Mallee farmers and farm advisors now have the tools and knowledge to make the most of stored soil water thanks to a workshop hosted by BCG last Thursday (June 12).
Facilitated by BCG Yield Prophet® coordinator Tim McClelland, the workshop was funded through GRDC’s ‘Measuring and managing soil water in Australian Agriculture’ initiative, which aims to increase crop production through improved understandings about soils and their capacity to store moisture.
The workshop, which is part of a series being rolled out nationally, was conducted to address research findings that suggest there is a significant yield gap between what grain growers are producing and their crop’s actual potential.
According to work carried out by CSIRO in the Wimmera, on average wheat yields are 52.7 per cent lower than their potential (Hochman et al, 2012) and it has been suggested that this is partly a consequence of growers not understanding how to conserve and make the most of moisture stored in their soils.
During the Birchip workshop an interested group of farmers and young agronomists focused on regional issues that influence soil water management and crop production including soil type and texture, subsoil constraints, stubble management and infiltration and weed management.
Presentations by Tim McClelland, Harm van Rees (Cropfacts) and Anne Jackman (Cropfacts) were hands-on with practical skills such as in-field monitoring, determining plant available water and calculating soil moisture incorporated into the day.
According to Mr McClelland, attendees gained a lot from witnessing, and trying for themselves, field techniques such as bulk density tests.
“The growers and agronomists had the opportunity to get outside and see some of the theory put into practice,” he said.
During the afternoon workshop attendees were introduced to production simulator and decision support tools such Yield Prophet®, CliMate, Soil Water Express and How Wet. The workshop also covered the practical applications of this technology.
With an improved understanding about soil water, soil properties, how they interact and their management, growers and agronomists can now devise and implement farm practices that will hopefully make efficient use of stored soil water and go some way towards bridging the ‘yield gap’.
The Birchip ‘soil water workshop’ was the first in a series of three to be conducted in the GRDC southern region over the next two years. For more information about the ‘Measuring and managing soil water in Australian agriculture’ project please contact Tim McClelland on 03 5492 2787.
