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REVIEW
Contents Vol 47(1)

Key crop nutrient management issues in the Western Australia grains industry: a review

W. Chen A B E , R. W. Bell A , R. F. Brennan B , J.W. Bowden B , A. Dobermann C , Z. Rengel D and W. Porter B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A School of Environmental Science, Murdoch University, 90 South Street, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia.

B Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia, Locked Bag 4, Bentley Delivery Centre, WA 6983, Australia.

C International Rice Research Institute, Los Banos, Laguna, Philippines.

D School of Earth & Geographical Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia.

E Corresponding author. Email: wchen@agric.wa.gov.au

Australian Journal of Soil Research 47(1) 1-18 https://doi.org/10.1071/SR08097
Submitted: 28 April 2008  Accepted: 15 September 2008   Published: 18 February 2009

Abstract

In the present paper, we review 4 topics that were identified through extensive consultation with stakeholders as issues of high impact and influence for the grains industry: improving soil testing and interpretation; role of fluid fertilisers in the Western Australian (WA) grains industry; using spatial and temporal information to improve crop nutrient management, particularly for nitrogen; and developing recommendations for managing emerging nutrient deficiencies. The key findings are summarised below.

To further improve soil testing and interpretation, the review suggests that future research should focus on addressing soil sampling and interpretation questions, as they are important factors affecting the accuracy of fertiliser recommendations with changing cropping practices. There have been several studies to compare fluid with granular forms of P in WA, but the responses have not, so far, been consistent. More work may be needed to understand different crop response to fluid P fertiliser additions, particularly on low pH soils in WA. An understanding of the long-term performance of fluid P will also require an assessment of the residual value of fluid P compared with granular P under field conditions. Precision agriculture (PA) technology has potential to improve crop nutrient management and farm profitability in WA. The review indicates that understanding both spatial and temporal yield variation is critical for the successful adoption of PA technology by growers. The review also suggests that in WA, there is a need to explore the use of different layers of spatial information for determining management zones. In response to wide adoption of no-till and stubble retention cropping systems, increased use of fluid fertilisers together with advanced application technologies, and increased interest in cropping in the high rainfall zone, there is need to better understand growers’ practices and attitudes to crop nitrogen (N) management, and thus to better position research and extension activities. The review also suggests the need to evaluate new fertiliser products and site-specific N management concepts and develop N management practices for waterlogging-prone soils for improved N use efficiency in cereal production systems in WA. The negative balance of magnesium (Mg) observed in WA cropping systems, together with the information reviewed on factors affecting soil Mg content and crop response to Mg application across Australia, suggests that there is a need to evaluate the risk and impact of Mg deficiency on acidic sandy soils of WA.

Additional keywords: copper, fluid fertilisers, molybdenum, nutrient deficiencies, soil testing and sampling, sulfur, tactical nitrogen management, zero-till cropping, zinc.


Acknowledgments

We thank all people from Grower Groups, CSBP, Summit Fertilisers, United Farmers, Nutrient Management Systems Pty Ltd, Silverfox, University of Western Australia, CSIRO, Chemistry Centre of WA, Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia (DAFWA), and independent advisers, who participated in face-to-face discussions, informal phone conservations, focus group discussions and a written survey, and provided their professional views on a diversity of issues associated with crop nutrient management. We thank Mr. Patrick Page (DAFWA) for his help in organising focus group discussion. We thank Dr Robert Belford for his help in accessing final reports of GRDC funded projects in WA; Mr. Martin Shafron (Fertilizer Industry Federation of Australia) for his help in accessing unpublished data; Dr Mike Wong, Dr Mike McLaughlin, Dr Geoff Anderson, Dr Stephen Loss, Mr. Sandy Alexander, Ms. Alison Slade, and Dr Cindy Grant (Canada) for their help in providing research reports and published or unpublished information. We also thank Mr. Ian Maling, Mr. Wayne Pluske, Mr. Eddy Pol, Mr. Patrick Gethin, Mr. Jeremy Lemon, Ms. Caroline Peek for discussions and information on the current crop nutrient management practices in WA. We thank Dr Dave Allen (section 3), Dr Mike Bolland (section 3), Dr Stephen Loss (section 4), and Ms. Bindi Isbister (section 5), who reviewed draft sections and provided comments that improved the draft. Finally we thank the GRDC for financial support.


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Wong MTF, Corner RJ, Cook SE (2001) A decision support system for mapping the site-specific potassium requirement of wheat in the field. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture 41, 655–661.
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Wong MTF, Edwards NK, Barrow NJ (2000a) Accessibility of subsoil potassium to wheat grown on duplex soils in the south-west of Western Australia. Australian Journal of Soil Research 38, 745–751.
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Wong MTF, Harper RJ (1999) Use of on-ground gamma-ray spectrometry to measure plant-available potassium and other topsoil attributes. Australian Journal of Soil Research 37, 267–277.
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Wong MTF , Oliver Y , Robertson MJ , Wittwer K (2006) Technologies to estimate plant available soil water storage capacities at high spatial resolution. In ‘Proceedings 13th Australian Society of Agronomy’. 10–14 September 2006, Perth, Western Australia. www.agronomy.org.au

Wong MTF , Wittwer K (1997) Aspects of potassium impacting on the sustainability of Western Australian agriculture. In ‘Proceedings of the First Workshop on Potassium in Australian Agriculture’. 3–4 October 1997, Geraldton, Western Australia. (Eds MTF Wong, Y Pal, NK Edwards) pp. 9–14.

Wong MTF , Wittwer K , Zhang H (2000 b) Historical nutrient balance at paddock and whole farm scales for typical wheatbelt farms in the Dowerin-Wongan Hills area. Agribusiness Crop Updates 2000, Perth, Western Australia.

Wylie P , Mayfield A , Harrop F , Roe A (2003) The potential of fluid fertilisers for broadacre cropping in Australia. A review prepared for the Grains Research and Development Corporation, Horizon Rural Management.

Zhang H, Davison W, Gadi R, Kobayashi T (1998) In situ measurement of dissolved phosphorus in natural water using DGT. Analytica Chimica Acta 370, 29–38.
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Zhang H, Turner NC, Poole ML, Simpson N (2006) Crop production in the high rainfall zones of southern Australia – potential, constraints and opportunities. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture 46, 1035–1049.
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