This research aims to trial and demonstrate different management practices which could be used by growers to ameliorate saline soil patches:

1) Amending soil with sand, straw or gypsum - application of amendments to the soil surface can improve crop emergence by reducing evaporation leading to more soil moisture, or by reducing the moisture required to germinate a seed by increasing the sand content of the soil surface. Gypsum was also included to increase the amount of calcium relative to the level of sodium (salt) and address sodicity in the longer-term.  

2) Selecting crop types/varieties – to investigate the differences in crop performance on saline soils between crop types and varieties with improved salt tolerance.

• In season one lentil grain yields were generally low (0.16 t/ha – 0.62 t/ha) in the sand, straw and gypsum amelioration trial. The high sand application rate (1300 t/ha) was the only treatment to improve lentil grain yield compared to the control. 
• This season larger differences among the sand and straw rates are emerging. Sand rates above 650 t/ha and straw rates above 6.6 t/ha resulted in wheat grain yields of 1.95 t/ha – 2.42 t/ha compared to the control 0.67 t/ha. 
• Wheat yields following various crop type/varieties sown in 2022 to manage salinity ranged from 0.51 – 0.99 t/ha. Wheat yields following canola and field pea were higher compared to wheat following wheat, triticale or barley. 
• There was a link between wheat grain yield this season and plant cover from the various crop types/varieties at harvest last year. Crop types which had <40% plant cover at harvest resulted in lower wheat yields the following season.