Rains and recovery
Raakajilm will never be the same after a fire on 9th January 2026, but two months later we are seeing signs of recovery. We’ve had some very welcome rainfall and the support of many friends.
Native Garland Lillies (Calostemma luteum) flowering after the fire (and rain)
Rainfall and resprouting trees
At the start of March, we received 135 mm of rain over two days. This is nearly half our annual rainfall. Thankfully, there was no significant erosion on the fire scar. We are now seeing mass germination of native grasses and forbs, the first of the Wattle seedlings, and if I’m honest, more weeds than I thought possible.
Tussocks of native Sand Lily (Corynotheca licrota) resprouting from their roots after fire.
Some of the Blackbox and Red Gum trees in the creek line are growing new leaves, although many have been killed. In coming years the living trees will be crucial for providing shade in what is now a much more open habitat.
After the smoke cleared - a message of thanks
There’s is a lot of work that needs doing in the weeks and months after a bushfire. We have been overwhelmed by the offers of help and messages of support we have received.
Within days of the fire Phil and Judy, volunteers extraordinaire, set about giving the singed revegetation some deep waterings. Their fast work helped save some of the native Pine planted in 2025. Now they’re focusing on the huge weed load post-fire.
Then came the extended Johnson family. Mark showed us just how quickly he could repair fences, and Matt and Emma helped with blacking out, saving habitat. They also turned their hand to repairing irrigation, and straightened us out when we were walking in circles, overwhelmed.
Deb and Sheridan kept us fed with delicious home cooking. This is truly a great contribution to support friends after a disaster. And speaking of food, Jill sent her famous red basket of treats and Wildlife Unlimited and EcoLogic NRM sent us a Gippsland Hamper, delicious both.
Our neighbours: Doron, Ethan, Geoff, Shane and Olivia, quietly got on with doing stuff that needed doing. In particular, Mark Ashley stepped in with some much needed mental health check-ins and support. Corey, master fisherman, took Phil fishing for an afternoon to get him away from the paddock. Phil was worried he wouldn’t have the strength to wind in a Murray Cod but it was a quiet, relaxing afternoon. The fish weren’t biting.
Russell donned the green overalls again to spend a few days helping with the seemingly endless blacking out. His cheerful enthusiasm was appreciated, especially on our worst days.
By day we thought we had extinguished the hot spots, but at night the stumps of burnt trees glowed red like eyes in the darkness.
Special mention of Forest Fire Management Victoria. Trav, Matt, Jacko, Jake and their crews supported us and kept us updated on the progress towards containing the fire and rehabilitating the fire control lines. There were some truly amazing chainsaw operators falling hazardous trees and opening fallen trees up so they could be extinguished. Everyone worked so hard to minimise the impacts of fire in the adjoining Hattah Kulkyne National Park and Raakajilm.
Phil rehabilitating the fire control lines on Raakajilm.
Michael from Explore the Mallee helped with some fencing when Phil’s hands and body could do no more. And many thanks to the team from Cassinia Environmental. We were grateful to receive two days assistance from Brett, Colleen, Tara and Tash. They worked hard to help us remove and reinstate the section of fence that was completely destroyed in the fire.
The Trust for Nature team were quick to check-in how we were going. They sent us some very cool ReHabitat Pods to install, providing habitat for lizards in the vast openess. We’ve supplemented these with the way-uglier “Schwinghammer special” pallets covered with shade cloth.
Finally, we appreciate and acknowledge the ongoing support of the Jessie Chaplin-Burch Trust. This has allowed us to carry out urgent repairs on equipment. Fires are tough on vehicles and machinery (and people).