October 2026
Welcome to the October edition of the Cross Country Chronicle!
October has arrived, and somehow we are already into the final three months of 2026. Across the industry, there's plenty happening as crops move quickly, hay and silage get underway in many areas and harvest is starting to feel quite close.
September saw us wrap up our first AI Systems Sprint, and I loved seeing what participants achieved over the six weeks. They built their understanding of AI, became far more comfortable using it and started finding practical ways to apply it in their businesses, moving well beyond asking AI for a recipe based on a photo of what's left in the fridge!
Participants built resources and systems they can keep using, found opportunities to save time and even identified subscriptions they no longer needed. One of the most rewarding parts was watching the shift from simply trying AI to understanding where it can be useful in the day-to-day running of a business.
This work continues in October with our next AI Systems Sprint, alongside plenty of client work and our free Your Next Best Move webinar on 13 October. The webinar ties in particularly well with some of the conversations I'm having at the moment about what comes next when there are several good options competing for the same time, money and attention.
With less than three months left in the year, October feels like a good time to take stock of what still matters in 2026, what can wait, and where you want to put your attention before we head into 2027.
Enjoy the October Chronicle.
AI FOR FARMERS & FARMING BUSINESSES SPRINT
Cohort Two: building practical AI capability for farming businesses
AI TIP OF THE MONTH
Starting in October, we are sharing an AI tip of the month
BLOG - OCTOBER
A spring in our step. What comes next?
FREE ONLINE WORKSHOP - YOUR NEXT BEST MOVE
A practical approach to making confident farm business decisions
PODCAST RECOMMENDATION
Paddock Talk by WeedSmart
PROJECT UPDATE: FROM BOTH SIDES OF THE FENCE
As the season changes, so do our weeds
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
“Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.” – Warren Buffett
UPCOMING AGCELERATE WORKSHOPS IN VICTORIA
Details of upcoming Victorian face-to-face farm business workshops in late 2026 and early 2027
WOW YOUR BANKER
Helping you put your best foot forward
AI for Farmers & Farming Businesses Sprint
Following a great response to the first AgCelerate AI Sprint, we're excited to be running a second cohort, starting 19 October.
This Sprint is a six-week programme designed specifically for farming businesses and owner-operated businesses servicing agriculture.
The Sprint is about moving beyond experimenting with AI and actually using it to get work done. We'll look at practical ways to save time on admin, use voice notes to start building SOPs and work instructions, improve communication, and create reusable prompts, templates and tools for your business.
A new module is released Sunday, followed by a live Build Session every Thursday at 1:00 pm AEST, where we'll put the learning into practice, work through questions and actually build alongside each other.
For me, the important part is that AI doesn't replace experience or judgement. You still need to know what good looks like. Used well, it can give you a much better starting point, build capability within your business and help get some of those jobs off the list.
The next round of the AgCelerate AI Sprint starts on Monday 19 October.
To join the waitlist or for more information, visit this link.
AI Tip of the Month
Open an AI tool such as ChatGPT and give it the rough information you already have. You don't need to write everything neatly or spend time creating the perfect prompt.
For example, after a meeting with your agronomist, accountant, bank manager or staff, type or dictate your rough notes into ChatGPT and ask:
“Turn these notes into a clear summary. Separate them into decisions made, actions required, who is responsible and anything that still needs to be followed up. Do not add information that isn't in my notes.”
You could use the same approach after a farm meeting, machinery discussion, planning session or a phone call where you have scribbled down a page of notes.
The aim isn't to get AI to make the decisions for you. It's to reduce the admin involved in turning conversations and rough notes into something useful that you can refer back to and act on.
Blog - October
A spring in our step. What comes next?
For many farming businesses, there is a little more optimism around this spring, and with improving conditions can come something that has been missing for a while: choice.
There might be debt to reduce, machinery to replace, livestock to rebuild, infrastructure to invest in, country to buy or lease, or perhaps an opportunity to finally take some money out of the business.
There may be several good options in front of us, but the same dollar can't do all of them, which makes understanding the trade-offs and putting the numbers behind each decision even more important.
In this month's blog, I look at what happens when those choices come back onto the table, why financial discipline remains important as conditions improve, and how putting the numbers behind a decision can help us work out our next best move.
