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.