Projects

Discover the projects driving innovation in drought resilience across regional Victoria.

Explore Vic Hub’s portfolio of projects, from initiatives currently underway to completed projects delivering valuable insights, knowledge and practical outcomes for agriculture and regional communities.

Download the Vic Hub's complete list of active and completed projects.

Interested in a project or want to find out more? Get in touch with the Vic Hub team.

Climate Resilience

Weather Station Network

Lead: Riverine Plains (NE Node)
Focus Area: Climate Resilience

Aim: To develop a more Robust Weather Station Network to support bushfire management.

Containment Feeding

Containment feeding adoption project

Lead: Food & Fibre Gippsland (SE Node)
Focus Area: Containment Feeding

Aim: This project will build a small cohort of containment feeding experts across 3 states to assist with implementation of containment feeding facilities.

Drought Resilience Research

Drought Resilience Interdisciplinary Network (DRI-Net)

Lead: Deakin University
Focus Area: Drought Resilience Research

Aim: DRI-Net (The Drought Resilience Interdisciplinary Network) is a network of researchers from across academic disciplines engaged in research related to drought resilience.

Environmental

Green Dams: Improving vegetation management around dams – Phase II

Lead: Food & Fibre Gippsland (Gippsland Node)
Focus Area: Environmental

Aim: The ‘green dams’ project focuses on how management of vegetation around and in dams can be enhanced.

Farming-Systems Resilience

Animal welfare research, development & extension through industry collaboration & digital innovation

Lead: Federation University (Vic Hub Digital Platform Partner)
Focus Area: Farming-Systems Resilience

Aim: The research collaboration between Future Regions Research Centre (FRRC), Centre for eResearch and Digital Innovation (CeRDI) and industry partners is being progressed through several interlinked sub-projects and stages. The initial focus includes generating and publishing the insights gained by combining existing on-farm data on worm resistance with climate, rainfall, soil moisture and other data. The focus will then expand to accessing parasite data through industry collaboration.

Optimising Slug Management

Lead: Riverine Plains (NE Node)
Focus Area: Farming-Systems Resilience

Aim: Investigate non-chemical control options for slugs, an emerging pest in minimum till agriculture.

Mental Health

Mental health awareness training (train the trainer)

Lead: Food & Fibre Gippsland (Gippsland Node)
Focus Area: Mental Health

Aim: Food & Fibre Gippsland will be working with Latrobe Community Health and other agencies to develop a number of ‘train the trainer’ products to support rural mental health professionals in understanding the drought cycle.

Social

Soil

Top soils and soil coring program

Lead: Food and Fibre Gippsland (Gippsland Node lead)
Focus Area: Soil

Aim: “Topsoil, do you want more?” seeks to answer the questions: (1) “can we double the water holding capacity of our topsoil?” and (2) “can we extend our topsoil from 150mm deep to 300mm deep?”.

Agtech

Rainstick: Improving canola establishment

Lead: Riverine Plains (NE Node)
Focus Area: Agtech

Aim: This project looks to explore novel technologies that may support successful canola establishment during challenging sowing conditions in the future.

Top Crop App (low to medium rainfall broadacre farming)

Lead: Birchip Cropping Group (NW Node)
Focus Area: Agtech

Aim: To develop a digital APP version of the MEYcheck manual, for use by farmers and advisors to deliver agronomic information in an updatable format which can be incorporate in Yield Prophet Lite and other simple calculators.

Climate Awareness

Climate Courage

Lead: Birchip Cropping Group (NW Node)
Focus Area: Climate Awareness

Aim: To inspire courage and discussion for future climate action.

Containment Feeding

Containment Feeding Innovation: Enhancing stock containment practices before, during and post drought

Lead: Riverine Plains (NE Node lead)
Focus Area: Containment Feeding

Aim: To improve pasture and livestock management prior to, during and post drought in NE Victoria.

