Similar to Nutrition and soil health to optimize production monitoring and manipulating orchard nutrition to maximize quality and yield – science, tips and tools
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Nutrition and soil health to optimize production monitoring and manipulating orchard nutrition to maximize quality and yield – science, tips and tools
1. 2012 International Macadamia Symposium – Brisbane,
Queensland Australia
Monitoring and manipulating orchard nutrition to
maximise quality and yield:
science, tips, and tools
2. Integrated Agronomic Solutions
• Laboratory and Analytical Services
• Nutrition Management
• Pest and Disease Management
• Remote Sensing
• Postharvest Quality Control
• Research and Development
• Software and Data Management
• Marketing – B2B and Direct
• Training
AgPro
Hosting of grower data via cloud accounts
3. Overview
• The basics of nutrition science and management
• Integration of nutrition with other agronomic
principles
• Trends, nutrient form, manipulation,
Hormone/Nutrient interactions
4. Why is this relevant to me
• Potential to increase production through greater
understanding of macadamia plant nutrition and
hormone manipulation/management
• To provide an understanding of and how to
Implement a complete and integrated process to
have a real impact on orchard productivity and
profit.
5. Digitise block boundaries to enable
you to track performance spatially
Work toward variable rate –
NDVI, yield mapping, zonal sampling
6. • Live soil moisture, EC and temperature monitoring
• Quicksoil monitoring of soil solution enables the determination of nutrient
composition
7. Decline of water
use at 10 cm
Water use
commences at 40 cm
Preferential feeding zones
8. Mechanisms for nutrient uptake
• Diffusion (osmotic potential)
– Nutrient ions move from high to low
concentrations
• Mass flow
– Ions move in the soil solution to the plant roots as
a function of transpiration loss of water form the
leaves
• Root interception
– Suggests roots come into contact with the ions
9. • Diffusion: potassium, magnesium,
calcium and to lesser extent, zinc
and iron
• Mass flow: nitrogen, calcium,
copper, boron, manganese,
magnesium, and sulfur
• Root interception: Calcium,
Phosphorous
Mechanisms for nutrient
uptake Exchange
Vs
Solution
10. Nutrient ratios change with depth
This can cause anomalies that, at the
surface seem inexplicable
11. When compared to Sap and quicksoil
results, an understanding of nutrient
interactions begins to form
And then a targeted regime can be implemented
12. Nutrient interactions
Uptake of this
nutrient
Decreases the uptake of these
nutrients
Increases uptake of these nutrients
NH4+ Mg, Ca, K, Mo Mn, P, S, Cl
NO3- Fe, Zn Ca, Mg, K, Mo
P Cu, Zn Mo
K Ca, Mg Mn (on acid soils)
Ca Mn (on acid soils)
Mg Ca, K, Mo
Fe Cu, Zn
Zn Cu
Cu Zn, Mo
Mn Zn, Ca, Mo
Documented nutrient interactions. (Adapted from Tisdale et al., 1985)
15. Timing of applications
• Matching peak demand of specific elements at
each phenological interval (just before) is
critical.
• Manipulation of phenological intervals is
achieved through the use of each of the 5
plant hormones
• It is essential to match nutrient availability
with these application.
• Understanding the partnerships is critical.
17. Hormones’ influence on nutrient
demand
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
EV FL FS FF PEH
ABA
GA
Au
Cy
18. Using Sap tests in Macadamias
• sap testing is a snapshot of elements in the sap
stream while dried tissue detects the total
amount of element in the leaf;
• sap testing, therefore, can detect a temporary
shortage caused by a range of factors other than
nutrient deficiency in the soil.
• This can be critical if the higher demand is due to
heavy nut load and supply is restricted by an
imbalance of cations (for instance) or application
of an antagonistic hormone.
19. Using test results to monitor
performance of applied product.
or monitor trends to understand
optimal demand pathways.
20. Factors to take into consideration when calculating total elemental requirement
•Balancing requirement from lab result to optimal ratio or level
•Yield goal – nutrient removal
•Sampling depth
•Bulk density
21. Incorporate your pest and other parameter
monitoring into decision making process
As there is strong correlations between nutritional
status and susceptibility to pest and disease
22. How can I implement this on my farm
• invest into understanding what is happening within the
orchard (regular pest monitoring, soil, quicksoil, sap and dry
tissue testing)
• create an action plan to which performance can be tracked
• implement action plan recording and variations to it
• review results, compare, refine and re implement
23. Take home message
• Holistic approach to agronomy and management;
– soil and tree nutrition are just a cog, but a critical one.
• Importance of MONITORING to target your response and reduce waste
• -start a cycle of continuous improvement
• Attention to detail
• - focus on ppm/ mg/kg and the tons will come
• - doing the same thing over and over again but expecting a different result
is the definition of madness. Isolated sequential experimentation
• Return on investment for good growers
• - 2% of gross production value into technical assistance delvers a 5-10%
return on investment at best and reduces risk of crop failure at worst.
SHARE THE LOAD, DON’T
GO IT ALONE
A FEW SHARP SETS OF EYES ARE
BETTER THAN JUST ONE SET
THERE IS ALWAYS ROOM FOR
IMPROVEMENT
SO TURBO CHARGE YOUR ORCHARD
AND START MAXIMISING YOUR
YIELD
