Regional bio link in Bass Coast Shire

 When we bought our property on the Bass River at Grantville, we soon realised its importance as part of the only remaining riparian forest on the Bass River. Our vegetation also provided the only link between the Grantville Flora  and Fauna Reserve and the Bass. As well as maintaing a vital regional biolink  Once that was firmly established in our minds  we set about ensuring that production on Blue Mountain Creek became not only sustainable but renewable.

Self-renewing topsoil that is biologically active is essential for productive agriculture as well as a healthy  environment. It is the over-riding requirement for the health of plants, animals and people. But unfortunately it's not something that's high on the radar of most farmers.

Appropriate management of soil biology in agriculture, horticulture, forestry and conservation areas is hard to find and is one of the most neglected  natural resource issues in Australia. Most of our grasslands and croplands are nowhere near as healthy as they should be.

They often feature areas of bare ground, sheet and gully erosion, weeds and an almost complete lack of desirable plant species. It's an easy but gullible assumption that removing the weeds and replanting some 'better' species will solve the problems. Decades of experience have demonstrated that this simplistic approach rarely works.

The interactions between animals, plants and soil biota remain out of balance because the essential requirement of soil management has not been addressed. The consequent shortfall in ecosystem services, such as nutrient availability, results in costly (and damaging) supplements being added to the  soils. 

Landscapes are not degraded because they lack desirable species. The reality is that desirable species will not flourish when landscapes are degraded. 

In agriculture, grazing and cropping account for most of the land use.  If we can get our resource managers (and farmers) to recognise that the main focus of natural resource management needs to be to maintain high levels of humic materials to rebuild topsoil, we will see some top results. But it will require radical departures from conventional methods of production. 

National Agriculture Day - November 20

 There are almost 88,000 farm businesses in Australia today and things are looking bright. Strong consumer demand for genuine free range eggs has generated a big increase in the number of people thinking about starting their own free range egg business. A good starting point is reading an eBook on starting a free range farm available from us at Freeranger Eggs. Detailed information is available about things like shed requirements, food safety, egg packaging and labelling. When deciding to set up a free range egg farm, take  time to plan  properly, think about low cost options and check your options, Find out the zoning of the land and talk to your local Council planning department about their requirements. It’s also worth contacting the State Department of Agriculture. Prepare your own planning application, rather than employ a consultant.

Contact us at freeranger@dcsi.net.au

For more details, follow us on Facebook or read posts on this Blog.

Our eBook costs $245 Once payment is made, the eBook will be emailed as a Portable Document File (PDF). send payment to our  Bendigo Bank account.P &A Westwood BSB 633 000 Account 153356233

Poultry welfare claims

 Big, corporate egg producers often try to justify intensive production systems by suggesting that cage-free or free range flocks have lower welfare standards than their cage or barn systems. At a recent industry gathering, a US professor claimed that hens outdoors face increased exposure to multiple ectoparasites including red mites and lice. She said that the complex environments and greater contact with wild birds in these systems create ideal conditions for parasites to establish and spread, causing significant economic losses and welfare problems for producers. She says the outdoor hens are being exposed to a wider range of ectoparasites. with greater contact with wild birds, give parasites a chance to establish themselves. What she and the big producers ignore is that crowded conditions for hens, or any animals is far more likely to create parasite or infection problems. Sunlight is a great sanitiser and an open air lifestyle has its own health benefits.

Freeranger Farm at the heart of massive wildlife and bushland linkages

 Friends of the Earth Melbourne has announced that 2,155 hectares of land has been added to the Brataualung Forest Park in the Strzelecki Ranges. The land was promised by the State Government back in 2008 as part of a deal to link existing reserves at Gunyah Gunyah to Tarra Bulga National Park. The Governor of Victoria signed the gazettal of land into law on the 8th of October 2026. This a major part of the wildlife corridor stretching down to Westernport. The wildlife corridor mapped in the Regional Sand Extraction Strategy , Lang Lang to Grantville. Which was gazetted in 1995 is an essential part of this biolink. Key movers in the success were identified as Susi Zent from Friends of Gippsland Bush and Anne Westwood from Trust for Nature, Friends of Bass Valley Bush and Freeranger Eggs, Grantville.

The Freeranger property provides the only link between the Grantville Narure Conservation Reserve and the Bass River – a vital part of the regional corridor. Bass Coast Shire Council has been a major hurdle in the protection of native vegetation and wildlife because Councillors have a complete lack of understanding of these issues. They did not bother to read the sand Extraction Strategy so they don't realise that it is a powerful tool to protect native vegetation in the vital wildlife corridor. It was the result of huge community input as well as consultations with industry and Government Departments. Research produced full flora and fauna species lists for the interest area. Correspondence with the Shire revealed that councillors deluded themselves into believing the sand strategy enables sand extraction when it actually enables the protection of the woodland wildlife corridor. Bass Coast Councillors have ignored the sand extraction strategy even though it was required to be incorporated into the Shire Planning Scheme.

daylight saving farce tomorrow - dumb politicians

 Clocks return to daylight saving at 3am tomorrow when we say hello to daylight saving time. There's no hope of politicians putting an end to the farce of fiddling with our clocks. The changes impact on farmers and their animals for no good reason.

Egg Values driven by the Sun

 In the same way we humans need sunshine to thrive, chickens need it too. UltraViolet rays from the sun provide essential Vitamin D to people animals and plants.Sunshine plays an important roles in the life and health of a chicken.They are programmed to head into their coop to sleep when the sun is going down. Diminishing hours of daylight in autumn and winter signals to a chicken that it's time to start the annual moult and they have a rest period for a few weeks or months without laying eggs.At some times of year yolk colour will not be as vibrant as usual.  It is usual  for  green feed to disappear from  paddocks with the heat of summer or the cold of winter. The carotenes in green grass help to produce vibrant, bright yolks. To fool their customers, most egg producers put manufactured colouring additives in their poultry feed to maintain an illusion. We refuse to adulterate the food we give our hens. So always expect variations in yolk colour. Be suspicious if the yolk colour is always the same (even within a one dozen egg pack)

Top 15 egg blogs in the world

 We received this today " your blog Free Range Eggs has been selected by our panelist as one of the Top 15 Egg Blogs on the web (2026 Edition).

https://bloggers.feedspot.com/egg_blogs/ Feedspot is an RSS Reader that lets you subscribe to blogs, news sites, and any website you want to keep up with.