Country Lane Caretakers
Usual disclaimer
Get advice ... simple!
Just using a competency is not enough. It's like downloading a first aid course set of competencies. You will get an idea of the requirements, but you still need someone to show you the best way.
To get a recognised qualification, you still have to be assessed... so use this as a guide to get you on the right track and start from there.
Farm Planning
The need for Farm planning has its roots in the infamous series of dust storms in the USA from the 1930’s and recurring episodes in subsequent years creating the formation of Dust Bowls.
A strategic approach to remedying the situation was required, and a response at a national level with the development of training Farmers in Farm Planning was implemented. This provided for a consistent approach so that methods and techniques for combatting the effects and assessing these efforts led to controlling, minimising and eventually reversing the conditions and reducing the recurrence of similar dust storms.
By the 1950’s Farm Planning became standard practice in rural areas in the USA and the success was transplanted to Australia. This strategy led to various State Government departments across Australia forming a variety of organisation such as in NSW, the Department of Soil Conservation NSW reflecting similar farming practices in Australia with comparable dust storm events in the USA, and need for consistent action.
If you look at the evolution of Farm Plans, you can still recognise the bias towards Soils in the makeup of Farm Plans
Farm Planning in Australia
Across Australia, various State government Departments of Agriculture ran a range of what would later become Farm Planning courses. They were added to nationally recognised training packages. For example the “VIC” code still pops up in today’s VET system, as the State of Victoria had a leading training system that hasn’t been superseded!
Today’s nationally recognised Whole Farm Plan training has been variously known, for the past few years as:
• RTE5516A - Develop a whole farm plan (Commenced Oct 2003)
• AHCAGB505A - Develop a whole farm plan (Commenced June 2011)
• AHCAGB505 - Develop a whole farm plan (Commenced June 2016)
No doubt with change of governments and updated training courses, there will be new names and codes… all advocating the same consistent Farm Planning practices.
"Click" the link below to see
AHCAGB505 - Develop a whole farm plan.
Accessed 02.07.20.
See the online version-controlled and latest updates of the competencies. Any errors from the original document will be transcription errors of the author of this website. Please let me know should these arise.
Country Lane Caretakers Farm Planning template.
CLC likes to provide “best practice” information to our customers. The Farm Plan information we have used is based on Australian VET system Training packages Farm Planning modules.
CLC Farm Plan templates are a simple summary of the Competencies required to produce a Farm Plan. We have chosen this to assure you that these are recognised farm plans. Farm plans are used across financial, agricultural, environmental sectors for a range of purposes. In business they are used by property owners to manage a plan, ensure consistency across operations, aggregate information in one place, inform decisions, assist in assessment of production efficiencies, management practices and provide direction in succession management
Having an up-to-date, industry-wide, recognised Farm Plan is essential.
CLC has taken the hard work out of working out what you need, and what industry expects from a Farm plan, and basically given you the template and instructions to complete it.
Stuff I would add...
If I were developing a plan for my property I would also include (amongst others) especially in Section 2, maps, graphs and tables as well as extensive management plans in section 4 on:
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Carbon credit farming
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Cultural heritage input
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Current natural resource management activities (soil, water native vegetation conservation projects)
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Emergency plans - fire, flood, storm, pestilence
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Geological surveys / mapping
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Groundwater measurements, recharge, depth
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Human resources
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Hydrological / hydrogeological surveys
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Long range weather history & forecasts
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Power generation, feed-in & on-selling opportunities
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Seed bank and native habitat partitioning
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Threatened & endangered species in your area
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Voluntary conservation partitioning
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Water rights especially pumping & storage, dam construction
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Water testing
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Water rights especially pumping & storage, dam construction
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Weed species and other threats invading from a neighbour
Farm Planning: We can help you
All Country Lane Caretakers ideas and suggestions are intended as general advice for people operating:
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Family acreages
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Small properties
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B&B’s
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Farmstays
And other small rural accommodation and activities.
This is the first step in getting you to plan… any plan.
Farm planning
This page is currently in the middle of updating and editing
As always, I have obtained my information from reputable sources.
The unit of competency upon which I base my Farm Plan Template is sourced from:
Develop a whole farm plan AHCAGB505
released 27 June 2016 (current as at 01.07.20)
and:
Assessment Requirements for AHCAGB505 Develop a whole farm plan.
This unit of competency is part of the:
AHC - Agriculture, Horticulture and Conservation and
Land Management Training Package
Developed under the auspices of the Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment joint State & territory Governments initiative "Training.gov.au" found at:
https://training.gov.au/home/TGA
But wait...there's more!
If you get the hang of Farm Planning, and want to get hi-tech, there are entry level “free” online farm plans, to high end GIS / GPS based apps, specific industry apps for specific stock animals, crops and other activities, commercially available online or offline software.
So, look into those.
So now your are ready...
This information will set your farm plan up so it is standardized, recognisable in industry and ready to roll out for government programs, financial institutions, local government development planning and DA’s, your local agronomist, or organisations that you may want to join, that require quality standards and control…
