Women’s GAPP group members had the chance to get their hands dirty and in the process they learned more about their soils and crops at a soil water workshop hosted by BCG last Thursday (August 18).
The interaction between soil nitrogen and soil moisture was the focus of the day, with Anne Jackman, Harm van Rees (CropFacts) and Tim McClelland (Model Agronomics), leading the event which included a tour of a nearby soil carbon trial.
The role soil carbon plays in soil health was discussed in depth, covering soil microorganisms, nutrient supply and plant available water.
At the trial site, Harm explained that soil organic matter consists of four components – plant material greater than 2mm, decomposing plant material (2mm to 0.05mm), humus (less than 0.05mm) and charcoal.
Anne emphasised the importance of characterising your soil to understand its production value. She then demonstrated how soil bulk density tests are performed in the field.
Participants learnt how create their own nitrogen budgets, including the practicalities of interpreting and applying soil test results. This was a popular activity, particularly in light of the current cost of urea and the recent rainfall.
The workshop also provided participants with the opportunity to characterise their own soils into clay, clay loam, loam, sandy loam and loamy sand using a texture ribbon test. The women conducted a pH test on their soils and discussed the implications of these characteristics on crop production such as nutrient availability in certain pH ranges and soil water availability in different soil types.
Tim McClelland introduced the participants to the crop modelling tool Yield Prophet®.
The group learnt how this tool can help with decisions about how much nitrogen to apply to their crop to reach yield potential, based on current soil water and nitrogen supply. This was complimented with discussion about some of the things that influence crop water use efficiency, such as subsoil limitations, soil type, sowing date, not enough nitrogen, weed, diseases, insects, temperatures, frost and heat.
The workshop concluded with the regular segment ‘On my Farm’ where a GAPP member is invited to share information about her farm, including their background and future plans.
At this meeting Rupanyup farmer Cathie Weidemann shared her experiences, which included an engineering career in Queensland before moving to a Wimmera broadacre farm with her husband and two children.
The GAPP women’s group is a joint BCG/Agriculture Victoria initiative, designed for women keen to improve growth, adoption, production and profitability within their businesses.
To find out more or to join the GAPP women’s group contact Louisa Ferrier on (03) 5492 2787 or at louisa@bcg.org.au. GAPP women’s group members are invited to check out the photos from the day on the GAPP womens facebook page.