Harvest stalled by rain and fire risk in weather battle
Despite scorching 40C heat in some regions, Western District farmers remain weeks away from harvest as unpredictable weather creates seasonal challenges.
Despite scorching temperatures above 40C in some parts of southeast Australia, Western District farmers have barely started harvesting, with crops still needing time to reach maturity before they can be stripped.
Cooler temperatures and intermittent rain have stalled their harvest, in stark contrast to Victoria’s north and NSW Riverina, where hot and windy weather combined with cease harvest and fire risk have also caused delays.
Bureau of Meteorology figures show in Victoria, Mansfield has recorded 42mm of rainfall so far this month, Moe 38mm, Ensay 28mm, Birchip 25mm and St Arnaud 25mm.
In NSW, Tumbarumba had 26mm, Peak Hill 13mm and Orange 9mm.
In South Australia, Lucindale received 35mm, Bordertown 28mm, Willunga 23mm, Crystal Brook 22mm and Millicent 19mm. Tasmania recorded 29mm at Buckland and 27mm at Triabunna.
Queensland saw 78mm at Townsville and 29mm at Innisfail, while in Western Australia, Mount Hart Station measured 44mm and Yulmbu 21mm.
And while farmers say they would welcome fine days to complete harvest, there’s more intermittent falls forecast for later this week.
Small amounts of rain are expected across much of Victoria this week, with Bendigo anticipating a 50 per cent chance of 5–10mm on Friday and temperatures reaching 32C.
In the Western Districts, Hamilton could receive 5–10mm on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, while Rutherglen warms to 33C on Thursday before a 60 per cent chance of 5–10mm on Saturday.
Gorst Rural director and agronomist Cam Conboy of Lake Bolac said conditions were cool and mild in the Western Districts.
“We had another 6mm to 8mm of rain over the weekend, and some people have tried to have a nibble at harvest, but realistically it’s still seven to 10 days away,” he said.
After a dry spring the area has benefited from late season rainfall and cooler daytime temperatures with just one day last week at 30C.
Mr Conboy said the cool seasonal finish had likely added to yield and while it was holding the process up for harvest, there were benefits in having patience.
“The past four or five weeks have been amazing compared to the rest of the season, we are in with a chance. It was a sad story four or five weeks ago,” he said.
Serpentine farmer Luke Milgate said it had been a challenging year for weather up until now.
He was about two thirds of the way through harvesting barley and said it was a case of making the most of harvest in between intermittent weather events delivering around 5mm of rain.
There had been a couple of stop-harvest days, due to the temperatures and wind. And light rainfall had also slowed progress.
“We are having a run of half-decent weather at the moment and we take what we can,” he said.
‘Everyone wants it done at once’: Rain delays hay
