Tom Briggs and Hugh Macague at VicNoTill Tran$ition 2023, Moama

Third-generation mixed farmer Tom Briggs, Rutherglen, and fourth-generation farmer Hugh Macague, Rochester, attended the 2023 VicNoTill Tran$ition '23 conference at Moama to talk on the trial and error of regenerative agriculture methods.

Mr Briggs said he first changed to a disc system and used Google to try and understand how sheep would function in the new system.

He researched deep ripping to reduce compaction, applying variable rates of fertiliser and spot spraying to preserve moisture.

He said it was treating symptoms rather than fixing issues for the long-term.

"I'll go out and do observations first for any pests," he said.

"Dad and I did a lot of talking about where we were going wrong and what was causing the biggest issue - was fertiliser all bad?

"We've seen disease drop off, we haven't used a fungicide since 2016."

He said they used crops to clean up pastures, and pastures and sheep to build nitrogen.

"The biggest thing that we learnt when it got wet is that we have to keep the energy in it," Mr Briggs said.

He said he had experienced trial and error since starting management on the farm, but had a strong support system for help when he needed it most.

"Listen to some opinions, it might challenge you a bit or it might confirm where you're heading," he said.

"I'm getting really good at making lemonade out of lemons."

Mr Macague, 25, hosted the VicNoTill conference group on Wednesday for a farm tour and to show his growing vintage harvester collection.

He said he started following VicNoTill when he was about 17 and hoped to connect with fellow farmers about their ideas.

He said he manages 2500 hectares mixed cropping with hay and fat lambs with his father Bruce, and enjoys collecting mostly Australian-built machines.

"I collect coal machines as well, it started with a header when I was in Year 12, and I haven't stopped since then I've got about 13 headers and now tractors too," he said.

Mr Macague said while he was eager to show the vintage collection, he had burning questions from farmers about implementing a no-till farming system.

"A lot of farms in this area are looking into discs because of our hay programs and our soil type, we've been able to do seeders since about 2005 so we have a lot of knowledge on the topic," he said.

"We're looking at pathways to change and little things you can just try, rather than going all-in.

"If you go all-in on something you don't know much about, you end up going all-out."

He said they had a dry start to the cropping season this year, but retained a 100 per cent soil moisture profile.

"We've retained a lot of the bigger stubbles from last year, more than we have in the years prior and did a lot more with the stripper front in harvest time," he said.

"Anything that had a bit of stubble on it was amazing.

"There's a lot [for us] to do with trying to repair the soil, the compacted layers, in a much more natural way."