Lushness, moonscapes on flood recovery land

LAND along the Serpentine Creek is having a patchy return to growth since last October’s flood emergency.

Willera Merino’s manager Simon Coutts said land between the creek and the Loddon River had been turned into a moonscape late last year.

And while some land had already returned to growing lush lucerne, some areas were still to recover.

“Some parts of the property are still looking like a moonscape and then metres away, there’s lucerne growing a metre high,” said Simon.

“At the moment though, we could do with a little more rain to help growth and regeneration after a very light autumn.”

Simon said lucerne planted at

Easter had germinated well. And the flood produced other challenges at Willera in the months after the near-record floods.

A water-ruined vetch crop helped with feed for sheep and bare-shorn lambs.

But that also unleashed an animal husbandry issue that Simon had not experienced before. The young animals were eating vetch plants that had developed mould

Sheep

THERE was a smaller yarding of 8600 lambs and just 1700 sheep at Bendigo on Monday, influenced by the cheaper prices of the past week and also impending rain.

ries recording averages below the $6kg mark.

Light lambs showing reasonable quality $50 to $110, with the most secondary below $20 at times.

after weeks submerged in flood and rain waters.

“We discovered some were going blind … one day alone there were 50 found,” he said. “We have vets check the lambs and the mouldy vetch plants had been the cause, something I had never heard of before.

“We put more hay into the paddocks to manage this new challenge along with wet and sore feet as the sheep were constantly kept on the driest ground we could find.

“We didn’t lose a lot of stock and that came down to being as prepared as possible as more rain fell and you knew flood levels would keep rising. Moving stock to higher ground with shelter and hay – managing and adjusting animal husbandry.”

Rhinehart appointed rural charity patron

MAJOR Australian pastoralist and partner in the joint venture mining exploration across the Loddon, Gina Rhinehart, has been named patron of national charity Rural Aid.

Mrs Rinehart said the mining and agricultural industries were the backbone of our country.

“They not only provide thousands and thousands of jobs, but they present billions of dollars of taxes for governments to build such things as hospitals, schools and roads and pay for our much needed police, security and defence forces,” she said.

“Preserving the agricultural and mining industry’s future is in the interests of not only all the businesses that the primary industries support, but every

Australian. “It is critical that our governments realise these essential industries must keep cost competitive internationally, to be able to continue to earn export income, and thrive, and not burden them with regulations and other onerous government burdens,”

Rural Aid was founded in the 2015 drought,

Bendigo Sheep & Lamb Market Report

The Bendigo market is slightly cheaper for the best quality heavy lambs. Other categories are trending firm.

Quality was plainer with not as much weight or finish available in the lamb run. Once again not all domestic and export buyers were fully active.

Heavy lambs with weight hit a dull market, with prices for lambs over 26kg cwt falling by $5 to $20/head.

The neatest trade lambs, 2224kg cwt, were firm to $4 dearer, however secondary lots lacking fat cover or in long untidy skins were cheaper.

Light lambs under 20kg cwt often recorded stronger c/kg averages as the market for these types held up reasonably well considering the price cuts for heavier types.

There was a significant cut in export lamb supply to less than 500 head however this still couldn’t support the market.

Lambs over 30kg cwt $176 to a top of $206, the price spread influenced by when one export buyer could operate.

The heavy 26-30kg cwt lambs $159 to $185. Best trade lambs, 22-24kg cwt, $133 to $159, but plainer types lacking fat cover down to $112.

The estimated cost for trade and heavy lambs to processors was 530c to 620c/kg cwt, with most weight and grade catego-

The Merino lambs penned were mostly trade and light types which went from $30 to $118, just a few sales of heavier types to $163. Sheep were cheaper on limited quotes.

CROSSBRED LAMBS

RW & AL Baker Dingee (103) $206, SN & DA Collins Bridgewater Nth (46) $205, DJ & ED Lees Rochester (96) $196, GK & TA Turnbull Bridgewater (95) $193, CN & DW Slatter Boort (61) $176, Martin Borger Colbinabbin (72) $170, B & M Barlow Murchison (52) $170, M Borger Colbinabbin (51) $169, GD & DG Freemantle Eddington (31) $168, T Barry Culgoa (34) $167, R Fiscaro Warragoon (114) $164, M Borger, Colbinabbin (66) $160, R Fiscaro Warragoon (91) $160.

MERINO LAMBS

SN & DA Collins Bridgewater (27) $163, Watershed West Watchem (41) $108.

MERINO WETHERS

Gredgwin Ridge Boort (76) $117.

CROSSBRED EWES

MW & DA Kelly Pental Island (37) $106, Penstock Past Acheron (72) $87.

MERINO EWES

L Hocking Dingee (17) $139, M & B Naudel Mallan (31) $110.

Grain

Boort Grain Co-op prices

Tuesday. Wheat – ASW $332 FIS. AGP1 $332 FIS. SFW1 $332 FIS. FED1 $310 FIS. BarleyBar1 $295 FIS. Bar2 $277 FIS. Bar3 $257 FIS. Bar4 $237 FIS. Faba1 $380 FIS. Faba2 $380 FIS.

To discuss the marketing opportunities available for your livestock, contact the McKean McGregor team.