Posts

The management of soils with excessive sodium and magnesium levels

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Reading Time: 15 minutes

Soils containing excessive concentrations of sodium and magnesium can have detrimental effects on plant growth and productivity. These minerals can accumulate in the soil to high levels due to various factors, including irrigation with water containing high salt content, excessive application of fertilizers rich in these minerals, and the deposition of animal excreta from grazing animals, which contain significant amounts of sodium and magnesium.

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Water movement in the soil: Important notes for irrigation management

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

Irrigation should not be applied uniformly in fields because soil differs in structure and texture. Understanding water movement dynamics for individual fields are very important for irrigation scheduling.

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Living roots are key

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

Soils have become high nutrient input systems resulting in the use of substantial amounts of synthetic fertiliser to grow our crops. There is a simple solution to this problem, we need to feed our “underground herds”

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soil in hands

The goose that lays the golden egg

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Reading Time: 4 minutes

Does your maximum production approach affect your ability to produce well into the future? This blog discusses some principles for a sustainable approach to farming that can be applied daily.

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Fungi, the gateway to farming sustainably

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Reading Time: 3 minutes
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Cattle grazing in field

We need livestock to increase soil carbon

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

We need livestock to create one of the few viable solutions available to mitigate climate change. Good agricultural practices can move carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into the soil.

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Contrasting fields

The carbon balance on dairy farms

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Reading Time: 5 minutes

There are seven farms which have negative net carbon emissions for the duration of this study. That is amazing! It completely changes the narrative of the negative impact of dairy farming.

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Paying back the carbon debt

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

Rebecca Burgess, founder of the Fibershed project says that, “our soils have a carbon debt; the atmosphere is gushing with carbon. The carbon over our heads is literally in the wrong place” and this couldn’t be truer.

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Constant cover is your soil insurance

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Reading Time: 2 minutes

Keeping the soil covered is important for soil conservation. The abundance and diversity of food for soil organisms is what determines a soil’s natural productivity.

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Graham Shepherd: Managing nitrogen and carbon to maximise farm performance

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Reading Time: 2 minutes

Graham’s keynote presentation, Managing N and C to maximise farm performance, truly resonated with the audience. Many of the farmers in attendance are already in transition towards sustainable farming while others are not quite there yet.

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