Low-to-Mid Rainfall Farm Forestry Species Trials RIRDC Publication No. 08/163 Low-to-Mid Rainfall Farm Forestry Species Trials by David Carr, Jim Robinson, Lorryn Williamson, Robert Downie, Tim Emmott and Anne Brown November 2009 RIRDC Publication No 08/163 RIRDC Project No GAL-4A © 2009 Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. All rights reserved. ISBN 1 74151 752 4 ISSN 1440-6845 Low to Mid Rainfall Farm Forestry Species Trials Publication No. 08/163 Project No. GAL-4A The information contained in this publication is intended for general use to assist public knowledge and discussion and to help improve the development of sustainable regions. You must not rely on any information contained in this publication without taking specialist advice relevant to your particular circumstances. While reasonable care has been taken in preparing this publication to ensure that information is true and correct, the Commonwealth of Australia gives no assurance as to the accuracy of any information in this publication. The Commonwealth of Australia, the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC), the authors or contributors expressly disclaim, to the maximum extent permitted by law, all responsibility and liability to any person, arising directly or indirectly from any act or omission, or for any consequences of any such act or omission, made in reliance on the contents of this publication, whether or not caused by any negligence on the part of the Commonwealth of Australia, RIRDC, the authors or contributors.. The Commonwealth of Australia does not necessarily endorse the views in this publication. This publication is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, all other rights are reserved. However, wide dissemination is encouraged. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the RIRDC Publications Manager on phone 02 6271 4165. Researcher Contact Details David Carr Greening Australia Ltd PO Box 74 Yarralumla, ACT 2600 Phone: 02 6281 8585 Fax: 02 6281 8590 Email: [email protected] In submitting this report, the researcher has agreed to RIRDC publishing this material in its edited form. RIRDC Contact Details Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation Level 2, 15 National Circuit BARTON ACT 2600 PO Box 4776 KINGSTON ACT 2604 Phone: 02 6271 4100 Fax: 02 6271 4199 Email: [email protected]. Web: http://www.rirdc.gov.au Electronically published by RIRDC in November 2009 Print-on-demand by Union Offset Printing, Canberra at www.rirdc.gov.au or phone 1300 634 313 ii Foreword Farm forestry in low rainfall areas of Australia (<700mm MAR) can be an important source of supplementary income for land owners. It can also contribute to environmental sustainability and enhance existing agricultural enterprises. Some of the constraints on farm forestry in low rainfall areas are not knowing what species to plant, lack of establishment and management skills, and market access. The research discussed in this report addresses the first of these. Between 1999 and 2002 Greening Australia established a series of low rainfall species selection trials in southern Australia. This report examines the results of these trials after 4-5 years growth. Trials were conducted at Birchip (Vic), the Tasmanian midlands, the Northern Agricultural districts of South Australia, the Western Australia wheat belt and the Hunter Valley in NSW. A wide range of species were trialled, with a focus on the core species used by the Australian Low Rainfall Tree Improvement Group: Eucalyptus cladocalyx, E. occidentalis, E. camaldulensis and E. tricarpa. For most trials, measurements of height, DBH and survival were made at one and five years after establishment. During this period most sites experienced below average rainfall, which provided a test of the hardiness of the species used. The results reported here therefore give a picture of the survival and early growth of a number of species with potential for development as farm forestry products in the southern states. Measurements made of trees younger than five years old provide limited value in assessing long-term suitability of different species for agroforestry. The value of this report then, is to highlight early survival and growth of a range of species in tough environments, thus indicating which species have potential and which should no longer be considered. The secondary value of this report is to highlight the existence and location of these trials, so that other researchers can follow their progress to the point where the trees have been sufficiently tested for long-term agroforestry suitability, quality and yield. This project was funded by the Joint Venture Agroforestry Program (JVAP), which is supported by three R&D