Page 12 - DAF 254 Peer 2 Peer Case Studies

IN THE NEWS
New toolkit helps farmers spread the soil health message
Interest in soil health-based farming continues to grow in the Wet Tropics with farmers putting their hands up to help other farmers by becoming soil health coaches. Funded by the Enhanced Extension Coordination in GBR project, a new toolkit has been develop to support the soil health coaches.
The toolkit contains practical tips and strategies to help coaches support the change process while helping farmers in their area implement regenerative and soil health-based farming approaches.
It’s not a manual on the technical aspects of soil health; it does, however, contain some general soil health Steps to Success. These steps can help guide farmers considering changing their soil management.
Regional Extension Coordinator Steve Roeger said farmers who had already walked the walk had credibility with other farmers seeking to change. Steve said there had been more than 100 farmers who had taken advantage of soil
health workshops and courses such as Terrain NRM’s Digging Deeper course.
Soil expert David Hardwick has been one of the key facilitators of soil health workshops across the region.
Mr Hardwick said several farmers had emerged as champions for soil health-based farming over the last five to six years and they were keen to help other farmers learn more. “We know that one of the best ways to support farmers through change is for other farmers who’ve already done it to help them, so this is an opportunity to accelerate the awareness and adoption of soil health-based farming,’’ he said.
DAF Coastal Farming Systems Team Leader, Neil Halpin said soil health was about getting the soil’s chemical, physical and biological components working together.
``Getting soil health right underpins the long- term sustainability of the soil resource, which in-turn improves grower’s productivity and profitability.”