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Gippsland Ag News
 
Thursday, 15 April 2021
In this edition:
Coronavirus – (COVID-19)

Keep up to date with all the latest restrictions and requirements at coronavirus.vic.gov.au.

Be ready for weeds this autumn
Winter barley paddock with weeds sprouting image

Caption: Winter barley paddock with weeds sprouting

David Shambrook,
Dairy Extension Officer

A coolish summer with few hot days and some rain at times has enabled some pastures to remain green; it has also allowed any weeds that were not controlled last year to continue to grow and multiply.

The types of weeds that you may find in the pasture can be classified in three categories:

  • Survivors – these begin to dominate in pasture where soil fertility is low or declining; for example, flatweed (catsear, dandelion), onion grass or bent grass. These can be controlled by improving fertility and grazing pressure.
  • Competitors – they often respond to high soil fertility situations; for example, capeweed, erodium, dock, barley grass or thistles. These may be controlled by selective fertilising and intensive grazing at certain times using spray grazing or spray topping techniques.
  • Opportunists – these love to colonise bare ground, so maintaining adequate cover with a vigorous perennial pasture will help to control these weeds. Weeds like sorrel, Paterson’s curse and some of the competitor species mentioned above can quickly take over a pasture without grazing some type of control.  Even the type of animal grazing the pasture can lead to more bare ground being made available for these weeds. 

The extent that some of these weeds may be present in the pasture will depend on whether there was any attempt to control them the previous year, if there has been some renovation carried out, or whether weed seeds were introduced in imported hay.

An ideal pasture composition for most livestock producers to aim for is around 20 to 30 per cent legume base with about 70 to 80 per cent desirable grass species.  This has been found to provide a good balance of protein and energy through most of the year for livestock production to be optimal. 

If you allow weeds to infiltrate your pastures, then this will begin to impact on your pasture productivity and livestock production. 

If weeds are becoming an issue on your farm, then they may cause the following problems to develop:

  • livestock poisoning
  • presence of plant parts that affect animal health, prevent grazing or reduce the value of animal products (for example, grass seeds that damage the skin or meat)
  • lower digestibility of available feed
  • occupying space and resources that could otherwise be used to grow more productive and desirable species
  • rapid spread into neighbouring areas
  • increased costs to control.

In permanent perennial pastures the best way to control weeds is initially through correcting soil fertility, improving grazing management, and possibly slashing and topping at appropriate times. However, autumn use of herbicides on broadleaf weeds can also be used to control weeds when they have gained a foothold in pasture-bare spots or campsite areas. 

The question is, what level of bare spots warrants monitoring for weeds as the autumn break rains arrive? If there were more than 10 to 15 bare spots, at 10 cm by 10 cm in size, in a square metre of ryegrass pasture, then oversowing may be required. If you have around 60 to 100 plants per square metre of pasture, you will not need to oversow. Gaps provide space where weed seeds may be scattered as well as any more desirable pasture species seed.

Soil temperatures above 14°C in the top 10 cm, combined with rain events creates an ideal climate for weed seeds and pasture seeds to germinate, particularly if there are bare spots. 

Weeds like dock, plantain, Paterson’s curse and onion grass which can survive for more than one year will have reproduced as well and continue to be present in the pasture now.  The question is, how much of the bare spots will be taken up by germinating weed seeds and will some sort of control be required?

Monitoring the bare spots in the pasture for the presence of weed seedlings as autumn progresses will be important in preparing for any possible control actions that may be needed.

Many weed seeds are large, so are quick to germinate, growing quite vigorously compared with the more desirable species like ryegrass and clover. This very soon results in the weeds shading out developing ryegrass or clover and competing for water and nutrients. 

Make sure you can accurately identify the difference between germinated weed seeds and those of more desirable pasture species like ryegrass and clovers.  If the ratio of weed seedlings to the more desirable species in the bare spots is high, then spray herbicide control may be the option. 

