Catalyst to think outside square
Innovative farming techniques in region aim to increase productivity
A TULLY district farmer passionate about innovative farming practices is trialling a new way to improve growth and performance of his crop.
Murray Upper cane grower George Henry used to spread mill mud to the top of the stool, but is now trialling belowground application and adding supplements in the root zone, drilling down to 500mm, and he said the results were encouraging.
“In some soil types, roots were getting burnt off at 200mm,’’ he said.
“The pH was root pruning with levels changing from 5.4 to 5.7 in the top 200mm to 4.9pH at 200mm.
“We have five major soil classifications here, ranging from elevated red soil to heavy clay at the lower end of slopes. And the land is in a rain shadow – we receive half the rainfall of Tully – so we wanted to improve moisture retention on our driest blocks.”
Mr Henry began his trial after electromagnetic surveys of his paddocks highlighted the extent of low pH levels in subsoils. The survey also revealed a lot of aluminium toxicity at sub-surface levels.
He is now working with T.R.A.P Services’s Charissa Rixon and using a mixture of mill mud and mill ash, applied with a modified spreader that covers three rows at a time.
Mr Henry is one of more than 100 innovative growers from across North Queensland who will attend the 2019 Project Catalyst Forum in Cairns next week.
The two-day event will bring farmers, researchers, soil health experts and other agricultural industry representatives together to share cuttingedge farming practices.
Project Catalyst – a partnership of cane growers, natural resource management groups, the Australian Government, WWF and The Coca-Cola Foundation – supports farmers who are trialling groundbreaking practices that increase productivity and improve water quality.