Farmer Henry Anderson talks to Robyn Ballinger about current dryland farming techniques in the Mitiamo area.

Like other Victorian rural areas, the rural population of the Patho Plains is decreasing. When landowners move out of the district, they take a wealth of historical knowledge and experience with them.

The Patho Plains Oral History Project was developed to capture the historical knowledge of farmers and landowners to better understand the changing landscape. These interviews and photographs form part of that project.

Further Information

Patho Plains Oral History interview excerpt 2: Henry Anderson

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT

ROBYN BALLINGER: So, when you came to this block, Henry, this was also being grazed or cultivated?

HENRY ANDERSON: Frank Bert had it before me.

ROBYN: Yeah.

HENRY: Yes, he'd done a little bit of cultivating, but mostly sheep, I think, yeah.

ROBYN: Mm-hm. So, really, you've used the land here in the same sort of way, haven't you? You haven't changed much about the way that you're farming this block.

HENRY: Not really, no.

ROBYN: Yeah.

HENRY: Yeah, about 50-50.

ROBYN: Mm-hm. Mm-hm.

HENRY: And just rotating paddocks. Yeah.

ROBYN: And when you talk about rotating paddocks, what do you mean?

HENRY: You leave one out until another year, and then just use the next one to it sort of thing. For a full rotation, you know. Different paddocks.

ROBYN: So, every three or four years or...?

HENRY: Yeah, something like that.

ROBYN: And when you let the paddock go, do you do anything with it or...?

HENRY: No, we just sort of grow... after it's been worked up, it seems to grow a fair few leaves, like rye-grass and that sort of thing, which is the feed for sheep.

ROBYN: OK. Yeah, yeah. So in the time that you've been share farming around this area, and then also in the time you've been farming for yourself, have you noticed any major changes in the way that you farm?

HENRY: Yeah, we always used to have work, you'd fallow your paddocks in, say, September-October for the following year. And you'd probably work them a little bit over summer if they've got weeds on them. These days you don't do any of that. You just sort of go and spray them.

ROBYN: So you spray first and then...

HENRY: Yeah, spray fallow... Do it that way or even just go and, say, a stubble paddock, or maybe a grass paddock you'd go and spray it. You might work it up once and then just sow it again.

ROBYN: Which is direct seeding sort of...

HENRY: Direct seeding. That has changed a fair bit, that part of it.

ROBYN: I bet it has. So instead of working the ground so much, you're using all chemicals... Yeah.

HENRY: 'Cause fuel's got so dear too now.

ROBYN: Oh, OK.

HENRY: The chemical at the moment is a bit cheaper than fuel.