The region’s farmers are hoping for a good autumn break with decent rainfall following a year of well below average rain.

An analysis of 2024 rainfall data from almost 200 Bureau of Meteorology weather stations right across Australia show that  Ballarat was Victoria’s  driest centre for the past year, having received 442mm – or equivalent to just 64 percent of its annual average.

The BOM’s data analysis shows that the next driest centre for the past year was Stawell (339mm or 72 percent of its annual average) and then Horsham (266 or 73 percent of its annual average).

Local farmers like John Drife, whose family has been farming for many generations at Glendaruel, just south west of Clunes, says last year’s lower than average rainfall significantly impacted the amount of hay that was cut and baled on his property.

However, it was a mixed bag with some good outcomes with his grain crops of canola and wheat – both of which served to compensate John, and quite a few of the region’s farmers, for the lower-than-average hay yield.

“We were short on rainfall right through spring so our hay paddocks  produced about a quarter to a third of what they should produce – about two rolls to the acre when it should have been about six to the acre,” John says.

With his down-on-average hay yield now shedded, John’s been busy in recent days getting the last of his large round straw bales, made from the season’s wheat  stalks (remaining after the wheat grain has been harvested from them), out of the paddocks.

“It’s been a pretty evaporative summer so far,” he says.

“We’re feeding stock at the moment every day and we don’t normally start until February.

“We are looking for a good autumn break (with rainfall) in early April.”

Clunes farmer Malcolm Hull says the availability of on-farm water is  now becoming a real issue especially for local farmers who rely solely on  dams.  

“The dams are very low now. Water is the issue.”  

Malcolm says his barley crop of 2024 was saved “by the skin of the  teeth” by rainfall that arrived in late October-early November.  

“I’ve kept some grain back still sitting in the silo knowing we will more  than likely need this before the autumn break,” he says.  

“The stock are nibbling their way through hay very quickly and I suspect  we will have to buy some in. We didn’t have such a great spring and now with this hot dry summer the stock are cleaning the paddocks out.”  

A little to the east, Ullina farmer Tim Barry is planning to start dry sowing up to 900 acres of grain crops once again, from April.

“There is no real subsoil moisture at the moment so we will need good  autumn rain to get up and growing,” Tim says.  

“We will dry sow starting about April 14 with canola, and then we’ll sow  wheat in early May. We’ll also be looking at sowing some oats as well which  are milled locally at UniGrain at Smeaton.  

“Last year the last rain was the difference between a terrible year and a reasonable one. Our cereal hay was still quite good but grass hay was nearly non-existent.”  

Words” Eve Lamb  

Words: Eve Lamb | Image: Supplied

HUMBLED and “a bit surprised” is the way farmer John Drife describes discovering he’s this year’s
Hepburn Shire Citizen of the Year.
At a civic event in Daylesford last Wednesday, the Hepburn
Shire Council named John its Citizen of The Year, also announcing Daylesford’s Atticus Punt-Trethewey as its Young Citizen of the Year.
The Great Dividing Trail Association’s Reconciliation Walks took out Event of the Year as part of the shire’s 2023 Community Awards.

“I was a little bit surprised. It’s very humbling just to be nominated and I’d like to congratulate all the others who were nominated,” said Clunes farmer John Drife.
John and Billie Henderson-Drife farm sheep, cattle and crops in the Glendaruel-Mount Beckworth area just out of Clunes. Both of their families settled in the area back in the mid-1800s.
John paid special homage to his wife Billie, stating that he believed she deserved the award as well.
The farmer is a pivotal part of the community in and around Clunes. He’s on many committees and community groups including the CFA (a member for more than half a century),
Waubra Wind Farm Community Fund Committee, Mt Bolton/Beckworth Landcare Group, Clunes & District Agricultural Society Committee and many more.
John coordinated multiple fundraisers for individuals and groups, in particular playing a central role in Bushy’s Cutout fundraiser in 2018, which raised more than $85,000 to support local shearer Tony
‘Bushy’ Hill in his battle with Motor Neurone Disease.
Other Citizen of the Year nominees were Terry Bolton, Gayle Chappell, Michelle
Clifford, Margaret Giles, Natasha Hall and Jennifer Hind.
The shire’s Young Citizen of The Year, Daylesford’s Atticus Punt-Trethewey, was
similarly humble.
“It’s not something I ever would have expected,” he said.
The 21-year-old Australian College of the Arts music production student initiated and organised the free youth music event AltWave, held for the first time last year in the Daylesford Town Hall.
Atticus engaged a team of young musicians and entertainers and coordinated support of community groups and businesses to run the event that raised awareness and money for youth mental health.
“I guess more than anything I’m just grateful that the message we’re trying to spread with AltWave has cut through,” said Atticus, who is already busily planning the next AltWave event for later this year.
“The issues that young people face in the region are very important,” he said.
The other nominees for the shire’s Young Citizen award were Flossy Haughie,
Lucinda Lowe and Sasha Taylor.

Meanwhile, president of The Great Dividing Trail Association, Daylesford’s Tim
Bach, was keen to pay homage to others when the association’s Reconciliation Walks
scooped the shire’s Event of the Year award.
“The driving force for this particular event was Barry Golding who did a lot of the
research and got permission from landholders, because some of the walks cross onto
private land, and he liaised with the Djarra people,” Tim said.
As part of its ongoing, wider guided walks and rides program, the Great Dividing
Trail Association held educational guided walks to local sites where Aboriginal
Protectorates had been established in the mid-1800s.

The walks highlighted the early post-contact history of First Nations peoples and
emphasised the need to acknowledge their mistreatment as a step in the reconciliation
process.
The Reconciliation Walks had strong support from Djarra people and have
become a regular feature of the GDTA’s wider guided walk program.
“This year we are doing two more walks in significant Aboriginal areas – one to Mount Beckworth on Sunday, August 27 and one to Mount Tarrengower on Sunday, June 25,” Tim said.
“I’m honoured that we received this award. I’m surprised too because there were some really high quality nominations and I feel that we are only a little organisation.”
The other nominees for the shire’s Event of The Year award were AltWave Youth Music Event, CresFest and Wombat Trees Festive Project.