Frost damage hits southern NSW crops

It is not the seasonal outcome growers were hoping for after August rain helped to sure things up following a dry period.

In the past large areas of Riverina crops have been cut for hay after severe frost damage deemed them not suitable for harvest. 

However, Australian Fodder Industry Association chief executive officer John McKew said it hadn’t come to that yet.

Mr McKew said there would be a window of waiting time before growers assess the damage and decide whether it is worth continuing through to harvest. 

“I haven’t heard about any frosted crops being cut for hay yet,” he said. 

Mark Hoskinson of “Fernleigh”, Kikoira confirmed a run of five or six frosts had hit crops in his region.

After driving from Kikoira to Griffith earlier this week he said it was obvious that some crops were doing well and others weren’t. 

In addition to damaging crops and reducing yield potential he said the pasture growth was subdued and this was hurting livestock producers. “The frosts are knocking the sheep feed around … it’s really reducing grass for stock,” he said. 

Mr Hoskinson said there was some rain forecast for the weekend and it was hoped that would sure up the season for both livestock and crops. 

“If we can get some rain and some warmer weather things might recover a bit,” he said. 

FarmLink chief executive officer Cindy Cassidy said the run of frosts in the past week was a big concern for producers in southern NSW. 

She said Temora farmer and FarmLink board member Michael Sinclair would be addressing the gathering during FarmLink’s open day on Friday to discuss measures that can be taken after frost. 

“It is something we will be talking about and people are getting out and starting to assess the damage,” she said.