Digging deeper into soil amelioration during National Science Week

The projects are led by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) with Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) co-investment.

DPIRD leads a range of soil science projects, alongside several partners, across the State - from the rugged rangelands of the Kimberley to the sands of the South Coast.

Soil science spans a range of disciplines, including soil formation, classification and mapping, physical, chemical, biological and nutrition and is essential to creating the fertile foundations required for productive and profitable agricultural systems.

The projects discussed on the webinar dig deeper into the benefits to grains crops from soil amelioration - changing the composition of the soil layers using specialised machinery to use rainfall and nutrients more efficiently and control weeds.

This results in improved soil health and more grain, known as yield.

The five-year projects, which have co-investment from the GRDC, are harnessing the experiences of farmers at Geraldton, Burracoppin and Esperance who have ameliorated their paddocks in recent years.

DPIRD soil science and crop nutrition manager Chris Gazey said the projects would compare the yield and profit margins from crops, such as wheat, barley and canola, grown on ameliorated paddocks to help understand the benefits from turning the soil.

"While the yield benefits from soil amelioration are well documented, these projects put the science behind how that increase in productivity and sustainability is achieved and whether crop responses in the paddock can be lifted even more," Mr Gazey said.

"Our research scientists are mapping the yield and spatial data, with preliminary results suggesting there can be significant differences in crop responses within a paddock - depending on the soil type.

"These projects will complement other DPIRD and GRDC projects underway, including how ameliorated soils can help plant roots to access water and nutrients in the subsoil and understanding the longevity and profitability of this type of tillage."

DPIRD and the GRDC have $42.37 million invested in these projects, as well as another to address a big production constraint - poor quality clay soils.

GRDC agronomy, soils and farming systems manager Rowan Maddern said GRDC's investments aimed at tackling WA's challenging soils was delivering long-term outcomes for the grain growing community.

"GRDC has made a significant investment and RD&E contribution to improving soils in the west for many years and our soil amelioration projects already underway with DPIRD are driving promising results for growers across the Wheatbelt," Mr Maddern said.

DPIRD's Grains Science Partnerships projects are also examining the impact of soil amelioration on soilborne diseases and pests, as well as how amelioration affects weed growth so paddock management strategies can be improved.

A long-term DPIRD Future Farming Systems field trial at Merredin also involves soil analysis, as it evaluates the productivity, profitability and sustainability of lower input regenerative and intensive ag-tech systems against current farming systems.

"A key focus of the department's work is to provide the scientific evidence to build healthy soils and help farmers grow more grain with less rain in an increasingly variable climate," Mr Gazey said.

"All these trials highlight how important soil science is creating sustainable farming systems, which ensure the natural resource on which crops rely continues to be healthy and productive for generations to come."

DPIRD is also responsible for administering the Soil and Land Conservation Act (1945), which includes preventing land degradation, promoting soil conservation and educating landholders and the general public about sound land management.

In addition to these activities, DPIRD is half of the SoilsWest Alliance with Murdoch University, which will soon release a new addition to its series of Soil Quality ebooks, with support from the GRDC.