June 2025 President’s Report

Jack Tucker, President 

Hello and Welcome to the Winter edition of our newsletter.

On behalf of all our committee members thank you to our facilitator Nick Moll, for once again compiling this publication.

There are not a lot of positives to reflect on regarding the extreme Summer just gone, other than the fact that hopefully it is gone!!

It is pleasing to see a lot of drought management measures being employed such as containment yards and de-stocking, which has resulted in significantly more groundcover being retained than in previous similar situations.

We have several members who were unfortunately impacted by the Grampians fires, and it has been great to hear from some of them who are making the most of a dire situation and have been refencing into land classes, and making provisions for future ongoing Landcare works. Congratulations and well done to all those people who have taken this positive approach to rebuilding their farms!

One common theme speaking to people directly after the fires was the disappointment and sadness experienced due to losing so many large remnant Red Gums. These trees are icons of our landscape and are an amazing living connection to pre-European settlement times. I find it hard to comprehend sometimes that the larger/older specimens have spent significantly more of their lives in an ecosystem managed by the local indigenous people, than they have in the modified agricultural world they are subjected to today.

Losing such a large number of Red Gums like this provides us with an unfortunate reminder that they are not indestructible, and if we want healthy Red Gums in our landscape for future generations, we need to play our part. Essentially, they have evolved to thrive in lower, wetter areas, and as such are crucial to successful ecological function. They provide habitat for innumerable species, both vertebrate and invertebrate, particularly as they age and form hollows, and very importantly they act as pumps, keeping the water table down and preventing salinity from rising to the surface.

Thankfully Red Gums are very hardy, and very good at reproducing due to the massive amount of seed they set. Use of stock proof mesh guards to protect naturally germinated seedlings is cheap and effective – alternatively seedlings can be planted and protected the same way. If each generation of land managers protects only one generation of Red Gum regeneration, it will result in new trees are coming through every 30-40 years and ensure a heathy population for perpetuity.

Looking after existing remnants is just as important as encouraging new ones. Totally excluding stock from high value areas is the ultimate end goal but obviously not always an option. Ensuring cultivation and/or chemicals are NEVER used under the drip line of the canopy is crucial. The feeder roots of the tree are at their thickest in this area and this rule of thumb must be adhered to when cropping around eucalypts in general.

As always, we are constantly looking for new members and new ideas.

Happy Landcaring!!

Jack

Farming and Fatigue National Survey

CQUniversity is currently conducting a farming and fatigue national survey. Their aim is to provide useful practical advice, informing a new management guide to help farmers identify ‘hot spots’ in their operations.

To share your insights, please complete this ten-minute survey: Farming and Fatigue.

Landscape Rehydration Workshop with David Hardwick

Nick Moll, Landcare Facilitator

On Wednesday the 11th of June the UHLMG once again welcomed David Hardwick to our region – this time to deliver a workshop on landscape rehydration. Thank you, David, for taking the time to travel down to us and for presenting such an engaging and interactive workshop. The workshop was very well-attended with 36 participants, including a bus full of our neighbouring Landcarers from the Upper Mount Emu Creek Landcare Network. 

We enjoyed beautiful weather after the welcome weekend rain, a delicious lunch from Izzy’s Cafe in Dunkeld and plenty of insightful conversation and questions from the audience. 

Thank you to Sarah and Tom Whinney for generously hosting the workshop at Chatsworth House.

Some key takeaways from the day included:

>The importance of proper planning and detailed observation of your land over time before undertaking structural landscape rehydration works such as leaky weirs or contour drains. A rigorous planning process is necessary to ensure you achieve your desired outcomes from the work, mitigating the risk of unforeseen undesirable outcomes and ensuring you see return on your investment.

>The most efficient and cost-effective action in any landscape rehydration plan is the vital importance of establishing year-round vegetative groundcover across as much land as possible. Actively growing (green) plants are the most important kind of groundcover, as key drivers of the water cycle, but stubble and browned off annual plants are superior to bare ground.

>Understanding and implementing a 7-step landscape rehydration process. These steps include:

If anyone would like a copy of some of the resources from our landscape rehydration day, please get in touch with me at facilitator@upperhopkins.org.au.

This event was funded by Glenelg Hopkins CMA and the Victorian Government through the 2024 Victorian Landcare Grants.

Animal Homes – Schools Cluster Day with Landcare

Elia Pirtle, Landcare Facilitator

Nick Moll, Landcare Facilitator

The Upper Hopkins Landcare Network and Project Platypus are continuing their biodiversity field trips for the Ararat Rural School Cluster in the 2025 school year.  

