Floodplain strategies
From the February 2009 edition of Agriculture Today.
When Robyn Mathers first moved to her Ruthven farm on the Richmond Valley floodplain 19 years ago she was told by locals that she needed to drain the low-lying areas on the property.
Ms Mathers, a dairy farmer, soon noticed that her cattle loved the plants growing in the wet, low-lying areas and the cows produced more milk when they had eaten them – by about one litre per cow per day.
She decided to leave the low-lying areas as they were.
At a workshop run by the NSW Department of Primary Industries Floodplain Grazing Project, Ms Mathers learnt the plant was called water couch (paspalum distichum), a common native wet pasture species found on North Coast floodplains.
Project leader with NSW DPI Chrisy Clay said Ms Mathers also learnt more about the benefits of water couch at the workshop.
"Water couch is highly suited to the conditions on Robyn’s farm and, at times, its nutritional value can be the equivalent of rye grass," Ms Clay said.
"By retaining water over the low lying areas of her property Robyn has increased the amount of water couch on her property and enhanced its growth rate, reducing seasonal pasture shortages."
Ms Clay said wet pasture systems, such as Ms Mathers’, can also have an important role in the management of "black" or deoxygenated water, generated when pastures are inundated and rot.
"Water couch can tolerate short periods of inundation better than other dryland pasture species," she said.
"Even though they will still rot in major summer floods, by establishing native wet pasture systems on low-lying areas, graziers can significantly improve downstream water quality and enhance local biodiversity."
On the higher areas of her property Ms Mathers has implemented minimal tillage and switched from chemical intensive farming to low input farming using natural, lower cost alternatives.
These changes have reduced her fertiliser costs by 80 per cent from $90,000 to $16,000 per year.
"Robyn is one of many graziers who are meeting the challenge of farming the coastal floodplains sustainably," Ms Clay said.
"She, along with nine other graziers, is featured in a new publication Grazing the coastal floodplain: meet the graziers who are farming the floodplain sustainably.
"The booklet highlights the efforts of 10 graziers from the Macleay, Clarence and Richmond floodplains, in improving water quality, enhancing biodiversity and increasing production."
The booklet is part of the Floodplain Grazing Project, an extension program developed by the NSW DPI.
Contact Chrisy Clay, Wollongbar, (02) 6626 1355, christina.clay@dpi.nsw.gov.au
