Ouyen’s claim to fame

It’s official – Ouyen is home to the world’s biggest Mallee root. 

The confirmation came on Friday when Guinness World Record officials visited the town ahead of its inaugural Mallee Root Festival. 

Ouyen’s Mallee Stump, which is proudly displayed at Blackburn Park, has long been considered Australia’s largest. 

It was originally dug up by Bert Holland when he was grading roads for the former Shire of Walpeup. 

However, Ouyen’s claim to fame was recently questioned when Tooleybuc put forward their own stump. 

Mallee Root Festival committee member Michael ‘Boozer’ Robertson said Ouyen could now breathe a sigh of relief. 

“There was only a mere 4cm in it,” Mr Robertson said. 

Measuring the circumference of the root, the Ouyen stump measured 10.69 metres, while the Tooleybuc stump measured in at 10.65 metres. 

Despite the official recognition, Mr Robertson said it may be some time before the world record was cemented in history. 

“It’s a very lengthy process,” Mr Robertson said, noting this was not an existing Guinness World Record category. 

“It could take some time.”

Cementing Ouyen’s place on the map

The inaugural Mallee Root Festival has put Ouyen back on the map. 

More than 1200 people flocked to the Mallee town on Saturday for a night of celebration. 

President of the Mallee Root Festival, Nathan Grayling, said he was overwhelmed by the support. 

“It definitely exceeded our expectations,” he said. 

Having handed their highly successful Great Australian Vanilla Slice Triumph to Merbein some years ago, Mr Grayling said the community was looking for another event which would help reinvigorate the town. 

Mr Grayling said the festival also aimed to encourage younger members of the community to take ownership of the event. 

“We only had eight committee members,” Mr Grayling said. 

“It was a very young committee with only three members over 30.” 

Responsible for all aspects of the event, the committee organised market stalls, entertainment, exhibits, fundraising initiatives and quirky events such as the Mallee Root Toss. 

Stanthorpe residents Lee and John Nicholson heard about the festival via word of mouth. 

They’ve been on the road for the past eight weeks following the art silo trail and heard about the festival during a stopover at Patchewollock. 

“We hung around for an extra week so that we could attend,” Ms Nicholson said. 

“We like to support the little towns.” 

While this trip marks their first time in the Mallee, the couple said they were enjoying the experience. 

“We’ve been to Manangatang, Hopetoun and Nyah,” Ms Nicholson said. 

Mr Grayling said the festival’s name also attracted a lot of attention, particularly from singles. 

“The publicity was phenomenal.” 

To read more about the Mallee Root Festival, grab a copy of Wednesday’s Guardian (March 29).