Victoria’s south-west has struggled through record low rainfall in the past 18 months. Many other parts of central Victoria were badly parched too. But if farmers get substantial follow-up rain soon, they might just start to overcome the drought that has already inflicted so much heartache and stress.
Julie Green said the newborn lambs and rain represented hope, even though her farm has had just one significant rainfall.
“A good warm day is good for the lambs, it’s good for the growth. But we need the follow-up moisture because the subsoil is just dry.”
Only light showers, if anything, are forecast for the coming week in drought-affected areas. And there is no indication of wetter than average conditions to come.
The latest drought statement from the Bureau of Meteorology said there was a weak forecast signal for western and central Victoria – that means the chance of above, below or near average rainfall is roughly equal for July to September.
Stuart Green said farmers will need at least one more decent dump of rain this winter and an average spring to have a successful year. The lack of grass growth and hay means they are still feeding their sheep by hand.
“The sheep are still really hungry,” he said. “As much grain as you can put into them, they’ll take it.”
Yet, the clover and rye grass sprouting across the paddocks is an encouraging sign. Stuart says clover is like lollies for sheep.
“It’s beautiful, sweet. If it were a bit longer, I’d get you to taste it.”
There is some water in his tanks at home now, too, so his family can enjoy slightly longer showers.
“It’s good to not be covered in dust.”
Signs of hope: the green tinge on Stuart and Julie Green’s farm is a welcome change from the dust.Credit: Joe Armao
On Sunday, Premier Jacinta Allan said her government’s newly formed drought taskforce had met twice to discuss the crisis. The taskforce includes government ministers and representatives from the agriculture industry and local councils.
“We’ve been discussing a range of key areas,” she said. “Mental health support is something that has come up on a number of occasions.”
Allan said challenges securing water supply and pressures from increased feed and fodder prices had also been raised by taskforce representatives.
She said the government had rolled out three drought support packages since September last year totalling $67 million.
On Friday, the state government agreed to introduce new drought freight arrangements for Victoria’s south-west, which has been hit the hardest by prolonged dry weather, allowing bigger trucks to reach the region.
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Allan said farmers would be able to access feed coming from interstate more efficiently and quickly. The government is also introducing more control permits, so farmers can better manage kangaroo numbers on their properties.
Victorian Farmers Federation president Brett Hosking welcomed the changes, saying farmers had “enough to deal with”.
“The impact of this drought will be with us for some time, and we need to ensure all levers are pulled to support those doing it tough,” he said.
But the recent rain shows grazing land may yet recover and farmers might regain some belief that this year will not be lost entirely to drought, now that the dust has settled.
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