Unlocking Soil Nutrients with Organic Matter

Written By Cristy Houghton

Project 3.1.006

Dr Balaji Seshadri – Project Leader
The University of Newcastle

DURATION:

Three years

OVERVIEW:

Enhancing nutrient use efficiency in agricultural soils is challenging due to diminishing natural resources such as phosphate rock and water availability. The use of organic wastes (e.g. composts, manures, biosolids) as soil amendments can potentially reduce the dependence on naturally available materials.

Maintaining and enhancing soil fertility are key issues for sustainability in an agricultural system with organic or low input methods. This project will study the effect of organic amendments on nutrient release in selected soil and cropping systems under different soil management practices. It aims to explore how organic amendments can unlock tightly bound soil nutrients, enhancing nutrient use efficiency (NUE). The project will also establish innovative approaches to apply organic amendments in agricultural soils and examine ways to make the nutrients available for plants through moisture retention and nutrient mobilisation.

PARTICIPANTS:

The University of Newcastle
University of Southern Queensland
Central West Farming Systems
South East Water
Primary Industries and Regions SA
Australian Organics Recycling Association
Herbert Cane Productivity Services
Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research New Zealand

 
Cristy Houghton

Cristy's unique career has taken her from country NSW to the city lights of Clarendon Street South Melbourne and back again. With an early career in radio as a copywriter and creative strategist, she is now a Jill of all trades as a graphic designer, website builder, blog writer, video editor, social media manager, marketing strategist and more. 

In fact, give her any task and this chick will figure out how to do it! Go on, we dare you!

No, really, we DARE you!!

Cristy has won two Australian Commercial Radio Awards (ACRAs) for Best Ad and Best Sales Promotion, and even has an 'Employee of the Year' certificate with her name on it.

Cristy and her husband James have traveled extensively through Russia, China and South East Asia, and have two fur-babies, Sooty (cat) and Panda (puppy). Cristy loves drinking coffee, meeting people to drink coffee, coffee tasting and coffee flavoured cocktails. She also enjoys road trips, TED Talks and watching cat videos on youtube.

http://www.embarketing.com.au
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Visualising Australasia’s Soils
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Recovering Nutrients from Organic Waste Streams