Taking over from his parents and starting his own family, he moved beyond his 'mechanical' way of thinking and introduced a holistic approach, reducing technological interventions across the property. Nick now has more time for family and Mundarlo is 'a wonderland' with a flourishing 'flerd' of sheep and cattle.
After Nick returned to the family farm and witnessed the devastating effects of the Millennium drought, he and his wife Deanna grew tired of the 'treadmill of busyness' that consumed everyday life. This treadmill left little time for family, outside passions or for thinking through on-farm decisions. They instead relied on set routines and the idea of 'see a problem and technology will change it'.
With high debt, dystocia occurring in 50% of heifers, 10% bloat death and a new family to care for, Nick needed a new way forward. As he thought about making changes, he found he was 'battling the background noise' of the scepticism of agronomists and internal fears of ruining the enterprise.
Nick and his parents had attended a Holistic Management course in 2001, just before drought struck. They had loosely introduced some key tools such as rotational grazing using a system of water points, an increased herd size and a reduction in paddock size.
However, it was not until Nick and Deanna worked directly with a consultant and helped to co-found a support group called '8 families' that they began to understand that an essential part of Holistic Management was setting out, and using, a 'Holistic Context' statement to guide decision-making.
In creating their Holistic Context, Nick and Deanna identified that they valued biodiversity, a family-centred lifestyle, reducing risk and debt in the enterprise to more comfortable levels and the ability to pursue off-farm interests and passions, more than other financial or physical goals.
The process of working through this context statement helped them to 'start making decisions for themselves' and 'validate' their ideas, priorities and ambitions. This process also began to shift Nick's 'mechanical way of thinking' which developed during his training as an engineer to a more holistic mindset.
Nick ceased fertiliser inputs, reduced the existing breeding herd to 300 and started a trading herd of 400-500 head. He split the property in two and ran a herd on each half, operating them as essentially separate enterprises.
The new time controlled grazing system immediately improved the diversity of livestock feed and the herd experienced a massive reduction in bloat and dystocia as well as a reduction in the cost of animal health care and pasture inputs.
Though performing well, the Austins' existing Holistic Management system needed to be improved in order to achieve their goals. The water system continually failed, driving the cattle to damage infrastructure, which caused flooding in the paddocks. This problematic water supply limited the number of cattle that could be run in particular paddocks.
Insufficient fencing also limited the number of paddocks which could be created. As a result, the Austins could not run the cattle density required to break up and rebuild the soil. They were not seeing the productive or ecological outcomes they desired.
To both reduce debt and support on- and off-farm investments, Nick and Deanna decided to 'sell what they could' and consolidate their debt. The profits allowed them to hire professionals to help redesign the water system, reduce paddock sizes and adjust the overall layout to better suit their hilly terrain. They were also able to invest in an off-farm wellness enterprise led by Deanna.
The Austins began 'making good money' but it was not all smooth sailing. Forecasts of dry conditions and low pasture budgets during 2018/19 meant Nick and Deanna decided to sell the entire breeding herd in order to adjust cattle numbers to suit the expected carrying capacity of the paddocks. Unfortunately, the timing of this sales coincided with pregnant heifers – the sale and transport process was therefore not ideal for the animals' wellbeing.
This experience was trying, and Nick and Deanna needed to refresh with a family holiday. When they returned, they purchased a flock of sheep and experimentally combined it with their cattle trading herd to create a mixed flerd. They found that the sheep and cattle were able to share easily: the sheep tended to focus on the high ground and the cattle on the low, while the sheep accessed the water point in the morning and the cattle in the afternoon.
Some family members remain cautious about Holistic Management, believing that it 'hasn't been through enough generations'. However, with the confidence of their 'no regret' decision-making, Nick and Deanna were able to avoid the dust bowls of the 2018/19 drought, with a good bank balance. Their debt size is far more manageable, they have more time and money for family and other interests and they feel 'so, so much happier'.
The improvements in pasture diversity and availability have resulted in drastically reduced bloat and dystocia and have been able to support a mixed trading flerd. The successful introduction of sheep into the mix has inspired Nick and Deanna to look toward building supportive infrastructure such as shearing sheds in the future.
Delve deeper into the 8 families' soil and landscape regeneration practices,
and the results for landscape function, production, economics and well-being.