Digital Tools & Technologies

Yarrowee River History: Peel to Prest

Lead: Federation University (Vic Hub Digital Platform Partner)
Focus Area: Digital Tools & Technologies

Aim: This project offers a comprehensive exploration of the historical and cultural significance of the Yarrowee River, encompassing the influences of the Wadawurrung Indigenous people and subsequent settlement. The project aims to assist design initiatives focused on enhancing the environmental quality, local habitat, and overall enjoyment for residents and trail users.

Drought Recovery

Autumn – Winter drought recovery and feedbase planting

Lead: Southern Farming Systems (SW Node)
Focus Area: Drought Recovery

Aim: Help farmers anticipate what pasture they may grow after the drought breaks, and what short term 'levers' they have to increase critical winter feed production.

Drought Resilience Research

Over the Fence, a drought resilience lens

Lead: Birchip Cropping Group (NW Node)
Focus Area: Drought Resilience Research

Aim: To inspire information sharing and innovative ideas within the North West of Victoria and boost mental health through positive imagery.

Economic

Central Highlands Growers and Producers Hub

Lead: Federation University (Vic Hub Digital Platform Partner)
Focus Area: Economic

Aim: The goal of this project is to assist in identifying the support and training needs for Central Highlands growers and producers and other related businesses. The research will also investigate how enterprises can grow and expand, as well as how Commerce Ballarat can provide advocacy and industry development opportunities to this sector.

Education

Drought Resilience 2025 Conference

Lead: Deakin University
Focus Area: Education

Aim: Australia's first major cross-disciplinary academic conference dedicated to advancing drought resilience for landholders, rural communities and the natural environment.

Innovation Ag podcast

Lead: Deakin University
Focus Area: Education

Aim: Share knowledge, innovation and emerging research across agriculture with producers, advisors and regional communities

Student Workshop – Climate Change

Lead: Birchip Cropping Group (NW Node)
Focus Area: Education

Aim: To increase the awareness for opportunities with the agricultural industry and inspire students to pursue a career within the sector.

Towong Shire Agriculture Extension

Lead: Riverine Plains (NE Node)
Focus Area: Education

Aim: Strengthen extension services and improve access to practical, locally relevant information for farmers across the Towong Shire.

Uncertain Times – Reset, Recover, Regenerate

Lead: Southern Farming Systems (SW Node)
Focus Area: Education

Aim: A targeted series of workshops aimed to support farmers in South West Victoria in making informed decisions during ongoing dry and uncertain conditions.

Environmental

Green Dams: Improving vegetation management around dams

Lead: Food & Fibre Gippsland (Gippsland Node)
Focus Area: Environmental

Aim: To improve water harvesting, maintain water quantity and quality in dams in Gippsland as part of drought preparedness.

Review of the Functioning of Victoria’s Emergency Supply Networks

Lead: Southern Farming Systems (SW Node)
Focus Area: Environmental

Aim: A review is being conducted and reported for government purposes to create a plan or action for repairs/maintenance.

Sovereign Fertiliser Manufacturing Capacity

Lead: Food and Fibre Gippsland (SE Node)
Focus Area: Environmental

Aim: To develop new fertiliser products supporting crop water use efficiency and production

Trigger Points for Containment Feeding

Lead: Riverine Plains (NE Node)
Focus Area: Environmental

Aim: To build farmer skills to create trigger points for containment feeding.

Farm Finance

Farm Finances and Drought: Examining the role of farm advisors

Lead: Deakin University
Focus Area: Farm Finance

Aim: To bring all Hub partners together, plus key industry and researcher guests to come up with ways to improve linkages and the overall role of farm advisors, to enhance the resilience of farm businesses.

Farming-Systems Resilience

Supporting Hay Decision Making

Lead: Birchip Cropping Group (NW Node)
Focus Area: Farming-Systems Resilience

Aim: This project focuses on improving decision-making for hay cutting and curing by systematically taking and analysing hay samples.

Fodder Storage

Future Fodder Project: Supporting improved fodder storage to enhance quality

Lead: Food & Fibre Gippsland (Gippsland Node)
Focus Area: Fodder Storage

Aim: To improve preparedness for drought on livestock farms in Gippsland.

