Otway Agroforestry Network

16/09/2026

Put the date in your diary now! Our 2026 AGM will be held in Lal Lal on Friday 4 December. The guest speaker this year is Stephen Murphy, author of "Recreating the Country - Ten Key Principles for Designing Sustainable Landscapes". More details to come.

03/09/2026

Come along to our Spring Farm Walk on 3 October at Clearwood Farm, Pennyroyal. This is an opportunity to get together with other members and share knowledge. We will focus on thinning techniques and look at how to thin more mature plantations like those you will see on the property. Afternoon tea provided. RSVP by 21 September.

27/08/2026

08/08/2026

Unfortunately the new deadly strain of bird flu is in our region. You can find government guidelines on the spread of bird flu at birdflu.gov.au. The site also explains what needs to be reported. Don’t forget to apply biosecurity measures particularly when travelling to farms, rural properties or bird sanctuaries. Don’t touch any dead birds you find. Take a photo and report on the hotline 1800 675 888

Birdlife.org.au is another useful site, you can donate or raise awareness of their actions to protect our birds.

14/07/2026

Remember when? Photos from the archive: Collecting black walnuts at Bambra Agroforestry Farm in 2021. Black walnut (Juglans nigra) has a slow growth rate, preferring 1000 mm or more of annual rainfall and well drained alluvial soils. A deciduous tree that is allelopathic to many broad leaf weeds in pasture. Best situated on river flats or adjacent to a waterway. A beautiful dark timber that is highly valued for a range of uses, including as a premium cabinet-making timber

26/06/2026

Events Archive - Lower Blackwood LCDC

25/06/2026

“These animals are already on a knife’s edge of survival. They're skinny, their immune system's low, they're not getting enough to drink or eat.”

25/06/2026

What’s your view on the “forestry wars”?

The Forestry Wars are undermining the future we all want.

Whilst it is obvious that planted and naturally regenerated trees on farmland could produce timber whilst also controlling land degradation, locking up carbon, enhancing biodiversity and supporting family farming, the ongoing forestry wars are doing nothing to help engage or encourage the farming community to plant and manage trees for timber.

And, low impact harvesting of some native forest could help restore ecological function and improve their climate resilience.

War is not the answer. We can do better than that.

Rowan Reid
Forest Scientist and TreeGrower
Author of “Heartwood – the art and science of growing trees for conservation and profit”
www.agroforestry.net.au

NOTE: The worst thing government can do is subsidise the planting of trees - whether by industry or farmers. If they really want to help build confidence and drive innovation and investment they should start by buying logs from those who have actually grown them and do the research and market development work so we can learn what we need to do to grow quality timber.