The long-awaited Riverina Healthy Soils Field Day is finally happening, following postponements last year due to COVID restrictions. The event is the last in the highly popular national program, focussed on the importance of healthy soils for healthy trees and productive groves.
The new date is Sunday, March 27 and the venue is Parafield Olives, Yarragundry, NSW.
The grove host is award-winning table olive producer Margie Carter and presenters will include AOA CEO and OliveCare® Administrator Michael Southan, grove management expert Andrew Taylor (Pendleton Estate), soil and compost guru John Barton (Charton & Bang), soil scientists Bruno Holzapfel (NSW DPI) and Dr Jason Condon (CSU), and monitoring expert John Pargeter (Swan Systems).
Draft program – 8:30am-6:00pm
AM – Welcome, introductions, grove walk, soil and leaf nutrition sampling
Session 1 – Introduction, including on-farm biosecurity issues, grove productivity and OliveCare® best practice checklists
Session 2 – Grove walk: Grove innovations and management issues, including demonstration of renovation pruning, grove monitoring, nutrition, inter-row management, mulching, benefits of building soil carbon
Session 3 – Soil and leaf nutrition sampling, analysis and interpretation, planning a grove nutrition program
Lunch break – including grove monitoring and measuring equipment demonstration
PM: Soils, making and using compost, evaluation
Session 4 – Utilising grove organic waste, making and using compost
Session 5 – Understanding the role of soil carbon, soil water and soil biology, including economic/IPDM benefits; composting training
Conclusion – Feedback and evaluation, followed by refreshments until 6.00pm
Cost: AOA members and levy payers: $40 incl GST; others $50 incl GST.
Registrations close 21 March – access full program details and register here.
Note: All events are subject to any COVID-19 restrictions/cancellation which may apply at the time.