Corporations: Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC), Land & Water Australia (LWA), and Forest and Wood Products Research and Development Corporation1 (FWPRDC). The Murray-Darling Basin Commission (MDBC) also contributed to the program during this project. The R&D Corporations are funded principally by the Australian Government. State and Australian Governments contribute funds to the MDBC. This report was prepared in June 2006. It is an addition to RIRDC’s diverse range of over 1900 research publications. It forms part of our Agroforestry and Farm Forestry R&D program, which aims to integrate sustainable and productive agroforestry within Australian farming systems. The JVAP, under this program, is managed by RIRDC. Most of RIRDC’s publications are available for viewing, downloading or purchasing online at www.rirdc.gov.au. Purchases can also be made by phoning 1300 634 313. Peter O’Brien Managing Director Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation 1 Now: Forest & Wood Products Australia (FWPA) iii Acknowledgements The Australian Government Farm Forestry Program contributed to the establishment and first monitoring of these trials through funding Greening Australia’s Farm Forestry Support Project. JVAP funded the subsequent measurement and reporting contained in this report. Participating landholders and industry partners: Trevor and Gweneth McCullum, Trevor and Fay Hitch, Port Augusta Arid Lands Botanic Gardens, Justin and Amanda Burbury, Bruce and Sandy Dunbabin, Anthony and Andrew Bayley, Ian and Warwick McClelland, Bengalla Agricultural Company, Tim and Glen O’Driscoll, Verne and Jane Mouritz, Ben Davey, Loyla McGrath, Matt and Linda Edmonds. Greening Australia staff who worked on the project: Ron Dodds, Jim Robinson, Rob Downie, Anne Brown, Neville Bonney, Lorryn Williamson, Annabel Kater, Joe Thompson, James Felton-Taylor, Greg Major, Jason Richardson, Rae Talbot, Justine Watt, Melissa Horgan, Tim Emmott, Nathan McQuoid, Penny Atkinson. Staff of the CSIRO Forestry and Forest Products/ATSC at Yarralumla: Tim Vercoe, Ian McLeod, Roger Arnold, Bronwyn Clarke, Emlyn Williams and David Bush. John Reed (NRE Horsham), Peter Campbell (NRE Charlton), Liam Lenaghan (BCG), Ken Harrison (BCG), Mark Phelan (BCG), Bernie Haas (ALBG). Abbreviations ALBG Arid Lands Botanic Gardens (Port Augusta) ALRTIG Australian Low Rainfall Tree Improvement Group ATSC Australian Tree Seed Centre BCG Birchip Cropping Group DBH Diameter at breast height GA Greening Australia GAL Greening Australia Limited GANSW Greening Australia NSW Inc GAT Greening Australia Tasmania GASA Greening Australia South Australia GAV Greening Australia Victoria LSD Least significant difference MAR Mean annual rainfall NRE Former Vic Dept Natural Resources and Environment (now Department of Primary Industries and the Department of Sustainability and Environment.) SED Standard error of differences (between means) VCN Vens Creek Nursery iv Contents Foreword iii Acknowledgements iv Contents v Executive Summary vi 1. Introduction 1 2. NSW Hunter 3 2.1 Bengalla 3 2.2 Morton 16 3. Birchip, Victoria 29 3.1 Birchip Agroforestry and Alley Farming Trial Aim 29 4. Northern Agricultural Region SA 48 4.1 Willowie Species Trial 48 4.2 Melrose Acacia and Eucalypt Trials 61 4.3 Port Augusta Species Trial 77 5. Tasmanian midlands 87 5.1 Kempton Species Trial 88 5.2 Swansea Species Trial 100 Results 108 5.3 York Plains Species Trial 113 6. Western Australia 120 6.1 Bakers Hill 120 6.2 Konnongorring species trial 132 6.3 Calingiri species trial 142 6.4 East Hyden species trial 154 6.5 Tammin species trial 165 6.6 Northam provenance trial 172 7. Summary and recommendations 181 8. References 191 v Executive Summary What the report is about Farm forestry in low rainfall areas of Australia (<700mm MAR) can be an important source of supplementary income for land owners. It can also contribute to environmental sustainability and enhance existing agricultural enterprises. Some of the constraints on farm forestry in low rainfall areas are not knowing what species to plant, lack of establishment and management skills, and market access. The research discussed in this report addresses the first of these. Between 1999 and 2002 Greening Australia established a series of low rainfall species selection trials in southern Australia. This report examines the results of these trials after 4-5 years growth. Who is the report targeted at? This report will be useful to farm foresters in low to mid rainfall (250 – 700mm) regions of temperate Australia. It will provide an update on a wide range of species, including many species of particular interest to people engaged in small-scale forestry. The report also documents the location of all