Forecast rain to boost barley yields at Moolort

Rain this week could be just what a crop of barley at Moolort needs to reach a yield of 6 tonnes a hectare. Graeme Evans is optimistic about the forecast.

The promise of rain this week could be the boost a barley crop at Moolort needs to reach a yield potential of 6 tonnes a hectare at harvest.

Graeme Evans, who grows winter crops in central Victoria, said after a run of five frosts in a row, he was hoping for milder conditions and some rain.

“We could see 10mm early this week and then anywhere from 40mm on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday,” he said.

In the days leading up to the rain, he was busy spraying and applying inputs, and said the crops were looking well, helped by irrigation.

He grows oats, barley, wheat, and canola, and said the oats and barley were standouts this year.

Graeme Evans of Moolort and his dog Molly in a paddock of barley. Picture: Zoe Phillips

There are 809ha of irrigated crops and 1.8ha of dryland.

Graeme said the rain this week would help reduce the amount of watering needed.

He said the Maximus barley was doing well and was sown about a week after Easter, which he considered near-perfect timing in April.

It was sown with a DBS (disc bar) seeder, which Graeme said also helped the crop perform well by making the most of available soil moisture.

There is also a later-sown crop of oats, planned to be cut for hay, which is doing well too.

“We are certainly going to welcome this rain, and it will make a difference for us, and a lot of people,” he said.

He added that the cold weather had slowed growth, but farmers were hoping soil temperatures would stay mild enough for useful growth after the rain this week.