Weather: Extreme heat to hammer Vic and NSW cropping regions

A five-day September heatwave will place pressure on crops with the fates of Victorian and NSW farmers “now in the hands of the weather gods.”

Crops are expected to come under pressure this weekend with a five-day September heatwave that could see temperatures nudge 35C in parts of northwest Victoria and southern New South Wales.

Ivanhoe, in the NSW Riverina, is forecast to receive the hottest temperatures with a top of 31C on Thursday, rising to 33C on Friday, 34C on Saturday and 35C by Sunday. Ivanhoe’s long-term September average is 22.9C.

The mercury is expected to top 34C in Hay on Sunday, after experiencing 33C on Saturday. Temperatures are also expected to hit 33C in Wentworth on Saturday and Griffith on Sunday.

In Victoria, Mildura is expected to hit 30C on Thursday before peaking at 32C on Saturday and Sunday, with Ouyen forecast to top 31C on Saturday and Sunday and Swan Hill to hit 30C on Friday and Saturday.

26/04/2019 Crop farmer Craig Henderson who is sowing oats on his property at Berriwillock in Victoria. Picture: David Geraghty

The BOM predictions have left crop farmers in the Millewa region of northwest Victoria eyeing the rising temperatures with nervousness.

Craig Henderson, who farms in the Wimmera and Millewa regions, said not only would yield potential be threatened by a string of hot days, but a lack of rain and wind would draw down subsoil moisture that farmers had been relying on to survive the season.

“That is certainly a cause for concern and too many strings of hot days over a short period will knock crops around and threaten quality and yield even with good levels of subsoil moisture,” he said.

“But the crops are prepared as well as possible and, while we are still reasonably confident we can still hit average yields this harvest, we are now in the hands of the weather gods.”

Meanwhile, Werrimull crop farmer Ron Hards agreed that the key to best surviving the period was early preparation starting with summer fallowing and a rigorous fertiliser application, and weed management program throughout the year.

“It is going to be testing, we have not had a decent shower of rain in a month, only patches of drizzle of a millimetres here and there,” he said.

“The last thing we need with the increased temperatures is a stinking hot north wind but if you have prepared the crops as well as possible and have the roots in the moisture you can handle two to three day spells of heat.

Farmer Ron Hards in a crop on his farm near Mildura, in the Millewa region, of northwest Victoria. October 2020. Picture: James Wagstaff

“But if you have not done the preparation then there will likely be damage to your crops.”

He added that a shortage of fertiliser and spray across Australia in recent months had curtailed some farmers’ management plans.

Barley has started to head across the region and wheat is mostly still to come out, while recent frosts will impact the quality of some grains and legumes.

SEPTEMBER SLAP
Forecast temperatures for this week

Ivanhoe, NSW
Thursday: 31C
Friday: 33C
Saturday: 34C
Sunday: 35C

Hay, NSW
Thursday: 30C
Friday: 32C
Saturday: 33C
Sunday: 34C

Wentworth, NSW
Thursday: 31C
Friday: 32C
Saturday: 33C
Sunday: 32C

Griffith, NSW
Thursday: 29C
Friday: 31C
Saturday: 32C
Sunday: 33C

Mildura
Thursday: 30C
Friday: 31C
Saturday: 32C
Sunday: 32C

Balranald, NSW
Thursday: 30C
Friday: 31C
Saturday: 32C
Sunday: 32C

Ouyen
Thursday: 29C
Friday: 31C
Saturday: 31C
Sunday: 31C

Swan Hill
Thursday: 28C
Friday: 30C
Saturday: 30C
Sunday: 29C

Birchip
Thursday: 27C
Friday: 28C
Saturday: 28C
Sunday: 27C