Increasing rainfall-use efficiency for dryland crops on duplex soils. Peter Sale
1. Increasing rainfall-use efficiency
for dryland crops on duplex soils
Sale P 1, Gill J 1, Peries R 2, Tang C 1
1 Department of Agricultural Sciences, LTU
2 DPI Victoria, Geelong
7. Research Project 2005-2007
Treatments
• control
• deep ripped (DR)
• DR + gypsum
• DR + MAP
• DR + gyp/ MAP
• DR + coarse sand at 2 sites: - 4 years of grazing lucerne
• DR + dynamic lifter (20 t/ha) - continuous cropping
• DR + lucerne pellets (20 t/ha)
Subsoil manuring
• DR + luc.pellets (20 t/ha) /MAP/gypsum
14. What is happening in the subsoil?
Subsoil 4 years after incorporation
Control: 30-40 cm Lucerne +: 30-40 cm
Across the bed
15. Subsoil manuring: why does it transform clay?
manure
microbes
+
polysaccharides
clay particles
Roots
clay aggregates
16. Subsoil manuring: how much does it cost?
Manure cost: $ 18-25 / tonne
Rate: 20 tonne / ha
Freight: say $ 8-15 / tonne
Incorporation: say $150 / ha
Poultry litter
TOTAL = $ 670-950 /ha (equal to lucerne pellets)
18. Acknowledgements
I would like to acknowledge GRDC for funding
(Project ULA0008), and the Australian Research
Council for funding (Project LP0455551),
and my co-authors Jaikirat Gill, Renick Peries,
and Caixian Tang for their great team effort.