For our first cluster day of the year held at Maroona Primary School, the theme was animal homes! This time we had an even bigger set of activities, with separate activities tailored for the younger and older grades respectively. 

Grade 3, 4, 5 and 6 students had two hands on activities to learn about some of our local native species who rely on tree hollows for homes – including sugar glider, squirrel gliders, feathertail gliders, owlet nightjars, grey shrike thrushes and more. 

These species have experienced significant declines across Victoria with the loss of large, hollow-bearing trees from the landscape. Planting new trees is a good start, but it can take decades before tree hollows start to form. In the meantime, installing nest boxes is a good way to create new homes for native animals in areas where there are no large, old trees left. 

Our local Landcare’s have already started building nestboxes, as part of a nest box workshop run in Pomonal last month. But these boxes all needed an important finishing touch – a layer of protective and camouflaging paint. The Ararat Rural School Cluster students were tasked with the important role of camouflaging nest boxes destined to be installed in fire-affected areas around the Grampians National Park near Jallukar. With Landcare facilitator Nick Moll, students spent some time matching up what animal might use which nest box (hint: we had nest boxes made specifically for tiny feathertail gliders, sugar gliders and squirrel gliders as well as less specialised nest boxes for owlet-nightjars and more generalised boxes for less fussy species such as the grey shrike thrush).  

Students identified and discussed the features of the nest boxes such as the grooves on the side to act as handholds and footholds for resident wildlife, the various sizes of entrance ways (a primary method for excluding certain species from getting into a homey nestbox), the importance of drainage holes in the bottom, thick sides to act as insulation and a light exterior to keep the nestbox cool on hot days.  

It was impressive how small the entrance holes were for our glider nest boxes, showcasing their ability to fit through tiny spaces and how handy this trick is to squeeze into tight spots safe from predators!  

Students were able to mix a variety of colours from a small handful of light base colours to decorate and camouflage their nestbox. They came up with an incredible array of colours and unique designs, connected by the fact that each design drew inspiration from the Australian bush – perfect for integrating our new homes for wildlife into the landscape.  

Everyone was then asked to write their name and school on the inside of their nest box for a very important reason. These nestboxes will continue to be monitored for residents after being installed by the Jallukar Landcare Group in collaboration with Project Platypus, and students and schools will be able to get ongoing updates about who’s been sighted in their nestboxes.  

The upper grade students then got to take part in another crafty educational activity that highlighted the importance of having continuous corridors of trees for hollow-dwelling species like sugar gliders and squirrel gliders. These species are able to glide up to 50m between trees on flat terrain, keeping them safe from predators on the ground (or cars!). But what happens if trees have been removed to the point that one clump of trees is further that 50 meters from another safe clump of trees? This makes it more and more dangerous for the gliders to travel in search of food, mates and homes, with more and more being lost to road collisions or predators like cats. 

To learn the importance of planting trees close together, the School Cluster students, led by Amelia Kingston of Project Platypus, built their very own gliders! Given different thicknesses of papers and various weights like paper clips, the students tried out different glider designs, exploring the physics of lift, drag, and thrust. Through experiments and discussions, students gained insight into how real-world aircraft and gliding animals move through the air. 

While the upper years learned about animals that live in tree hollows, the P through 2^nd graders spent their day with Landcare facilitator Elia Pirtle learning about a different kind of animal home – bug homes!  We started off in the classroom, with a microscope projected to the big screen. Elia showed off her collection of different bug homes she has found or photographed, and the students tried to guess all the different materials that invertebrates use to build their homes, like mud, sticks, leaves, bark, and silk. There were some surprises though… students were thrilled to learn about invertebrates that build homes out of spit, poop, and even the living bodies of other invertebrates!  

Now that we all had some ideas about what a good bug home might look like, we all headed outside to build our own mini bug hotels. The students were provided a biodegradable coffee cup to form the walls of their mini hotel, along with an assortment of natural materials to fill it with. This included bamboo sticks with hollow centres (perfect for native bees), she-oak cones with lots of tiny crevices, straw, leaves, sticks and twigs. Some students even rolled little balls of mud for species like spider wasps that need to collect mud to create safe little capsules for their babies. The hotels were extremely diverse, with so many creative and thoughtful personal touches provided by the students, like shade sails, and scaffolding for webs. Elia then showed the teachers the best ways to tuck these little hotels away in dry places around their own school grounds, and schools were able to take their students’ hotels back with them at the end of the day.

After lunch, it was time to burn off some energy, through two super fun games thought up by Nick! 