If the decision to spray with a broadleaf herbicide is made, and clover seedlings are present, then make sure they are at a size (3 to 4 trifoliate leaf stage) to not be severely impacted by spraying.  Check with your agronomist as to the best herbicide to use in this situation.

Information about registered agriculture chemicals and their permitted use is available from the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) database, a federal government database.

You can use this database to find recommended chemicals registered for use, by searching for the weed or pest, and the host plant or animal.

Having chosen a chemical or broadleaf herbicide to control a particular weed or group of weeds, you then need to follow the label instructions on the safe use of this chemical. 

As always, it can be all about timing and using the correct rates to achieve the best result.

If the weeds are killed or are able to be slowed and then grazed-off using a spray-graze method (if that is one of the label recommendations), then the more desirable pasture species should be given more chance to be productive throughout winter and spring. 

If you would like more information on identifying any problem weeds or advice on which herbicide maybe most effective you should work with your agronomist or local chemical reseller or contact Agriculture Victoria on 136 186.

Appropriate disposal for dead stock

Dr Jeff Cave
District Veterinary Officer

Disposal of an animal’s carcass isn’t at the front of anyone’s mind – until it’s needed.

Dead animals can be a risk to biosecurity and be hazardous to the environment, therefore appropriate disposal is essential to ensure a healthy, safe and productive farm. The disposal methods required will depend on the size of the dead animal.

The disposal of a large animal like a horse or cow can be a logistical challenge.

The use of a knackery, rendering plant, or an appropriately licensed landfill may provide an option.

For a knackery to collect livestock they generally insist the animal is a large animal, such as a cow or horse, and is alive or at the very least freshly deceased and if they are cattle, sheep or goats, must have an NLIS ear tag affixed.

Limited numbers of dead stock can be buried on a farm, providing the burial site does not negatively impact the land, surface or ground waters, or create an odour.

To reduce environmental impacts, an on-farm burial site should be on elevated land, in low-permeable soil, well above the water table and well away from water runoff and neighbouring houses.

The carcass should also be sufficiently covered with at least one metre of soil. Personal safety should always be considered when constructing a pit.

If left in paddocks, dead stock can be a potential disease risk and could contaminate land and water.

Agriculture Victoria provides a guide to disposing of dead stock after bushfires.

The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has the power to penalise or fine a livestock owner or manager, who does not dispose of dead stock properly.

For further information please contact your local Agriculture Victoria veterinary or animal health officer or the EPA.

How is your effluent pond – does it need clearing?

Richard Smith
Dairy Extension Officer

After recent heavy rains in some areas across Victoria, it is time to assess if your effluent ponds are coping with the extra inflow and are in good condition for the coming winter.

Effluent systems are generally designed to have the storage ponds empty going into the winter. Having the ponds empty increases effluent storage capacity as rainfall exceeds evaporation in this period and paddocks are generally too wet to apply effluent as it increases the risk of nutrient run off and waterlogging.

By reducing second pond volume, farmers can maximise fill capacity, plus applying an autumn application of effluent will provide a free boost to winter pasture growth. This is due to the large amount of nitrogen and potassium which is often held.

When applying effluent:

  • leave at least 150mm of effluent in the bottom of the ponds to prevent cracking and future leaking
  • if effluent is recycled for yard washing, then enough effluent must be left in the pond for this to continue
  • rotate effluent application in paddocks and regularly soil test application areas
  • avoid grazing paddocks until at least 21 days after effluent application
  • graze prior to effluent application as it allows greater penetration of UV rays into the canopy to kill potential pathogens contained in the effluent
  • transition cows should not be grazed on high potassium paddocks – including paddocks where effluent has been applied
  • young stock should not have access to areas where effluent is stored or has been applied.

Ideally test the effluent prior to application to assess the nutrient concentrations, so appropriate application rates can be calculated.

