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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 58(12)

An evaluation of the tactical use of lucerne phase farming to reduce deep drainage

K. Verburg A D , W. J. Bond A , L. E. Brennan B and M. J. Robertson C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A CSIRO Land and Water/Agricultural Production Systems Research Unit, GPO Box 1666, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.

B CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems/Agricultural Production Systems Research Unit, Queensland Bioscience Precinct, 306 Carmody Rd, St Lucia, Qld 4067, Australia.

C CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems/Agricultural Production Systems Research Unit, Private Bag 5, PO Wembley, WA 6014, Australia.

D Corresponding author. Email: kirsten.verburg@csiro.au

Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 58(12) 1142-1158 https://doi.org/10.1071/AR07023
Submitted: 23 January 2007  Accepted: 23 July 2007   Published: 17 December 2007

Abstract

Lucerne phase farming has been suggested as a way of reducing deep drainage in the cereal belt of southern Australia. It is based on the concept that lucerne (Medicago sativa L.), a perennial pasture with a deep root system, creates a soil water storage buffer below the root zone of the annual crops, which gradually refills during the subsequent cropping phase, temporarily reducing the risk of deep drainage. The rate of refilling is variable because it is affected by the amount and distribution of rainfall as well as management of the crop and the summer fallow. There is, therefore, uncertainty about the optimum phase durations that will maximise the effect of the lucerne phase.

Computer simulations were applied to evaluate the use of a soil water measurement below the root zone of annual crops to schedule the phase changes, referred to as tactical phase farming. The results confirmed that phase farming reduced average annual deep drainage significantly, but at the cost of lower average annual gross margin. In most cases, tactical phase farming improved the trade-off between deep drainage and gross margin relative to fixed duration phases; for a given amount of average annual deep drainage the average annual gross margin was larger, and for a given gross margin the drainage was smaller. The benefits of tactical phase systems were greatest in soils with a large available water-holding capacity and when the variability of the refilling rate was large. Overall, however, the benefits of the tactical approach relative to fixed phase systems were small.

Additional keywords: water balance, APSIM, simulation, climate variability, stochastic climate generation.


Acknowledgments

The research described here was jointly funded by CSIRO and the Grains Research and Development Corporation. We thank Sri Srikanthan and Andrew Frost for providing the model for stochastic generation of climate data and help with interpretation of the results. We also thank Brent Henderson for advice on calculation of the bivariate confidence regions, Phil Ward for sharing his parameterisation of the Orthic Tenosol, John Hargreaves, Neil Huth, Don Gaydon, and Perry Dolling for feedback on APSIM parameterisation issues, and Jeff Hirth for feedback on lucerne establishment and growth patterns. Lloyd Davies and Fiona Scott from the NSW Department of Primary Industries provided advice and information on the economic aspects of lucerne pasture. The manuscript was significantly improved thanks to comments on earlier versions by Julianne Lilley, Senthold Asseng, and two anonymous referees.


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