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Thursday 31 July 2025
Drought support for south west farmers
Agriculture Victoria continues to support drought-affected farmers in south west Victoria with an ongoing program of events.
Stay up to date with what’s on at the calendar of events.
Drought support
One-on-one farm advisory service
All farmers, anywhere in Victoria, can register for a free consultation with a farm management specialist.
The advisory service offers a session of up to 3 hours (face-to-face or online) and a follow-up call, to help farmers take stock and develop a plan for managing drought conditions.
The advice is suited to your situation, from a consultant that you nominate from the registered panel.
Agronomists, livestock nutritionists, veterinarians, pasture and grazing specialists and farm business advisors, can support you with:
- feed and water budgeting
- farm safety and workload management
- farm business and financial management
- soil health and pasture re-establishment
- animal health and welfare, and more.
For more information about drought support: www.agriculture.vic.gov.au/drought or call 136 186.
Victorian Drought Freight Network
The Victorian Drought Freight Network is open in south west Victoria to improve key freight routes for fodder transport.
Get more information or apply for a free network permit at: https://shorturl.at/l345G
If bringing in fodder from other states (except NT or Tas) drivers must apply for either a plant health certificate or a permit issued by Agriculture Victoria.
Permits are free and essential to avoid a fine.
For more information or to apply for a free permit visit https://go.vic.gov.au/4kKwr1R
Benchmarking to help growers better manage urea
Image: Dr Kamal Adhikari with his dynamic chambers experiment
Important research to help grain growers use nitrogen more efficiently is underway at Agriculture Victoria’s Horsham SmartFarm.
Agriculture Victoria research scientist Kamal Adhikari said dryland cropping farmers commonly top dress urea as a nitrogen (N) fertiliser on their paddocks in anticipation of forecast rain.
‘Urea represents one of a farmer's single largest variable cost inputs,’ Dr Adhikari said.
‘Getting it right has major implications for on-farm profitability. The downside of urea fertiliser is that much of its benefit for a crop can be permanently lost in a process known as volatilisation.
‘Volatilisation is where ammonia (NH3) gas is released from urea granules to the atmosphere.
‘Losing nitrogen through volatilisation doesn’t just have an economic impact on yields and profitability, it also affects the environment via greenhouse gas emissions,’ he said.
Using the dynamic chamber method, Dr Adhikari hopes to assess ammonia losses. He has previously used this method in New Zealand to measure NH3 volatilisation of intensive dairy pasture systems and can see its potential for Australian dryland cropping systems.
He believes it has several advantages over other ‘standard’ micrometeorological methods such as alpha samplers.
‘The dynamic chamber method only requires a small area to operate, so we can set up multiple plots with different conditions to study at the same time,’ he said.
Dr Adhikari said although the primary aim of the study is to benchmark this new method against alpha samplers, it is already collecting data that may be useful to growers.
‘Recently, we top dressed a paddock with urea in anticipation of a large rain front but we only received a fraction of the forecast rain,’ he said.
‘The urea granules had dissolved, but not enough to wash this urea into the soil where it could be used by the wheat.
‘We suspect that some has been lost to volatilisation but by the end of this study, we will know exactly how much of the N was actually lost.’
Dr Adhikari hopes the research will lead to the creation of a decision support tool for growers to help understand the impact of urea top dressing, depending on how much rain is expected, when it’s likely to fall and soil conditions.
More information on Agriculture Victoria SmartFarms and research is available at www.agriculture.vic.gov.au/research
Backing the heart of agriculture through grants
Victorian agricultural and pastoral societies will receive greater support from the Victorian Government to upgrade infrastructure and participate in regional shows.
Minister for Agriculture Ros Spence recently announced the opening of applications for this year’s Agricultural and Pastoral Society Grants Program, helping organisations with projects that encourage community involvement and promote Victoria’s rich agriculture industry.
The grants provide successful applicants with up to $10,000 to support infrastructure development and upgrades to celebrate Victoria’s agricultural communities, industries and produce.
The grants can be used to upgrade or establish new facilities, enhance public amenities, improve essential infrastructure, improve business management activities, biosecurity planning and promote reporting of livestock movements.
Feed budget support
Help is available to develop feed budgets or assist with livestock feeding decisions – vital for maintaining the health of livestock and while pastures start to recover following recent rain.
Any Victorian farmer can get help with feed budgeting by booking a one-on-one session with a specialist from our panel of farm advisors at https://go.vic.gov.au/452dHXb.
For practical tools and resources visit Agriculture Victoria’s Feeding Livestock website www.feedinglivestock.vic.gov.au or call 136 186.
Ag Vic Talk season 10
Embracing Diversity, Ensuring Safety with Catherine Velisha and Vy Pham
In this Farming Safe and Well episode, we hear from Catherine Velisha, Managing Director and Vy Pham, Production Manager at Velisha Farms about the world of cultural safety in the workplace.
Discover how Catherine and Vy are embracing diversity and ensuring safety for their multicultural workforce.
🎧 Listen now and learn how to create a workplace where everyone can thrive.
