Above average to remarkable, that's the consensus for the majority of grain yields so far this harvest.
Many areas are recording extremely high yields, while in other areas it's been good, but a case of what might have been with a timely rain.
East of Ouyen yields were above average but some frost damage hit crops in lower lying areas.
Kevin Crook, Tamaleuca, said his 2000 hectare cropping program was finished with a satisfying result.
"It was a bit above average and now we're just trying to get the best money we can for it," he said.
His program comprises vetch, barley, wheat and lupins.
He said the wheat yielded from 1.5 to 3 tonnes a hectare, depending on the soil types, while the barley averaged about 2.5t/ha.
It was a fantastic start followed by a dry period in late winter then late rains that were "too late" to help a lot.
He said west of Ouyen had a much better season this year after having a lighter year in 2019.
Driscoll Ag agronomist and director, Brett Douglas, St Arnaud, said most yields were "higher than people anticipated".
"Beans have been going well over three tonnes, some canola around three tonnes, lentils two tonnes and barley five to seven tonne. Wheat looks to be as promising," he said.
Marnoo farmer and wool grower, Trent Carter, Wallaloo Park, said growers in the area were "excited" by the harvest results which were anywhere from "excellent to astonishing".
With 2000 hectares of cash crop in, the 700ha of canola harvested had yielded an average 2.8t/ha, as did the lentils.
Mr Carter said they had only just started on the barley and it was yielding anywhere from 6t/ha to 9t/ha.
The whole harvest around the Marnoo area had been exceptional for the amount of rain received.
"We only had 300 to 340mm for the whole year. We were certainly leaner and didn't get the summer rainfall that fell from Rupanyup through to St Arnaud," he said.
Alan Mills, Natte Yallock, who farms with wife Pauline and son Brayden, said they were "really happy" with canola yields of 2.7 tonnes a hectare to nearly 3t/ha with an oil yield of 43 to 45 per cent, against a normal average of 1.7 to 1.9t/ha.
He said the oil yield was impacted by the high yield, "but I'm not complaining".
After the canola one header would go onto barley and the second machine onto wheat.
Mr Mills said the barley looked "pretty impressive" and should yield around 5t/ha, all of which would be stored onfarm in grain bags.
"We've had a good run with the bags and we'll do a fair few this year. We'll store it all and then worry about it in March/April," he said.
"Logistically it works well with the header working into the bag machine."
Mr Mills said the crops in much of the area were just short of 25 millimetres of rain in July that would have made a big difference to yields.
"You can see where there is a bit of low swampy ground that the yields are much higher," he said.
They also produced close to 10,000 large square bales of oaten hay this year for domestic and export markets.
Near Speed, Phil Down, said they were a third of the way through the wheat which was the final crop.
He said his barley was "okay" at just above average but had been sown after cereal in the rotation. His farm was also in a pocket that received no rain in July and just 10mm in May and 10mm in June.
The wheat was all sown on legumes and was yielding above average at about 2.4t/ha.
"I'm quite happy with that and the quality is good," he said.
"The lupins and peas yielded above average."
Mr Down said the harvest had been a bit stop-start with the weather that had been frustrating.
"We had showers, but no rain of significance, and we've battled to get more than two or three days of harvest in a row," he said.
Mr Down said he expected to finish in a week while others would have another fortnight - "by the middle of December things should be wrapping up".
Rutherglen graingrower, Ashley Fraser, said the season could "be the best ever in the north-east".
He said it was early days, but all crops were yielding well with canola yielding around 3t/ha.
Receivals
GrainCorp regional operations manager for Victoria, Brent Hornby, said the harvest was past the half way point.
He said receivals in Victoria totaled 1,454,600 tonnes at November 30 with the majority of action underway at its sites in the north east (over 350,000 tonnes received), northern Mallee, southern Mallee and Swan Hill.
The northern half of the state got underway a little bit later than anticipated (compared to last year) while the southern half had started a little earlier, he said.
There was little impact on quality from weather events to date.
"We continue to monitor advice from the Country Fire Authority to monitor extreme conditions of heat and wind as we move further into summer," he said.
Mr Hornby said the challenge for GrainCorp was to ensure we have the right people and equipment in the right places to manage demand.
"We have recruited around 900 casual staff to help us manage the harvest in Victoria, some staff have also started moving south from sites in NSW now that border restrictions have eased," he said.
Mr Hornby said thankfully the COVID-19 restrictions had eased in Victoria so there was no longer a requirement to wear masks outside on site.
"Although we're still operating a contactless delivery process and encourage all growers to bring a mask with them regardless," he said.
Mr Hornby said communications were critical at harvest and encouraged all growers to keep in touch with their site or area managers.
"Growers need to lot us know their harvest plans so that we can be sure to accommodate them with opening hours, segregations and general support."
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