Soils

Western Australia’s agriculture sector needs access to quality soil that can sustain long-term productivity and growth. The department is leading the way in developing management practices to maximise soil productivity and minimise land degradation. The department also provides technical information on managing soil constraints, including acidity, water repellence, subsoil compaction, erosion along with nutrient management. We also support agriculture through soil and land condition monitoring, condition assessment and providing management strategies and tools to improve soil condition.

Articles

  • Estimating or measuring soil texture provides valuable information about soil properties affecting crop and pasture growth. Soil texture affects the movement and availability of air, nutrients and

  • The whole farm nutrient mapping procedure described here applies to pastures in the greater than 600mm rainfall zone of south-west Western Australia.

  • Liming to recover an acidic soil to an appropriate pH can result in significant production benefits, however a response to liming indicates that previous production has been lost due to an acidic t

  • Management of weeds, disease and nitrogen nutrition are ongoing challenges that limit yield potential.

  • In September 2017, six department research officers presented at the biennial Australian Agronomy Conference in Ballarat, Victoria.