Riverine Plains Blog

Posts about:

Soil Acidity

Getting the most out of your farm data

Key messages:

  • always have a clear purpose for collecting on-farm data and understand how it can be used to make decisions, for example informing fertiliser strategies, livestock breeding programs and soil amelioration
  • good quality data is critical to making informed decisions
  • ensure that you will be able to access your data, even when changing consultants or machinery suppliers
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Are your soils under-performing?

Key messages

  • Understanding the scale and depth of soil constraints is key to an effective amelioration program
  • Incremental sampling to depth provides more information than traditional 0-10 cm tests
  • Seek advice before beginning an amelioration program

Summer and early autumn provides an opportunity for Riverine Plains farmers to treat soil constraints, such as acidity and sodicity, between winter crops.

So, what are the issues to consider?

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Managing acidic soils in the Riverine Plains

Soils in the Riverine Plains region can be complex, with constraints segmented across the profile. Soil acidity is a classic example of this, with some soils not being acidic in the topsoil but being profoundly acidic beyond 15cm depth.

While some soils in northeast Victoria and southern NSW are naturally acidic due to their parent material, others are becoming more acidic due to agricultural production. The ongoing use of nitrogen and the export of agricultural produce (which extracts calcium, magnesium and other cations from the soil) all resul t in net soil acidification.
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