If you don’t have a recent test you can assess an appropriate application rate by using Dairy Australia’s Effluent and Sludge calculator.

The first effluent pond should also be de-sludged every couple of years, depending on the size of the pond and herd size, to ensure sludge does not build up and find its way into the second pond.

First pond sludge is an extremely useful resource and acts as a slow release fertiliser, still providing additional growth twelve to eighteen months after application. Sludge application can be a good way to kick start a rundown area of the farm and can be incorporated during a cropping phase. 

All dairy farmers are required to keep dairy effluent on farm and out of waterways. By ensuring your ponds are empty before winter it will assist you to manage your effluent system over the wet months.

More information is available on the Agriculture Victoria website.

The Very Fast Break

Welcome to the Very Fast Break seasonal climate update video clips.

We are partnering with the Grains Research and Development Corporation to bring you these short summaries for South Australia and Victoria and for the first time this year Southern NSW.

CLICK HERE to watch the short YouTube video for Victoria (4 min 20 sec).

Securing your future water needs

The fifth webinar in the Agriculture Victoria irrigation webinar series ‘Securing your future water needs - harnessing carryover and other water products,’ will run on Thursday 29 April, from 1 pm.

Agriculture Victoria Senior Irrigation Extension Officer Rob O’Connor said the webinar will discuss smart ways of taking advantage of the current low water prices to better manage future water price risk in the 2021-22 season and beyond.

The webinar will cover:

  • The situation and outlook for southern Murray Darling Basin (sMDB) water allocations and the water market - and what the outlook means for securing future water requirements
  • Current opportunities with carryover water, allocation forwards, entitlement leases and carryover leasing (parking)
  • Implications of carryover rules and spillable water, for irrigators
  • Protecting and accessing your carryover
  • Balancing the costs, benefits and risks of carryover and other water products in your farm water portfolio.

Mr O’Connor said expert speakers will include Phil Grahame, Ruralco General Manager, who has over 10 years of experience in water broking with a diverse range of clients across the connected sMDB.  

“Plus, Andrew Shields, Goulburn Murray Water River Operations Manager, who manages surface water, including GMW seasonal determinations, allocation outlooks and river flow planning.”

To register in advance for this webinar, go to https://bit.ly/AgVicWMW5

After registering, be careful to save the confirmation email containing important information about joining the webinar, including a password.

For technical issues please call John Paulet on 0429 158 500, or for more information about the irrigation webinar series call Rob O’Connor on 0408 515 652.

This webinar is brought to you by the Sustainable Irrigation Program, a partnership between Agriculture Victoria, DELWP, catchment management authorities and rural water corporations. .

Helping women’s recovery in bushfire affected areas

The Victorian Government is supporting women in communities hit hardest by the worst bushfires in Australia’s living memory – with a $700,000 boost.

Twelve months on from the disaster, Minister for Women and the Prevention of Family Violence Gabrielle Williams announced further funding to empower women on the path to economic recovery and boost critical support for the prevention of violence against women in bushfire-affected local government areas.

Building on more than $1.2 million already invested to protect women from violence in bushfire affected areas, this additional funding recognises that women living in these areas have carried a huge burden, supporting not only their communities to rebuild but also their families to heal.

From this funding, $500,000 will go towards preventing violence against women - including $140,000 for Gippsland Women’s Health and $75,000 for Women’s Health Goulburn North East to support local councils to deliver primary prevention initiatives using their expertise, local knowledge and existing relationships.

An additional $285,000 will be shared between East Gippsland Shire, Mansfield Shire, Towong Shire, Alpine Shire, and Wangaratta Rural Shire to support activities that stop family violence and violence against women before it begins.

Building on work undertaken by Good Shepherd, $200,000 will also go towards programs that boost the financial capability of women in disaster areas.

This funding will also support the Women’s Information Referral Exchange to train financial counsellors and financial capability workers in bushfire-affected areas to tailor their services when working with women.

