Connecting Country’s most recent field day (22 April) was held at Malcolm Fyffe’s grazing property at Sandon. Introducing the trip, Deirdre Slattery, CC Education Advisor, suggested that an historical perspective on private land use showed many changes have taken place in government and community attitudes to land, from wholesale clearing to protection. Malcolm Fyffe and the North Central CMA’s Geoff Park, illustrated the current difficulties and dilemmas involved in farming for a productive and healthy landscape: many of the issues they raised look rather different when seen from a farming or a nature conservation point of view.

Deirdre Slattery provides an introduction to the excursion by explaining issues surrounding historical and present day land use patterns.
The group visited a range of sites: erosion gullies, one active, another planted and fenced out and stable; grazing pastures of both improved and native species; a fenced out remnant of rather degraded bushland and a planned wildlife corridor. Finally Malcolm showed us a large block of land that he leases and runs under light stocking conditions. This site has been partially cleared, but also has partially recovering shrubby native vegetation on its steep slopes and rocky fragile soils. Continue reading






























