Changes in practices and decisions resulting from the paired-paddock modelused in the Grassland's Productivity Program

A detailed survey was undertaken in the spring of 1995 with 20 wool produce rs in south-west Victoria and the south-east of South Australia to determin e the impact of their participation for 18 months in a program called the G rassland's Productivity Program. This program involved groups of producers establishing paired-paddock comparisons on their own farms with guidance fr om an experienced facilitator. Productive pasture practices (increased fert iliser rates, responsive pasture species and high stocking rates) were used in one paddock, while the remaining paddock was managed with existing prac tices. A second group of 15 producers from the same districts who did not p articipate in the Grassland's Productivity Program were selected at random and also surveyed. Although the 2 groups of producers had similar pasture productivity paramet ers (phosphorus fertiliser, stocking rates and pasture resowing rates) in t he autumn of 1993, the Grassland's Productivity Program participants had si gnificantly (P<0.05) increased phosphorus fertiliser rates on average from 5.7 to 10.5 kg P/ha, stocking rates from 9.4 to 10.7 dse/ha, and the area o f the farm that was being resown to new pasture from 2.9 to 4.0%, by the sp ring of 1995. There was no change in the pasture practices of the non-Grass land's Productivity Program producers over this period. The Grassland's Pro ductivity Program participants also increased their use of soil testing and plant tissue testing and changed their rationale for making fertiliser and stocking decisions. The decisions were now based on an assessment of soil fertility and animal production target levels, together with accurate asses sment of pasture production and animal requirements, rather than on past ex periences and normal district practices. The increased adoption of the productive pasture technology (practice chang e) was directly related to a change in attitude to decision making. This ch ange in attitude or beliefs among Grassland's Productivity Program particip ants was a result of the action learning experiences that disposed or modif ied existing beliefs, while integrating the productive pasture technology i n a contextualised manner. The paired-paddock approach to learning enabled each participant to witness the productive pasture technology perform on th eir own farm, in direct comparison with the existing management approach. T he participants developed increased confidence in their ability to manage t his technology from group-learning experiences, which occurred at regular g roup meetings.