Victorian Farmers Federation president David Jochinke gave evidence at the Royal Commission on Thursday, saying property owners, especially in alpine areas like the North East, had learnt to understand bushfire activity over time.

He was asked how farmers got their information to prepare for fires.

"When you're in an alpine setting, it does come down to a lot of local knowledge and also combining that with the weather forecasting," he said.

"In those extreme examples, your telecommunications is one of the first things to go just after your electricity.

"Your ability to be self-reliant in those scenarios requires a generator and UHF to talk to neighbouring farmers."

But the difference this summer is the the bushfires become more intense.

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Mr Jochinke said fire patterns changed to move faster at night and had ember that flew further.

He also explained the frustration farmers had with the inability to clear a substantial boundary between their property and public land to protect themselves from bushfires.

Victorian farmers are restricted to removing no more than four metres of grass and fuel from either side of their fenceline.

"Those are some of the areas we have great difficulty in," Mr Jochinke said.

"The areas where the fires generally come from is external to their properties."

Commissioner Mark Binskin acknowledged there was a "frustration" with the issue of clearing boundaries.

Mr Jochinke said there was a paradox between the fuel on farms and public land.

Public roads that were blocked during the summer bushfires took a long time to be cleared, meaning the ability for emergency retreat or access was a "huge concern".

"Even though the farmers have the responsibility to protect their land, they're also the volunteers who go in and fight the fires in those settings," Mr Jochinke said.

The Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements is this week looking at the issue of hazard reduction.

Mr Jochinke said farmers often graze down grass in certain areas for refuge points where they can herd animals in an emergency.

"You cannot eat every blade of grass down during that period because you've still got to feed your lot through to that next autumn," he said.

"There will always be an element of fire loading on any property."