Increasing production on sandy soils in low and medium rainfall areas of the southern region

A large gap exists between actual yield and water limited yield potential on sandy soils in the low rainfall cropping zone of south-eastern Australia. This project investigates the potential for the management of constraints to production under these conditions through a combination of mitigation and amelioration strategies. An initial research focus will establish the nature and extent of the constraints, measure the degree to which the problem controls the yield gap between yield attained and yield potential, and develop appropriate and cost-effective management strategies with estimates of return and risk of investment. Using that information the project will develop a framework to support growers with problem sands considering trialling practices to overcome crop water-use constraints.

The framework will help growers:

1. Identify problem sands;
2. Identify the primary constraints to crop water use and their relative impact;
3. Identify treatments to address constraints;
4. Identify funds, skills and equipment required to trial potential practice changes;
5. Measure the success of each practice; and
6. Identify the most useful timing and extent of implementation on-farm.