Horticulture

Monitoring Hive Health

Lead: Agriculture Victoria
Focus Area: Horticulture

Aim: This proof-of-concept project investigated whether traceability devices and environmental DNA (eDNA) surveillance could be used to monitor hive health

Mental Health

Supporting Mental Health in Farming Communities

Lead: Southern Farming Systems (SW Node)
Focus Area: Mental Health

Aim: Strengthen mental health awareness and support across rural communities by equipping the people who work most closely with farmers - advisors, rural suppliers, financial institutions and agricultural professionals - with practical training to help participants recognise when someone may be struggling.

Tomorrow Farmers

Lead: Birchip Cropping Group (NW Node)
Focus Area: Mental Health

Aim: Tomorrow Farmer is a pilot workshop taking a preventative approach to poor mental health within the community of young farmers.

Understanding the mental health impacts of drought on young people

Lead: Federation University (Vic Hub Digital Platform Partner)
Focus Area: Mental Health

Aim: To contribute knowledge and insights into how the last drought (early 2000's) impacted young people in the Ararat district who were in secondary school at that time.

Soil

Drought Management for the Health and Longevity of Perennial Horticulture Plants

Lead: Mallee Regional Innovation Centre (NW Irrigated Horticulture Node)
Focus Area: Soil

Aim: Through collaborative co-design and implementation, the project teams will work with producers to identify challenges and needs in preserving plant health during drought.

SCOUT: Loam Bio

Lead: Riverine Plains (NE Node)
Focus Area: Soil

Aim: Researchers are assessing changes in soil carbon, water dynamics and crop nutrition to better understand how the treatment performs under Riverine Plains farming conditions.

Seedling survival

Lead: Birchip Cropping Group (NW Node)
Focus Area: Soil

Aim: Investigate seedling survival to determine how long germinated seed can remain viable, how establishment was affected, and how safe it is to dry sow with no rain on the forecast.

Spraying pork effluent onto farm soil

Lead: Federation University (Vic Hub Digital Platform Partner)
Focus Area: Soil

Aim: Australian Pork Limited (APL) sought to quantify the impacts of effluent spraying on soil health to better understand the value of the practice as no quantitative data is currently available in Australia.

Water Management & Quality

Harmful and nuisance blue-green algae in water supply and sludge/wash water recovery systems

Lead: Mallee Regional Innovation Centre (NW Irrigated Horticulture Node)
Focus Area: Water Management & Quality

Aim: Investigate the buildup of blue green algae, and associated taste and odors, in water treatment plants to consider management strategies that may minimise or avoid their build up.

Managing drought risks through new water-allocation outlooks: promoting adoption & supporting decision making

Lead: Mallee Regional Innovation Centre (NW Irrigated Horticulture Node)
Focus Area: Water Management & Quality

Aim: Identified as a priority during the initial round of drought consultations with stakeholders, this project will use a proof-of-concept project calibrated earlier for Goulburn River System and calibrate it for Murray River System. The proof-of-concept project used BOM stream-flow forecasts to provide real-time forecasts grounded in current-year weather, rather than in potential climate scenarios. Using actual stream-flow forecasts reduces uncertainty of water allocation by 50% and improves decisions making with better prediction of available water in the current season.

Women’s Voices in the Face of Drought

Lead: Mallee Regional Innovation Centre (NW Irrigated Horticulture Node)
Focus Area: Water Management & Quality

PROJECT TERM 2021 PROJECT PARTNERS Mallee Regional Innovation Centre and The University of Melbourne The project considers how women are being heard on issues of water and drought in the Mallee Region. This research...

Zero Row Spacing

Lead: Birchip Cropping Group (NW Node)
Focus Area: Water Management & Quality

Aim: To improve drought resilience through research into Zero Row Spacing for improved water use efficiency and minimising herbicides through crop competition.

Workforce

Horticulture Skills Capacity Framework to Build Resilience and Skills Retention

Lead: Mallee Regional Innovation Centre (NW Irrigated Horticulture Node)
Focus Area: Workforce

Aim: Strengthen workforce capacity and resilience across the Mildura and Swan Hill horticulture industry.