Catchment:
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Goulburn Broken
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Collaborating Producer:
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Barry Noye
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Location:
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Creightons Creek |
Producer Group:
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Creightons Creek Landcare Group |
Site Co-ordinator:
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Ian McClaren
P:(03) 5794 9279
ianmcclaren@bordernet.com.au
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Production and Environmental Challenges
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The Managing Steep Hills with Wisdom, Wire and Water project has arisen from a widespread concern among landholders, Landcare groups and agencies about the bare steep hills in the upper Goulburn Catchment. This has been worse in recent drought years and with the storms over summer. The cause is clearly overgrazing particularly on the upper north and west slopes of hills, where there has been a loss of perennial grasses (mostly natives) and an increase in annual grasses and broad-leafed weeds that die off over summer leaving bare ground. Predictions for climate change indicate that these hills will become even more sensitive to grazing as annual rainfall declines and the probability of storm events increases. At the same time, many lower south slopes are under-utilised by grazing animals.
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Innovation being tested:
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The groups see that farmers could achieve better production and less soil erosion by more strategic grazing on the different parts of their hill country, using fencing to manage grazing pressures and enhance perennial grasses over annual weeds. This will require more understanding of the timing of grazing to match the growth cycles of these native grasses.
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Base pasture:
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Native dominated pastures on the mid and lower slopes with a variety of species including Wallaby Grasses, Spear Grasses and Weeping Grass. Phalaris, Cocksfoot and Perennial Ryegrass are present at the site. Annual grasses such as Silver Grass, Barley Grass and Winter Grass are also present. Stork’s Bill and Sheep Sorrel is dominant over much of the site, especially in the sheep camps. The sheep camp is largely bare over summer.
Pasture sown in July 1995 (3kg/ha Holdfast Phalaris, 1.5kg/ha Porto Cocksfoot, 4kg/ha Trikkala Sub-clover).
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Animal systems:
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Merino ewes lambing August/September, lambs weaned early November. Rotational grazing from 2003, set-stocked prior to 2003.
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