The federally funded Drought Resilient Soils and Landscape project aims to demonstrate how to manage and overcome soil constraints. The project has selected twenty farmers in Southeast and Central Queensland which are trialling various treatments to rectify soil constraints, improve crop yield and enhance drought resilience in their paddocks.
Matthew and Stephen Marshall are based at Nandowrie, Central Highlands, and have been using biological fertilisers (made on farm), along with planting alternating multispecies cover crops to increase soil health and resilience. The family operation has irrigated and dryland country, producing organic lucerne and other crops integrated with their mixed farming system.
Boosting microbial life and incorporating a rotation of multispecies cover crops has helped the Marshalls to maintain their cropping yields and productivity even when they moved away from synthetics and into organics.
Hosted by the University of Queensland, Soil Science team and Australian Organic Limited, the farm tour will also include guest speakers: Grant Sims, cropper and livestock operator and owner/director from Down Under Covers.
The field day will seek to build on the proactive practices produces can do on farm to build soil health, crop resilience and increased productivity.
Details:
Thursday, 18th July 2024, 9:30am to 4:30pm
Nandowrie, Springsure (Address sent to registered attendees closer to date)
Morning Tea, Lunch and Afternoon Tea provided.
BYO chair
RSVP by Monday 13th July 2024 to: Bernard Wehr b.wehr@uq.edu.au | 0466 915 046
Supported by The University of Queensland, through funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund