Hi all,
You can add your regional analysis from the activity in part 1 to this thread, we are looking forward to hearing about the farming systems present in your region.
Hi,
I’m fairly new to Victoria and was actually surprised at how green the land was when we arrived. After living here for a few months and becoming an Agriculture teacher in Gippsland, I’ve come to realise that there are a few reasons why the Agricultural land specifically, is so green.
Based on the data for the Gippsland region:
Farm Type
Irrigation Farms 40%
Dryland Farms 60%
Irrigation Type Used
Flood irrigation 68%
Pipes and Risers 22%
Spray via Pivot 43%
Spray Via laterals 31%
Forgive my ignorance (being a newbie) but weather observations show that the region receives quite a lot more rain than many other areas of the entire country, which would naturally reduce the need to irrigate, hence the higher rate of dryland farming. Gippsland is also famous for it’s diary production and many enterprises utilize effluent ponds to recycle manure, urine and water that would otherwise go to waste – and flood irrigation, and using pipe & risers is usually the way the nutrient rich effluent is distributed throughout the paddock unless serious filters are used to separate the large from fine particles that would otherwise get stuck in filters for spraying via pivot. If these filters are used, in addition to irrigating with clean water, it would also explain the large % of Spray via pivot use.
From what I’ve read, flood irrigation with effluent ponds in runoff periods where high rainfall occurs isn’t really approved of, so I’m assuming that’s also where the spray pivots come in handy.
Again, I’m new to the area and am keen to learn more about the dairy industry – so if I’m completely off track – please let me know! ?
I’m fairly new to Victoria and was actually surprised at how green the land was when we arrived. After living here for a few months and becoming an Agriculture teacher in Gippsland, I’ve come to realise that there are a few reasons why the Agricultural land specifically, is so green.
Based on the data for the Gippsland region:
Farm Type
Irrigation Farms 40%
Dryland Farms 60%
Irrigation Type Used
Flood irrigation 68%
Pipes and Risers 22%
Spray via Pivot 43%
Spray Via laterals 31%
Forgive my ignorance (being a newbie) but weather observations show that the region receives quite a lot more rain than many other areas of the entire country, which would naturally reduce the need to irrigate, hence the higher rate of dryland farming. Gippsland is also famous for it’s diary production and many enterprises utilize effluent ponds to recycle manure, urine and water that would otherwise go to waste – and flood irrigation, and using pipe & risers is usually the way the nutrient rich effluent is distributed throughout the paddock unless serious filters are used to separate the large from fine particles that would otherwise get stuck in filters for spraying via pivot. If these filters are used, in addition to irrigating with clean water, it would also explain the large % of Spray via pivot use.
From what I’ve read, flood irrigation with effluent ponds in runoff periods where high rainfall occurs isn’t really approved of, so I’m assuming that’s also where the spray pivots come in handy.
Again, I’m new to the area and am keen to learn more about the dairy industry – so if I’m completely off track – please let me know! ?
After doing some research I found Gippsland covers approximate 18% of the state of Victoria. Driving from Leongatha to Orbost it is obvious that Gippsland's topography varies a lot from flats to undulated rolling pastures in the south west. Historical data indicates Gipplsland's rainfall is quite high (600-700mm per annum) and temperatures are mild to warm in summer (21 to 25°C) and the soils are not able to retain this moisture well over the dry periods. During winter, temperatures average 12 to 15°C. There are frequent frosts further inland and snow in the mountains. These factors influence the type of irrigation system infrastructure and volume of water used. 40% of 102 farms surveyed in Gippsland irrigate. This is done mostly by flood irrigation (68%) followed by Spray (pivot) 43%; Spray (lateral) 31%; and finally Pipes/raisers 22%. Apart from food processing, the three largest primary production industries in Gippsland are dairy, beef and vegetables which uses a lot of irrigation. Most of the irrigation I have seen on farm is recycled sludge (effluent) from dairy washdown. I have not seen irrigation used for beef farms in Gippsland. I have however, seen plenty of pivot spray being use for vegetable production (specifically snow peas grown in undulated paddocks). I am more familiar with purchasing trends in the Murray region, than Gippsland. The majority of water sources I have seen in Gippsland are are on-farm dams (reliant on rainfall runoff from a catchment) and/or bore water.