A Colac district berry grower says the district’s fruit season looks strong despite a dry spring.But Pennyroyal fruit grower Russell Carrington said next season’s crops would struggle without decent rainfall during summer.“The plants we have here are northern European plants so they’re not built for Australian summers and the 40 degree weather we can get,” [...]

A Colac district sheep farmer says her unique marketing and niche market sales have spared her from falling wool export prices.Warncoort farmer Wendy Dennis said direct wool sales to Canada and Japan meant her business was unaffected by fluctuating export market prices.Ms Dennis said business was good despite a global recession decreasing Australian wool prices. [...]

A dairy industry leader has encouraged Colac district dairy farmers to embrace a new milk contract designed to secure higher milk prices.Dairy Farmers Milk Co-operative director Michael Roache said the revised milk contracts would last until 2010.But Mr Roache, a Nalangil dairy farmer, said the contracts would only apply if 65 per cent of south-west [...]

A Colac district wine maker says the Otway region is perfectly suited to create award-winning wines.Peveril Vineyards owner Margaret Rossiter said the vineyard, 10 kilometres south of Gellibrand, was in the “perfect” location.“We certainly haven’t had any problems with rainfall that’s for sure,” Mrs Rossiter said.“This is a really good climate for wine grape growing, [...]

A Beeac grain farmer says Colac district will struggle to keep up with wheat and barley demand this season unless it rains within the next fortnight.Richard Barclay said Colac district grain farmers would come under increased pressure to produce crops as the rest of the state continued to suffer from drought.Mr Barclay said Colac district’s [...]

Colac district farmers have welcomed a five-cents-a-litre drop in diesel prices in the past week.Irrewillipe’s John Ladhams owns J and S Ladhams Contracting and said a five-cent drop in diesel prices to 157.3 cents a litre would help reduce business costs.“Our diesel has gone down five cents a litre in the past week,” Mr Ladhams [...]

More than 20 Colac district jersey cattle farms will compete against each others herds in an on-farm challenge this week.This year’s Colac and District Jersey Breeders Club’s jersey on-farm challenge has 24 farms entries with 212 cattle entered.Promotional officer Steven Chant said this year’s jersey on-farm challenge allowed up to 10 entries per farm in [...]

Colac students will learn about a dairy extension officer’s work during a farm tour tomorrow.Colac Department of Primary Industries dairy extension officer Nadine Markham will speak as part of the second day of education program Life’s Good on the Farm.The program aims to inform students about careers in the dairy industry.Its Year 10 participants will [...]

Paddocks across Colac district are a brilliant yellow, with fields of canola in full flower.But Birregurra farmer James Dennis said his crop would stop growing if he failed to get spring rain.“At the moment they are looking well but we certainly need rain,” Mr Dennis said.“We had six millimetres on Saturday which helps things along [...]

by Ann McDowell
The theft of farm machinery causes huge personal and financial losses for farmers. Tractors, ploughs, headers, augers, generators, welders, motor bikes and quad runners are attractive targets for thieves. The theft of machinery parts, such as header lights, batteries, and radios from tractors, is also a problem for many farmers.The costs are high [...]