Oakvale at Finley, NSW for sale

A cropping farm at Finley in NSW, owned by the same family since the 1950s, has been listed for sale with an asking price of $7380 per ha.

Maximising the most crop per drop is the way the Osborn family has run its Finley property.

With a recycle system which can also function as storage, as well as a 53-megaltire storage dam, it makes for efficient water use according to Brett Osborn, who has farmed the land with his family.

The Osborns first bought Oakvale in the late 1950s and Brett said they had used contractors to assist in lasering the country as well as doing some themselves. Now, nearly 90 per cent of the property is lasered with the irrigation set up fitted with quality structures and the storage dam.

“We are always about making the best use of the water we had,” Brett said.

“When we get a rain event, we can hold the run-off in our recycle system which acts as extra storage.”

With neighbours including fellow croppers and dairy farmers, the country is suitable for either and the Osborns have run stock on the country but now crop the entire area.

Crops they have grown include winter cereals like wheat, barley, and oats, with this year’s wheat crop looking to yield up to six tonnes a hectare. They have also grown canola.

Summer crops have included sorghum, rice, maize, and millet, while the country also produces quality stands of clover which can be made into hay.

Brett said there was also the potential to sell forage produced to neighbours who might need more, and in droughts, they had used their own water to make fodder to sell.

Water is supplied to the farm by Murray Irrigation Ltd, with four, 30-megalitre a day outlets, and it also has access to district drainage.

Oakvale is divided into 20 main paddocks and there are formed internal roadways to give good access regardless of the weather. There is also frontage to three sealed roads.

Improvements include a five-bedroom house set in a low maintenance garden, while working improvements include a workshop, machinery and hay shed and a three-stand shearing shed which would require gear to make it operational.

The Osborns will harvest this year’s crop but will allow access to the buyers so they can prepare for next season.