The areas where these programs will be delivered were all declared a State of Disaster during the 2020 bushfires.

Young farmer finance workshops
Webinar series banner

Farm business risks are inevitable, but your ability to deal with them isn’t.

In our new ‘Farm Finance – Getting Prepared’ program for young farmers we’ll show you how to analyse a range or risks and develop ways to manage them.

From developing your own risk assessment to using the latest risk management software, you’ll come away from the
online ‘Farm business risks’ workshop feeling better prepared.

Sign up today.

The ‘Farm Finance – Getting Prepared’ webinar series breaks down every aspect of farm finance and runs from 7 - 8.30 pm on the following dates:

The sessions are being delivered by ORM Agribusiness Consultant Jane Foster, supported by Ms Wallis and participants will have opportunities to ask questions.

The Farm Finance – Getting Prepared series is supported by Agriculture Victoria’s Smarter, Safer Farms program.

Find out more from sarah.wallis@agriculture.vic.gov.au

Fox and wild dog bounty collections – Goulburn Broken and North East
Bounty begins

Victorian fox and wild dog bounty collections resumed on Monday 1 March, in line with current COVIDSafe requirements.

Agriculture Victoria has a COVIDSafe Plan for each bounty collection centre.

Electronic funds transfer (EFT) is the preferred method of payment so please bring your EFT details to the collection centre.

Acceptable entire fox scalps and entire wild dog body parts will be collected from eligible members of the public at specific dates and times, and from sites scheduled as collection centres.

Please note that no entire-fox scalps or entire wild dog body parts will be accepted at any public counter or state government office.

Collections will only be accepted at the designated times.

The 2021 bounty collections will run until the end of October.

Benalla collections - Fox only
Depot, 89 Sydney Rd, Benalla
10 am – noon
Dates for April – June:

  • Wednesday, 28 April
  • Wednesday, 26 May
  • Wednesday, 23 June

Broadford collections - Fox only
5 Mollinson St, Broadford
10.30 am – 12.30 pm
Dates for April – June:

  • Thursday, 29 April
  • Thursday, 27 May
  • Thursday, 24 June

Ovens collections – Fox and wild dog
5338 Great Alpine Rd, Ovens
1.30 – 3.30 pm
Dates for April – June:

  • Tuesday, 27 April
  • Tuesday, 25 May
  • Tuesday, 22 June

Mansfield collections – Fox and wild dog
Depot, 128 Highett St, Mansfield
2 – 4 pm
Dates for April – June:

  • Wednesday, 28 April 
  • Wednesday, 26 May 
  • Wednesday, 23 June 

Tatura collections – Fox only
Depot, 255 Ferguson Rd, Tatura
11.30 am – 1.30 pm
Dates April – June:

  • Monday, 26 April 
  • Monday, 24 May 
  • Monday, 21 June 

Wodonga collections - Fox and wild dog
14 Moorefield Park Drive, Wodonga
9 – 11 am
Dates April– June:

  • Tuesday, 27 April 
  • Tuesday, 25 May 
  • Tuesday, 22 June 

Visit www.agriculture.vic.gov.au/bounty to find out more or call the Customer Service Centre on 136 186.

Recovery after fire: practical steps for farmers
Recovery after fire
 

Need advice on the next step in your recovery from bushfire? Or details for a key contact in your local area? We have updated our booklet to help you with practical steps to plan your recovery and get back to business as soon as possible.

The booklet ‘Recovery After Fire: Practical Steps for Farmers’ – is available for free from our website. Our Agriculture Recovery Managers and technical experts also remain available to affected farmers.

We can provide you with one-on-one advice on topics such as soil and pasture recovery, livestock management and water management, erosion, fencing and property planning, pest control and financial support.

You can download the booklet  or call 136 186 to order a hardcopy.

In case you missed it – recent top stories
What's on – upcoming webinars

Details about Agriculture Victoria events can now be found in one spot on our website. Log on to agriculture.vic.gov.au/events to find out what's on.

