When to slash in Central Victoria: a season by season guide

Slashing is simple work, but the timing decides whether you get one job or three. Central Victoria has a fairly predictable grass curve, and the properties that stay tidy all summer are the ones cut in the right window.

Winter, June to August

Growth is slow and the ground is soft. This is the wrong time for a fire prevention cut, but it's the right time for the heavy work, scrub clearing, mulching, firebreak formation and fence line clearing. Book the machinery work now while contractors have capacity.

Spring, September to November

This is where most people go wrong. A cut in early September looks great for three weeks, then a warm, wet spring pushes the grass straight back up. Pasture can put on half a metre in six weeks.

For fire prevention, the useful window on most properties is late October through early December, once the grass has stopped growing hard and started to cure off. Cut then and it stays down. If the property is very heavy, take a knock down cut in October and a finishing cut in late November.

Summer, December to February

Cured grass is flash fuel. In hot, dry, windy conditions a grass fire moves fast and throws embers well ahead of itself, and long grass against a shed gives it a direct path in.

Machinery work in the Fire Danger Period is restricted, and on Total Fire Ban days it stops. Blades hitting rock throw sparks, so summer cutting gets done early in the day, off hot ground, and sometimes not at all. Plan so you're not relying on a summer cut.

Autumn, March to May

The autumn break brings a second flush of growth, especially after a wet season. A follow up cut in autumn keeps the property tidy through winter and stops next spring starting from a heavy base. It's also the best window for blackberry and scrub work, ahead of a spray on the regrowth.

The short version

Two cuts a year suits most rural properties. One late spring for fire prevention, one autumn for tidy up. Heavier or absentee properties usually need three. Book ahead, because by October every decent contractor in Central Victoria is full.

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