Cropping 2023: It’s a break

Rainfall over the weekend has brought an autumn break to growers across much of Victoria.

Grower Clay Gowers (pictured during harvest) has started sowing his 2023 crop. Picture: Glenn Milne

Rainfall at the weekend has brought an autumn break to growers across much of Victoria.

In the state’s north west, Mildura recorded 20mm on Saturday and Sunday, enough to give growers a kick start after a dry March.

Grower Clay Gowers, who grows wheat, barley, lentils, lupins, vetch and field peas at Carwarp, just south of Mildura, said he was heading out to sow his first paddock of field peas on Monday after receiving 10-15mm of rain at the weekend.

The moisture would be enough for seeds to germinate, and would give his cropping program a “nice start”, he said.

At Rupanyup, farmer and Grain Producers Australia southern region director Andrew Weidemann said he had had an exceptional start to the season.

As of Friday, Mr Weidemann had already had 60mm of rain for April.

The nearby weather station at Charlton recorded another 17mm over the weekend, bringing the region to 152 per cent of its average rainfall for March and April.

“We’ve had a seriously significant start,” Mr Weidemann said.

Clay Gowers starts has started planting his 2023 crop in the Victorian Mallee. Picture: Glenn Milne.

“I can count on two hands how many breaks we’ve had over 50mm in April in my whole farming career. I wouldn’t get to 10 I can tell you. I’d maybe get past one hand.”

Further south, he said the Western District through to Hamilton had also had “a massive start”.

But with a drier-than-average season forecast, many growers were still nervous.

“You do wonder whether it’s a little bit of fool’s gold given the forecast. The outlook is for an El Nino, event, which obviously means less rainfall.

“We have seen it before that we get a great start, and then we get to July and it stops raining. We can only wait and see,” he said.

Farmer Chris Drum, who grows canola, wheat, barley, lentils and beans at Banyena, said he was hoping a no-till approach to cropping would pay off this season.

“If it is a dry spring, the more cover you’ve got at this time of year and right through, the better,” he said.

Grain Producers Australia southern region director and Rupanyup grower Andrew Weidemann says central and western district growers have had an exceptional start to the season.

Mr Drum had received 40mm of rain as of Friday, which was equal to his monthly average for April.

He said he had a lot of stored moisture in the soil at 30cm and deeper after last season’s heavy rain.

“With stored moisture and new farming methods, we can probably access a lot of that moisture if and when it does get dry,” he said.

Meanwhile in the state’s northeast and across the border in southern NSW, some farms were bordering on waterlogged.

At Yarrawonga, 84mm of rain has fallen on already saturated soil in March and April, bringing the region to 123 per cent of its average for the two months.

Corowa grower Jarrod Hanrahan said his rain gauge had topped 130mm in three weeks and his hoped-for start on Monday had been pushed back 10 days.

“Patience is the name of the game,” he said.

“I’ll be looking at getting going on Anzac Day if it stays dry.”