RECOGNISING DIFFERENCE IN SOIL TYPE TO GUIDE NUTRIENT INPUTS ON-FARM-A CASE STUDY FROM BUNDABERG

SUBSTANTIAL advances have been made in refining the traditional fertiliser recommendations for sugarcane production in Australia. These refinements have led to the development of sets of soil-specific nutrient management guidelines for use at district level with the aim of being appropriate for current and evolving farming systems. Fundamental to these changes is the recognition of differences in soil type and the need for appropriate management of nutrient inputs that reflect these differences. Ultimately, the aim is to ensure optimum productivity, profitability and environmental responsibility on-farm. Over the past 6-7 years, Clyde, Fay and Jay Hubert, the owners of Amaryllys Holdings, a 20 000 t sugarcane enterprise consisting of several farms north of Bundaberg, have co-operated participatively in this process. This paper describes the basis for the modified nutrient management guidelines, the land resources and the basic farming system of Amaryllys Holdings, the results of nutrient management trials that have been conducted on-site, implications for the farming enterprise when adopting modified farming practices and nutrient management strategies, and a summary of plans to enable continued sustainable sugarcane production on these farms.