into your seed raising mix in a tube or similar sized pots. Then just plant out at around 2.5m x 2m for fodder belts, or interplant between fruit/tender trees as a nurse tree. The loppings make great mulch for the adjacent tree being nursed. 

Tag has become a bit of an escape on better drained soils in Australia where the conditions suit its regeneration. Provided you have a good team of chooks or wild bunnies, kangaroos/wallabies or other rodents though it shouldn't be a problem. Even though the environmental weed brigade would have us believe that it is a problem weed, it is so palatable to all manner of both wild and domesticated herbivores that most of the very delicious seedlings are munched up as quick as they appear, therefore leaving most outbreaks very localised.

If anyone needs a small source of seed from here in Australia please I have my own seed from the trees here if anyone wants some to trial. Drop us a line at the address below and we'll organise something.  

Please send any further queries to this news group or to us here at Australia Felix on [email-masked] or to: 

Australia Felix LandPlanning Consultants

14-16 Wood St, Eaglehawk, Victoria, Australia, 3556

Ph. (+61)3 54 418977 Fax (+61)3 54 444483

Cheers

Yours and Growing

Darren J. Doherty

Applied Diploma of Permaculture Design, Permaculture Institute (1995)

Permaculture Design Certificate, Permaculture Institute (1993, 1995)

Whole Farm Planning Certificate (Train the Trainer), University of Melbourne (1995)

Principal Australia Felix LandPlanning Consultants

Chairman of Directors GIFT (Investments) Pty. Ltd.

President Box Ironbark Farm Forestry Network Inc.