Free Online Workshop - Your Next Best Move
In this workshop, I’ll walk you through how I evaluate a farm decision, test the options, and run the numbers before making the call.
When you’re weighing up your next move on the farm, it helps to have the numbers in front of you - not just a gut feel.
Whether you’re considering replacing machinery, paying down debt, leasing more country, investing in infrastructure or simply deciding which priority should come first, the session is designed to help you ask: what makes the most sense for our business right now?
Tuesday 13 October | 1:00–2:00 pm AEST | Online via Google Meet
For more information or to register, visit this link here.
Podcast Recommendation
Paddock Talk - WeedSmart
Take a listen to Paddock Talk episode #2 about residuals in non-crop areas and managing summer weeds in spring. Featuring insights from Eric Koetz, NSW DPIRD and Richard Daniel, NGA.
Project Update: From Both Sides of the Fence
As the season changes, so do our weeds
After a wet winter and start to spring, conditions across the Fleurieu and Yorke Peninsula are changing - and so are the weeds. Winter weeds are beginning to mature, flower and move towards seed set, while warmer conditions are encouraging different species to emerge.
Now is a good time to take a closer look at what's growing along roadsides, fence lines and paddocks. Knowing which weed you're dealing with, its growth stage and how it spreads can help determine the best approach to management. It's also worth paying attention to weeds that have survived previous control. While this doesn't automatically indicate herbicide resistance, repeated survival is something worth investigating rather than simply repeating the same approach.
Through the GRDC-funded Roadside Weed Management: From Both Sides of the Fence project, the importance of looking beyond individual property boundaries continues to emerge. Weeds don't stop at fence lines, and sharing what you're seeing with neighbours and other land managers can help build a better picture of what's happening across the local area.
As the season changes, keep an eye on what's emerging, what's approaching seed set and what may have survived control. The more we understand and share about the weeds around us, the better informed our next management decisions can be.
To stay up to date with this project and other CCM activities, visit our website or follow us on social media. You can find more information about this project here.
Quote of the Month
“Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.” – Warren Buffett
The decisions we make today often shape the opportunities we have tomorrow. Whether it’s investing in the farm, strengthening the business or planning for the next generation, long-term success is built through consistent decisions and actions over time. Not every investment delivers an immediate result, but the work we put in now can create lasting value well into the future.
Upcoming AgCelerate Workshops in Victoria
Paige will be delivering several free AgCelerate™ farm business workshops, funded by Agriculture Victoria, in late 2026, early 2027 across the following towns in Victoria:
Dunkeld
Hawkesdale
Maryborough
Murchison
Heathcote
Barnawartha
Dates are currently being finalised, with registrations opening soon.
Farm Office Sorted will be delivered in Dunkeld, Hawkesdale, Maryborough and Murchison. These practical workshops focus on running the business behind the farm, including how business information, records, decisions and actions are captured and accessed, understanding key financial and operational information, and building practical systems that make the farm office easier to manage. We’ll also explore how tools including AI can help with information capture, record keeping and repetitive administrative tasks.
Know Your Numbers, Plan Your Year will be delivered in Heathcote and Barnawartha in February 2027, with a focus on reviewing the previous year while it is still fresh and planning the year ahead with strategic intent. We’ll work through key farm business metrics, cashflow, financial risks and opportunities, and use this information to set priorities and guide the decisions that will shape the year ahead.
Both workshops provide dedicated time to step away from the day-to-day and work on your own farming business, with practical tools and work underway that you can continue to use when you get home.
If you’re keen to be on the waitlist when registrations open, simply reply to this email with your preferred location and we’ll add you to the list.
WOW Your Banker
Annual review season is rapidly approaching. Imagine having your information prepared and feeling in charge of the next conversation you have with your bank manager, wouldn't it be nice to 'wow' them?
Our 'wow your banker' service is designed to do exactly that. Book a discovery call today and know you will be walking in with confidence, presenting your numbers clearly, and secure the financial backing you need.
Get yourself set up for success now - book a discovery call with Paige!
Thanks for joining us again this month. As always, if there is anything we can help you with, or something you would like to see featured in next month's chronicle, please reach out. We'd love to hear from you!
Paige & Elise