Impact of traffic systems on soil structure and tillage costs in Kingaroy

Growers in the Southern Burnett prioritised investigation of the economic benefit in reducing tillage passes and the potential impact on soil structure.

This work was initiated by grower interest in measuring the impact of tillage on soil structure. Growers were interested in developing some understanding of the impact of traffic on their soils, but more importantly how this influenced machinery running costs and their bottom line. In addition, growers believed that incorporating crushed basalt soil ameliorant had improved soil friability and reduced compaction and wanted to assess
these observations.

A partnership was developed with University of Southern Queensland (USQ) Toowoomba, Faculty of Engineering, to investigate the effect of random traffic and controlled-traffic systems on implement drag and the subsequent influence on fuel cost.