… Shelterbelts can be forests.

Planting trees on farms offers numerous benefits: they provide shelter from wind, sun, and cold for livestock and homes; create privacy screens and frame vistas; support wildlife habitat and store carbon; and enhance the aesthetic and experiential value of the property. As trees mature, they can also provide a valuable timber resource. Farm forestry enables landowners to add both economic value and ecological complexity to their land, benefitting future generations. In the Otways, the Otway Agroforestry Network has been promoting this approach since the 1990s, helping landowners establish profitable, environmentally valuable shelterbelt-forestry plantings. More recently, farmers in Gippsland have embraced farm forestry as a similarly practical and beneficial land management strategy.

Currently, the Victorian Government has launched the Victorian Trees on Farms Program which offers grants and support to landowners for planting trees for all of the above reasons. Below is a short video about the program.

I help South Gippsland landowners design tree plantings that provide shelter, improve biodiversity, and create long-term value. With experience in agroforestry management, a background in horticulture and arboriculture, and completion of the Master Tree Growers Course, I’ll work with you to create plantings that fit your farm’s needs and future goals. Contact me below…