Building Sustainability
Goolgumbla has evolved during the past 20 years to become a diverse and self-sustaining operation.
15 kilometres of watered laneways have been built, a GPS driven irrigation system installed and giant storage silos have been erected: additions that have improved the overall efficiency of our day to day operations.
“Our infrastructure has been designed with animal welfare in mind.”
“Central to our philosophy is to minimise stress on our animals.”
Conscientiously planned laneways
Goolgumbla is committed to ethical and sustainable livestock and wool production, utilising environmentally aware practices.
Our philosophy is driven by the need to minimise stress on our animals and this was the motivation behind the installation of a series of laneways that traverse the property. Prior to that, half of our land was divided into four paddocks and it could take up to one full day to round up the flock and move them to another paddock, especially at shearing time.
Today, our sheep are mustered along a series of watered laneways with ample feed, which are also connected to holding paddocks. The flocks move forward in a straight line, walk half the distance and travel at their own speed, vastly reducing their levels of stress - particularly after a day's shearing. Double fencing also helps to ensure containment.
The laneways also provide critical firebreaks and improve our ability to move around the property in the event of fire or any other emergency.
State of the art woolshed
Having lost our beloved 150-year-old woolshed to fire the year before, it was a heartbreaking period in the property's history.
For well over a century, an assortment of characters, roustabouts, wool laden sheep, and work dogs had swung through the doors and filled the place with life. Yarns were shared and fleeces were classed as shearers pushed their way through the wool to follow the curve of one sheep after another.
Built in the 1860s, the shed had been constructed mainly from Oregon and Murray Pine and had the capacity to run up to 50 blade stands at its peak.
An average of 55,000 Merino sheep were shorn each year and these pictures provide a glimpse into shearing time during the 1900s.
But all that was lost within a matter of hours in 2012, and bystanders could only watch-on as flames swallowed decades of history.
“Built in the 1860s, the shed had been constructed mainly from Oregon and Murray Pine and had the capacity to run up to 50 blade stands at its peak.”
In 2013, we built a new ergonomically designed wool shed to streamline shearing and reduce the physical impact on staff and the animals.
Today, a new state of the art building respectfully sits upon the ashes of its predecessor.
The modernised 1,500 square metre shed has the capacity to hold 2,000 dry sheep equivalents and 180 bales of wool. Based on scientific observations about natural sheep movement and spatial flow, Goolgumbla's new 11-stand shed gives the shearers their own uninterrupted work area above the wool room floor.
The design has improved the wool handling and loading process and this year, 8-10 shearers jointly turned out thousands of sheep at shearing time, thanks to its improved functionality.
Sustainable Feeding System
Central to Goolgumbla's commitment to self-sufficiency has been the installation of 10 large silos, that hold up to 120 tonnes of grain per silo.
Each is fitted out with large fans and can readily handle complete fumigation in the event of an insect outbreak or weevil infestation. Thanks to exact sealing, we have so far escaped an insect scourge and managed to avoid dealing with the subsequent tonnes of flour and dust that is often left behind, when using older style grain storage.
Establishing a guaranteed supply of quality feed ensures that our stock receive all the nutrition they require to maintain their necessary food intake, whatever the season may bring. Our capacity also extends to store 1,400 tonnes of hay.
With an overall grain storage capacity on the property of up to 2,500 tonnes, our silos will safeguard the dietary needs our stock for years to come.
“Central to Goolgumbla's commitment to self-sufficiency has been the installation of 10 large silos…”
Alternate cropping methods and water conservation
As part of our stock sustainability plan, 350 hectares of the property is under constant irrigation to support our double cropping program.
Cultivating a nitrogen fixing plant like fava beans has enabled us to improve the soil, allowing us to plant maize straight in behind the beans in the same row, followed by oats each year.
Bore water guarantees a reliable water supply, especially during dry conditions, and raised beds maximise water usage. A satellite GPS driven system informs operations with laser level accuracy.
The results speak for themselves and Goolgumbla has become synonymous with wide sweeps of cereal, maize and clover, flanked by long trenches of water that stretch to the horizon.
“Bore water guarantees a reliable water supply, especially during dry conditions, and raised beds maximise water usage.”