To help show the younger years kids the importance of having lots of ‘debris’ on the ground for animals, we played a brilliant game similar to musical chairs. Lots of different forms of ‘debris’ that could form animal homes were placed on the ground (in this case we used things like pillowcases, sleeping bags, tarps and wooden tunnels to represent natural debris like leaf litter, logs and rocks). Each student then got to pick their own animal to embody. Then all the animals went out to forage and play! But when they heard Elia call out ‘the predators are coming!’, all our animals had to quickly find some debris to hide under. But there was not enough debris for everyone! And the unlucky animals left out in the open got eaten by the pack of predators we let loose (the teachers!) and got turned into either predators or humans. Then after each round, the team of ‘humans’ would help Elia ‘tidy up the habitat’, as humans like to do – removing a few logs or rocks, and reducing the number of homes for animals to hide in. Then it was time for all the surviving animals to come out and forage and play again, before once again hearing the call of ‘predators!’ and diving into the remaining debris homes. After each round, there were fewer homes left on the ground, and thus fewer animals that could hide from the predators and survive. The students had lots of fun choosing their animals and rushing for cover under debris. And even better, it helped teach the students an important lesson about why we need to ensure there are lots of rocks, logs, leaf litter, small shrubs and grasses on the ground to make homes for animals.  

Students from grade 3, 4, 5 and 6 played a ‘hollows game’ of tag where some students were chosen to be predators and everyone remaining became prey animals. There were a number of safe areas (‘hollows’) scattered around, but they were only safe when there was ‘food’ (played by balls) in them. Students were able to see why the number of hollows in the landscape were important, both as places to raise young and for as safe refuges for prey animals. Prey animals who were tagged by predators became the ‘ghosts of wildlife past’ and had the important role of helping those still surviving to collect food to keep the hollows safe areas by collecting the balls onto a dinner plate (played by frisbees) and delivering straight to the hollows. But they had to watch out! At any moment predators could come along and knock the frisbees out of their hands meaning they’d have to begin all over again.

The game showed how reductions in hollows and reduction in food sources from habitat loss or fires could both work to make life harder for prey animals and our local wildlife, as it meant they would have to travel further in increasingly unsafe environments just to survive. Incredibly, even after lots of scheming and deciding how best to work together our predators weren’t able to capture all the prey animals, with a small handful always outwitting our dedicated predators.

We look forward to our next Landcare cluster day in August and would like to thank Maroona Primary School for hosting our ‘Animal Homes’ incursion and the incredible teachers and principals at our 5 cluster schools for all their help and enthusiasm on the day!

Farmers’ Perception Survey: Sustainable Agriculture, ESG and Smart Farming

Bhola Paudel, PhD Researcher, Federation University Australia

This study from Federation University PhD researcher Bhola Paudel seeks to capture real-world farming experiences, insights on sustainability awareness, and the use of technology in agriculture. The findings will help create practical tools to support farmers in improving sustainability while also addressing regulatory and market demands.

The study aims to develop a framework for assessing Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) impacts in agriculture by understanding farmers’ perspectives on sustainability, smart farming, and data management practices.

To participate please follow the link: Farmers’ Perception Survey: Sustainable Agriculture, ESG and Smart Farming. Your support is invaluable in making this research meaningful. If you have any questions or need more information, please feel free to contact Bhola at bhola.paudel@federation.edu.au.

Shelterbelts Lost in Fires

Heather Fleming

Many farmers in our district have invested time, effort and funds into the establishment of native shelterbelts on their properties.

We do this because tree planting programs deliver significant benefits to farming operations and the environment in general.

Well-managed and diverse native shelterbelts can have productivity benefits for cropping and grazing enterprises.

More pollinators, and reductions in costly crop and pasture pests such as red-legged earth mites, have all been associated with the introduction of shelterbelts on farms. Wind protection has also been noted as a benefit, even for cropping operations.

Shelterbelts also assist the environment more broadly because they support hundreds of species of birds, mammals, invertebrates, frogs and reptiles.

The Upper Hopkins Land Management Group, along with other Landcare groups and Catchment Management Authorities, has worked closely with its community to support tree planting programs. Funding opportunities, along with educational and practical support has all been provided, and the resulting successes have been many. 

However, the prevalence of wildfire in the landscape has wreaked havoc on much of this work. Successive fires have not only scorched large tracts of the Grampians National Park, but also the thousands of young trees that have been planted on farms and public land across the district.

While some of the more established trees, particularly the eucalypts, may eventually recover, most will not. Anything under about five years of age has been decimated, and the hard work and expense that was put into planting them has been in vain.

