Investment

Investment

GRDC Code: DAW1902-001RTX
Increased grower profitability on soils with sodicity and transient salinity in the eastern grain belt of the Western Region.

Interacting combinations of sodicity and transient salinity, often associated with high subsoil pH, ion toxicities and poor subsoil structure, interact to constrain crop yields by reducing water extraction by crop roots. In the Western Region, approximately 2.5 million hectares of land in the eastern grain belt are affected by soil sodicity. Many growers attempt to profitability manage these constrained soils by opportunistically cropping them in better seasons or after fallow or by minimising costs and accepting lower productivity across all years.

This investment will evaluate the benefit of different options to improve water capture and availability, including water harvesting onto crop rows, targeted amelioration in the root zone and increasing soil water capacity, and determine the profitability and reliability of such approaches.

Project start date:
01/02/2019
Project end date:
31/12/2023
Crop type:
  • Wheat, (Cereal)
Organisation
Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development
Region:
West
Project status
status icon Completed

GRDC News

Resources

Paddock Practices: Whole package approach to soil constraints advised for Western Australia -     GRDC

Paddock Practices: Whole package approach to soil constraints advised for Western Australia - GRDC

1564495200000 Paddock Practices DAW1401-001RTX, DAW1504-003RTX, DAW1407-002RTX, DAW1407-004RTX, DAW1407-001RTX, DAW1901-006RTX, DAW1902-001RTX, DAW1902-003RTX, DAW1901-006RTX

Significant research into western region soils has identified new best practice approaches to remedying an array of soil constraints.