The Occasional Counsellor™: horticulture seasonal workforce

Agriculture Victoria is hosting three The Occasional Counsellor™ webinars run by David Cherry, a clinical and forensic psychologist who has been working for 40 years.

DATE: Monday 19 April

TIME: 10 am to 1 pm

This workshop is for those in the horticulture industry who interact with growers and/or a seasonal workforce, who are not employed in a counselling role but are called upon to give others emotional support.

The focus of the workshop is on teaching participants strategies for assisting individuals who are sad, upset, bewildered, confused, angry or depressed while clearly remaining in their role.

The workshop will cover:

  • skills of the helper, including the importance of empathy and when not to empathise
  • understanding professional boundaries, including understanding your role and the limits of your role
  • the difference between emotional support and counselling
  • simple, practical strategies for supporting individuals who may be acutely emotionally distressed, including making appropriate referrals, while keeping yourself safe and remaining in your role
  • self-care for the worker.

RSVP essential as places are limited. For help registering, contact Jo Chong Wah 0436 809 878 or email jo.chongwah@agriculture.vic.gov.au

Call 136 186 for assistance managing seasonal workforce issues.

LiveFeed seasonal webinar – improving feed for stock g

Whatever start to the season you have had, this short webinar will discuss some options for improving the quality and quantity of pasture heading into winter.

DATE: Thursday 22 April

TIME:  8 – 8.30 pm

REGISTER HERE.

If your internet connectivity is poor, you can phone in to the webinar to listen.

We chat to Neil James, Agriculture Victoria, on options for improving the quality and quantity of pastures going into winter. Weed control, including winter cleaning and broadleaf control options - when and why to consider

We finish with a Myth Buster - Gaye Krebs, Associate Professor and lecturer in ruminant nutrition at Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, will answer 'is feeding too much protein to livestock wasteful?'

Inquiries: Jane Court 0436 606 742 or jane.court@agriculture.vic.gov.au

Check out the Feeding Livestock website for other livestock nutrition and feed resources.

NLIS database training webinar

Friday 30 April, 10 - 11 am

Register here

Agriculture Victoria is delivering interactive online training sessions for livestock producers using the National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) database. There are four events for you to choose from, between March and June.

Participants will learn about the Victorian traceability system, tour the NLIS database features and how to complete a Property to Property (P2P) transfer.

For more information, or if you have trouble registering online, please call (03) 5761 1647.

Numbers are limited to allow for an interactive session, so be quick to secure a spot!

Ask the researcher – Dr Liz Morse-McNabb
Ask the researcher Liz Morse-McNabb banner

Dairy farmers know that pasture is an excellent source of high quality, low-cost feed.

How the available pasture is used can make a big difference to the bottom line.

Agriculture Victoria’s Senior research scientist Dr Liz Morse-McNabb has been leading the Pasture Smarts program in partnership with Dairy Australia.

Tune in to Dairy Australia’s Ask the Researcher virtual forum on 21 April to hear Dr Morse-McNabb and GippsDairy research extension officer Donna Gibson share the key findings from their research including the PastureSmarts app which has been developed to help farmers track and measure their pasture utilisation.

You can also read about the PastureSmarts project in the latest edition the Dairy Innovation News.

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Contacting Agriculture Victoria

Call 136 186 from anywhere in Australia for the cost of a local call (except for mobiles and public telephones).

If you are deaf, or have a hearing or speech impairment contact the National Relay Service on 133 677 or www.relayservice.gov.au.

All contact points can be found at: agriculture.vic.gov.au/about/contact-us.

Don't forget to check out Agriculture Victoria's social media sites for up-to-date information and news.

 

 

'Like' our Agriculture Victoria Facebook page.

 

Follow us on Twitter @VicGovAg

 

Subscribe to the Agriculture Victoria YouTube channel. 

 
 

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