What's On
Details about these events and more can be found on our website.
Women in Ag lunch
When: Sunday 3 August, 12 noon
Where: Napier Room, Hamilton Exhibition and Conference Centre (enter from Shakespeare Street)
Connect with likeminded women who champion rural resilience and community at the inaugural Women in Ag Lunch.
Enjoy a delicious two-course plated meal by The Speckled Frog and sip on a refreshing mocktail crafted by Noodledoof Brewing and Distilling Co on arrival. Be inspired by guest speakers sharing insights on leadership, innovation, and the future of women in agriculture.
Presenters:
- Georgina Gubbins, Warrnambool cattle and sheep producer, founding member and chair of Food and Fibre Great South Coast
- Esmee de Looff, Agribusiness Consultant from Pinion Advisory
- Bec Cruise, Carwarp cattle and sheep producer, Producer Demonstration Site member
When: 6-7 August, 8:30 am - 5pm
Where: 2574 Sunraysia Hwy, Speed
Come and see us at site 130 at the Mallee Machinery Field Days to chat about current drought supports, upcoming workshops and more.
Farm for the future – Curyo and Nullawil
When: Tuesday 12 August, 1-5pm
Where: Curyo CFA, Marlbed–Curyo Road, Curyo
When: Wednesday 13 August, 1-5pm
Where: Nullawil Recreation Reserve, Birchip–Nullawil Road
Hosted by Mallee CMA, 2 free workshops with leading soil scientist Dr Cassie Schefe covering:
- understanding your farm’s carbon number
- learning how you can improve efficiencies and boost soil health
- gaining practical insights to help future-proof your business and profitability.
Afternoon tea will be provided.
GHCMA Scheduling workshops for irrigators
When: Thursday 14 August 10 am - 3 pm
Where: South West TAFE campus, Hamilton
Irrigation scheduling is planning when and how much water to apply to a crop to achieve maximum crop production or a particular crop quality.
Hosted by Glenelg Hopkins CMA and presented by Peter Smith from Sapphire Irrigation Consulting, you'll learn:
- when to irrigate and when to stop
- how much water to apply
- tools for irrigation management
- evapotranspiration and crop water use
- water stress thresholds for different crop types
- soil moisture probes and where to locate them.
Free. Email Noni Brislin at n.brislin@ghcma.vic.gov.au for more information.
In good times and in bad: adaptive skills for your farming future
When: 18-19 August, 8:30 am — 3 pm
Where: Wonwondah Hall, Wonwondah Hall Road, Wonwondah
When: 21-22 August, 8:30 am — 3 pm
Where: Dunkeld Bowling Club, Memorial Park, Dunkeld
Livestock and grain farmers join us for a 2-day adaptive farming workshop with Think Agri consultant Dr Kate Burke.
Learn valuable strategies to manage your business in the current challenging conditions and how to develop a plan for your farm’s future success.
Topics
- Managing climate variability and farm financial performance
- Identifying opportunities for growth and mitigating risk
- Reviewing key profit drivers and high-level benchmarks
- Analysing income versus cost of production
- Evaluating your appetite for risk and production potential
- Scenario planning for 2025 and beyond
Free, morning tea and lunch included, but register early as numbers are limited.
Find more information about available drought support at www.agriculture.vic.gov.au/drought or call 136 186.
Setting strategies for farm business success
When: 26-27 August, 9 am — 3 pm
Where: Millewa Community Complex, Lake Cullulleraine
When: 28-29 August, 9 am — 3 pm
Where: Ultima Hotel
Join Gavin Beever, Brendan Williams and Dale Grey for a Setting Strategies for Farm Business Success 2 day workshop in Underbool and Lake Cullulleraine.
Topics:
- What an effective business plan is and how to define success
- Cashflow management
- Dealing with downturns
- How to undertake a business fitness check
- Identifying success drivers and benchmarking
Visit agriculture.vic.gov.au/events to learn more and register.
Farmer's Night Off
When: Friday 5 September, 5-11 pm
Where: The Logan Pub, 6742 Wimmera Highway, Logan
Join us for a free, in-person session designed to support individuals and farm businesses navigating challenging times. This event brings together practical business advice, financial support options, and wellbeing strategies—all aimed at building resilience.
Topics:
- Business advice and grant guidance from Richard Bales (Dundee Swanwater Consulting)
- Mental health strategies with Warren Davies, The Unbreakable Farmer
- Support from East Wimmera Health Service, Rural Financial Counselling Service, and Authentic Conversations
- Farmer-to-farmer networking
GRDC events
7 August, 9 am - 1 pm GRDC Grains Research Update – Dimboola
7 August, 9 am - 12 noon Mastering fungicide resistance management with AFREN – Lake Bolac
23 September, 9 am - 3 pm GRDC Harvester Set Up Workshop – Horsham
Visit grdc.com.au/events to learn more.
Birchip Cropping Group events
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 us through the National Relay Service at 133 677 or visit the National Relay Service.
All contact points can be found at: agriculture.vic.gov.au/about-us/contact-us
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