Focus Sites

Aerial view of green riverina farmland rice fields divided by dirt roads, with some water irrigation ponds and trees along the edges.

Working with growers to explore local challenges through practical on-farm demonstrations

Focus Sites are the foundation of the Rice Extension Program's approach to on-farm innovation and knowledge sharing. 

Established in 2023, the Focus Site network was created to provide a practical, grower-led framework for exploring the opportunities and challenges facing rice production across southern New South Wales. Located in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area (MIA), Coleambally Irrigation Area (CIA), Eastern Murray Valley (EMV) and Western Murray Valley (WMV), each site provides a platform for growers, advisers and industry specialists to investigate questions that matter most to local farming businesses. 

Working under commercial farming conditions, Focus Sites allow growers to test ideas, evaluate management strategies and assess new technologies at paddock scale. The program provides an opportunity to explore the factors influencing productivity, profitability, sustainability and water use efficiency while generating practical insights that can be applied across the wider rice industry. 

Focus areas may include: 

  • Crop establishment and sowing practices 

  • Nutrient management 

  • Water use and irrigation efficiency 

  • Soil constraints and paddock performance 

  • Pest and weed management 

  • Precision agriculture and emerging technologies 

  • Profitability and whole-farm performance 

Building knowledge across the industry

Focus Sites are designed to do more than answer questions for a single farm. Seasonal observations, management decisions, successes and challenges are documented and shared throughout the growing season, helping growers learn from each other's experiences. 

The insights generated through Focus Sites form the basis of the Rice Extension Program's Annual Summaries, case studies, field days, extension activities and technical resources. By connecting local observations with broader industry learning, Focus Sites help ensure that practical knowledge developed in the paddock can support decision-making across rice-growing regions. 

CY26 focused on investigating practical management decisions and emerging technologies under commercial farming conditions. Across the network, growers explored crop nutrition, sowing systems, nitrogen management, irrigation automation and whole-paddock performance. 

CY26

    • Phosphorus management 

    • Aerial and drill sowing system performance 

    • Row spacing and crop establishment 

    • Nitrogen timing and application strategies 

    • Precision Water Management irrigation automation 

    • Whole-paddock productivity and profitability

    • Increasing phosphorus rates provided limited benefit where soil phosphorus levels were already adequate. 

    • While drill sowing usually outperforms aerial sowing, the EMV Focus Site comparison showed aerial sowing returned a higher yield under comparable conditions, highlighting row spacing, plant distribution, ponding duration and paddock-specific factors as areas for further investigation. 

    • Irrigation automation demonstrated strong potential to improve water management and reduce labour requirements. 

    • Seasonal monitoring reinforced the value of testing management decisions under commercial conditions.

  • Thank you to the CY26 growers who hosted Focus Sites and for opening their farms and sharing their knowledge with the wider rice industry: 

    • Anthony Beer, Mayrung (EMV) 

    • Josh Small, Deniliquin (EMV) 

    • Fasham Family, Wakool (WMV) 

    • Trent & Frank Temporali, Warrawidgee (MIA) 

    • Phil & Jim Atkinson, Yenda (MIA) 

    • Nathan & Kevin Cauduro, Yenda (MIA) 

    • Rice Research Australia Pty Ltd (RRAPL), Jerilderie (EMV) 

CY25

CY25 explored how management decisions influence yield, profitability and resource use efficiency. Focus Sites provided a platform to compare farming systems, assess emerging technologies and investigate opportunities to improve crop performance. 

    • Crop establishment and sowing practices 

    • Nutrient management and nitrogen use efficiency 

    • Water use and irrigation management 

    • Paddock preparation and soil amelioration 

    • Whole-paddock profitability 

    • Precision agriculture and decision-support tools 

    • Strong crop establishment remained a key driver of yield potential. 

    • Improved nutrient management supported higher-performing crops. 

    • Technologies such as satellite imagery, drones and variable-rate applications showed value in supporting management decisions. 

    • Site-specific management approaches helped identify opportunities to improve productivity and profitability. 

  • Thank you to our CY25 Focus Site hosts: 

    • Patrick Sergi, Murrami (MIA) 

    • Justin Sutherland, Coleambally (CIA) 

    • Josh Small, Deniliquin (EMV) 

    • Shaun Thomas, Tullakool (WMV) 

CY24

Following the establishment of the Rice Extension Program Focus Sites in 2023, CY24 was the first full season of grower-led investigations across the major rice-growing regions. The network was designed to create a practical platform for testing ideas, sharing experiences and generating local solutions to local challenges. 

    • Crop establishment and layouts 

    • Nitrogen use efficiency 

    • Soil amelioration 

    • Water use and irrigation efficiency 

    • Paddock performance 

    • Strong crop establishment remained a key driver of yield potential. 

    • Shallow beds improved establishment consistency.  

    • Later permanent water timing contributed to higher nitrogen uptake driving yield potential. 

  • Thank you to our CY24 Focus Site hosts for sharing their farms and insights 

    • Patrick Sergi, Murrami (MIA) 

    • Justin Sutherland, Coleambally (CIA) 

    • Shaun Thomas, Tullakool (WMV)