Strategic cultivation can alleviate soil stratification
An interesting article recently written by Bob Freebairn for The Land newspaper, has outlined how the work the NSW DPI is doing is revealing that strategic cultivation can alleviate soil stratification.
Top-dressed lime and severe acidic layers
One of the main points that has been outlined in this research is how top-dressed lime incorporated by a sowing operation in zero or no till, or even minimal tillage, more than commonly results in surface-concentrated lime and an elevated pH in the 0-5cm soil layer.
Even more importantly, irrespective of liming history, and critical to plant growth, is severe acidic layers within a 5-15cm depth of the soil profile, across a range of soil types.
A large-scale acid research program
A large-scale acid research program, begun in 2015, is investigating legume performance on acidic soils.
Helen Burns, Mark Norton and Peter Tyndall (NSW Primary Industries Department) conducted the study and Grains Research and Development Corporation helped fund it.
To understand more on this research and how it affects your farming practices, read this article
