Jordy Vallance has planted approximately 4,000 trees on her land in the last three years, and says it has improved the welfare of her cows, her soils and her creeks.
The dairy farmer is one of 20 applicants to receive thousands of seedlings since 2010 as part of Moyne Shire’s long-running carbon offset program.
The background: Vallance runs 800 cows on the dairy farm that was started in 1995 by her parents at Nirranda along the Great Ocean Road. Her involvement in revegetation and replanting schemes on the 720 acre property goes back almost as far.
“I remember planning a shelterbelt through a creek area with Mum and Dad when I was about 8 years old,” she told the Brolga. “And since then we've always been interested in how to do a bit more and give back.”
What happened? Moyne Shire’s carbon offset program has been running for 16 years and has handed out more than 130,000 seedlings in that time.
Vallance is one of the farmers that has used the program to improve resilience on her land as well as the well-being of the animals she farms on it, with the seedlings growing into native windbreaks over time.
Just quickly: A windbreak, or shelterbreak, is a row of trees planted to redirect wind velocity to protect crops and shelter livestock
The benefits: Vallance said the primary reason she participates in the program is to protect her cows from adverse weather conditions, but it also creates important habitats for native wildlife, prevents erosion and protects top-soil, the first layer of soil that is typically 5 - 20 centimetres deep.
She explained that windbreaks and paddocks including native trees makes the animals more comfortable, creating a space to shelter from extreme heat and cold.
“It also decreases their energy use. If they’re not using as much energy for dealing with those conditions, they can produce more milk,” she said. “There is a production benefit, but it’s not as important as the welfare benefit.”
Vallance added that native shelterbreaks create a “little harbour of biodiversity”, and form a key contribution to wildlife corridors.
“We see birds, we see small mammals, and a lot of beneficial insects that help the farm that prey on pasture pests,” she said.
The bigger picture: The Bureau of Meteorology forecast for November shows unusually high maximum temperatures for southern parts of Australia, amplified by El Niño that the World Meteorology Organisation has now announced is firmly established and expected to strengthen.
Vallance said that looking ahead and planning for drier, hotter summers has become an integral part of farming life.
“Through the last tough summer, and reflecting on that, where we made good and poor decisions, we’ve had to make sure we’ve got contingency to be able to support ourselves through that again,” she told the Brolga.
She said the tree-planting program from Moyne Shire has been a simple application process that has been instrumental in “getting help on the ground, getting trees on the ground”.
Header Image: Vallance’s Nirranda farm