A NSW farmer has triumphed over environmental challenges, transforming his sheep farming area into a paradise for his animals.
Will Johnson’s farm in Cargo, 35 kilometers west of Orange, was transformed after he planted 15,000 trees and plants to improve the environment.
After a previous owner cut the trees on the 600-acre property, it was essentially treeless 20 years ago, so Mr Johnson began planting lines of ‘shelterbelts.’
Mr Johnson’s shelterbelts are made up of a mix of indigenous plants and gum trees that are lined up to create a windbreak.
He said, “It’s a lot of work, but the results are fantastic.”
They break up and slow down wind speeds, as well as protecting farm animals from the cold and crops from drying out.
For the past two decades, scientists from the Australian National University Sustainable Farms project have been studying the effects of shelterbelts in Australia’s central west.
It has been collaborating closely with farmers who are making improvements to their land, such as planting shelterbelts, and it has been tracking the effects on animals.
Eleanor Lang, an ecologist at the Australian National University, told the Daily Mail Australia that the shielding has a huge influence against elements like wind, which can kill livestock.
‘There is nothing to interrupt that wind if there are no trees or shelterbelts there,’ Ms Lang explained. ‘It’s also an issue with fire; if there’s nothing to slow down wind, fire will move more swiftly across a terrain,’ Ms Land explained.
The shade and shelter provided by the wind barrier has shown to increase survival of lambs and help sheep stay warm or cool during the seasons.
It also increases wool production and improves the weight gains of cattle.
The shelterbelts attract various bird species who are able to breed in the shrubbery, and in some cases the coolness of the shelters can foster greener grass growth in the area.
‘Just seeing how many birds have been able to return to a landscape is always impressive to me … a lot of smaller bird species that often struggle on farms that have been grazed a lot, they really need that shrubbery,’ Ms Lang said.
The wind shelters cover a land distance about 10 times the height of the shelterbelt trees.
‘If a belt of trees is 10 metres high the wind reduction benefits can go up to 100 metres on the other side,’ Ms Lang said.