Finding the money and energy to replant will be a challenge for many farmers. Insurance may assist, but fencing, sourcing tube stock, preparing the ground, and then the onerous task of planting out hundreds, if not thousands, of young trees will have to be undertaken yet again.

In the past, there have occasionally been Landcare grants and the Hopkins Correctional Centre’s Land Mate Crew available to assist with this work. However, budgets are tight now, and there is no guarantee this will happen again.

Governments and the broader community need to understand the implications of these cutbacks. Farmers want to be good stewards of the land. Many have worked hard to counter the often ignorant and hurtful criticism that they are wrecking the environment out of greed and the desire for a quick profit.

They’ve demonstrated this stewardship through improved farming techniques, such as the protection and establishment of native vegetation. Now they face the disappointing prospect of not being able to afford to do this work anymore because their effort and foresight is undervalued. If this happens, we will all be the poorer for it.

Illegal Firewood Collection – If You See Something, Say Something

Upper Hopkins Land Management Group

As we head into the cooler months it is unfortunately likely we may see the re-emergence of illegal firewood activities centred around Maroona and Ararat.

If anyone witnesses anything to do with illegal firewood collection, please contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or alternatively lodge a report at Crime Stoppers online. Both these options allow for anonymity if desired.

Crime Stoppers have an internal process they must follow to ensure no reports go missing or unactioned and will be able to collate all reports of illegal firewood collection

Massive Returns for Landowners who Tackle Serrated Tussock Early

Victorian Serrated Tussock Working Party

How does a return on investment of $130 for every $1 invested sound? If you have the invasive grass Serrated Tussock (Nassella trichotoma) on your property, recent research from the Victorian Serrated Tussock Working Party (VSTWP) has demonstrated that proactive treatment delivers incredible financial benefits. The case studies show that early intervention is the key to preventing costly infestations and securing the long-term health of pastures and native grasslands.

Economic Benefits Backed by Research

The VSTWP commissioned a series of case studies to better understand the financial and ecological implications of controlling Serrated Tussock for various landowner types. Conducted by agricultural consultants at RMCG, these studies highlight the importance of strategic weed management.

The findings are clear: tackling Serrated Tussock before it establishes itself as the dominant species results in substantial financial savings. The longer landowners delay action, the greater the economic burden. According to the case studies, the cost of controlling an established infestation is at least five times higher than the cost of preventative measures. This makes early treatment an undeniable advantage for farmers and landholders alike.

A Complex Challenge Requiring Strategic Thinking

Managing invasive species like Serrated Tussock requires a proactive and innovative approach. Weed and pest management is rarely straightforward, these problems extend across vast areas and are shaped by ecological, economic, and social factors. However, the case studies provide a clear solution: investing in early control measures significantly reduces long-term costs and environmental damage.

The research emphasizes that the greatest financial savings come from treating Serrated Tussock before it has a chance to spread and establish itself. With each passing year, untreated plants produce seeds that further infest the land, escalating control costs exponentially. By investing in control methods, such as herbicide applications and regular monitoring, landowners can drastically reduce the spread and financial impact of this invasive species.

Proven Success in the Field

One standout case study focused on a private property in Clarkefield, where a minimal investment in herbicide and labour yielded an astonishing return of $130 for every $1 spent. This remarkable result demonstrates that early intervention is not just an ecological necessity but a highly lucrative financial strategy.

VSTWP Community Engagement Officer Ivan Carter reinforced this message, stating, “The clear message from the case studies is that there are large financial returns on investment for treating Serrated Tussock before it becomes the dominant plant in pastures and grasslands.”

An Urgent Call to Action for Landowners

For landowners, developers, and local governments, the case studies offer compelling evidence to act now. Those who delay face increasing financial and ecological challenges, while those who invest in early treatment will reap the rewards of healthier land and significant cost savings.

Serrated Tussock is a formidable invasive species, found throughout temperate regions of Victoria and New South Wales. It aggressively displaces native grasses, reduces biodiversity, and severely limits the productivity of farmland. The longer it is left unmanaged, the more difficult and expensive it becomes to control.

The newly published case studies are available for review at serratedtussock.com/management. For further information on managing Serrated Tussock, landowners are encouraged to reach out via email at info@serratedtussock.com.

Events, Events, Events! – See upcoming events, courses and webinars of interest below

Frogs of the Region – Presentation and Supper

Learn about the frogs of the region & how you can make your place more frog-friendly.

