Western Victoria Research Site SGS Harvest Year

Summary

The Theme was initially set up to develop a minimum protocol for nutrient sampling and analysis. As SGS developed, the Theme's plans addressed the following objective: For a range of the major climatic regions of the High Rainfall Zone where temperate perennial pastures are an important land use, to quantify the positive and negative effects of N and applied P both on and off site on pasture and animal productivity; soil acidification; and P and N concentrations in runoff waters SGS (to June 2001): The Theme provided leadership and co-ordination of:

research into the dynam ics of nutrients in intensive pasture systems
forage mineral nutrient analyses
soil analyses for a standard fertility description of two treatments at each Site (low and high fertility
soil analyses for pH buffering capacity.
In addition, the Theme has provided a focus for issues concerning intensive vs extensive pastures. The Theme leader was also involved in the Triple P research program, funded by Wool Innovations Limited and the NRE Wool Program, and a Dairy Nitrogen project funded by DRDC, ARC and the NRE Dairy Program. His co-involvement has enabled substantial synergies that have allowed the SGS program rapid access to the latest findings from these other programs.