Presenters include Dr Jan Barton from Glenelg Hopkins CMA and Thomas Hernan, from Deakin University presenting his honours research: a survey of 107 wetlands in the region. Supper provided.

Whole Farm Planning Online – AgVic

For more information, please contact Clem Stermfels on 0429 018 879 / clem.sturmfels@agriculture.vic.gov.au or follow the link to register: Online whole farm planning course Tickets | TryBooking Australia.

Talking Trees – Landcare Victoria Webinar

Trees do a lot more than just take root. Trees on farms improve biodiversity, enhance soils, and sequester carbon all while improving farm productivity and health.

Join our next webinar to learn more about how trees can benefit your farm while being used to generate additional revenue through agroforestry, carbon farming, or biodiversity markets.  
 
Dr Hugh Stewart will join Mike Robinson-Koss and Josh Rigg from the Otway Agroforestry Network to talk about their experience planting and protecting trees on their properties. Bringing together farmers and experts from Agriculture Victoria, this webinar is your chance to learn more about different species and have your questions answered by experts with decades of experience. 

For more information or to register follow the link: Talking trees.

Save the Date – UHLMG Movie Night

Save the date!

Join us on the 29th of August from ~6pm-9pm at the Willaura Hall for a community screening of Greenhouse by Joost.

Imagine a house that grows its own food.

That’s the vision of environmental campaigner Joost Bakker, who was once dubbed the ‘Poster Boy of Zero Waste Living’ by The New York Times. This inspiring feature documentary follows Bakker as he builds a self-sustaining home, an ecosystem that provides its occupants with water, energy, shelter and nourishment. Joined in his work by internationally acclaimed chefs Matt Stone and Jo Barrett, Bakker faces his fair share of challenges to finish the home. Bureaucratic delays, COVID shutdowns and blackouts all threaten the build. But ultimately, Greenhouse is an uplifting look at the teamwork and ingenuity behind a paradigm-shifting project that bursts with life.

Watch the trailer here: Greenhouse By Joost – Official Trailer – YouTube

East Grampians Rural Pipeline Update

Works on the Lake Fyans Pump Station are now complete (pictured).

Landholder construction update

Construction of the East Grampians Rural Pipeline is
well underway!

• Works on the Lake Fyans Pump Station are now complete.
• Two hundred kilometres of pipe has been laid across Construction Zones 2, 3 and 4.

Our focus continues on maximising the number of connections and constructing the pipeline to get
water to landholders as soon as possible.

Pipeline water access as the project progresses

As pipeline construction progresses and hydrostatic pressure testing is completed, landholders may be able to access an interim supply of water through their meter prior to project commissioning. To see a live map of when this is available for your property, click here.

This interim water supply may not meet our standard service obligation as detailed in our Rural Customer Charter. The water supply should have sufficient pressure and flow to reduce the need to cart water until the system is fully commissioned.

Landholders must purchase their water allowance prior to using water from their meter. Water taken in the interim phase will be from landholder’s water allowance entitlement.

Landholders will only be billed for water used during this interim water supply phase. No service charges will apply until GWMWater deems water services to be fully commissioned. The usage charge will be in line with GWMWater’s Schedule of Tariffs, Miscellaneous and Other Charges.

3-day supply

As per Landholders Heads of Agreements, we remind landholders that water must be directly connected to a landholder’s storage from their meter point with sufficient capacity for a minimum of three days’ peak demand. A minimum air gap of 100 mm must be maintained between the storage filling inlet and storage overflow.

Water quality

Landholders are reminded that the raw water being supplied through pipelines is not fit for human consumption. Landholders may use this water for household activities, such as watering gardens, flushing toilets, irrigation, showering/bathing and laundry.

Tampering

Tampering with GWMWater’s pipeline assets including water meters is an offence under the Water Act 1989. Individuals found tampering with pipeline assets may be prosecuted and/or restricted from accessing water until the project has been completed.

Safe EC Levels For Livestock

EC values for each species of livestock denotes the level at which production decline begins:  

Beef Cattle: 6,200 EC μS/cm

Lactating Ewes and Weaners: 6,000 EC μS/cm

Dry Sheep: 9,300 EC μS/cm

Horses: 6,200 EC μS/cm

Pigs: 3,100 EC μS/cm

Poultry: 3,100 EC μS/cm 

Tomatoes: 3,000 EC μS/cm

Roses, Camellias: 1,800 EC μS/cm

Charts colour-coded: Green = Safe, Yellow = Unsafe for some species, Red = Unsafe for all livestock

Upper Mount Emu Creek Sites

Fiery Creek Sites

Hopkins River Sites

Happy Landcaring!