Building soil knowledge and climate resilience at Reef Catchments Annual Grazing Forum

Key takeaway

On the spot soil tests showed huge variation across farms. Understanding your fungal:bacterial ratio and microbial balance helps you tailor management to build healthier, more resilient soils.
Soil organic matter and soil carbon drive productivity and long-term resilience because they directly affect moisture retention, pasture growth, carbon sequestration and emissions.
These types of events brings together producers, researchers, industry representatives, NRM groups and service providers which speeds up access to new information and helps landmanagers make confident, climate-smart decisions faster.
Regional Soil Coordinator, Dhiraj Gajera spoke with attendees about soil health and connecting soil health to resilience and profitability.

Whitsundays for the first time this year and it proved to be a valuable platform for producers, industry and community to share knowledge, compare practice, and explore new approaches that will support resilience to a more variable future.

The two-day forum brought graziers, NRM organisations, industry professionals, and service providers together to examine the real-world challenges and opportunities facing the regions grazing systems. Soil health sat at the centre of the conversation.

Day one was hosted by Yalboroo Graziers and focused on the practical realities of transitioning old cane paddocks into productive grazing country. Attendees took part in field-based demonstrations on weed management, tropical pasture nutrition and targeted spray techniques showing how digital tools are helping producers be more efficient and precise with inputs.

Day two in Proserpine turned the focus to cattle management, genetics, and animal health. Presenters shared insights on bull selection, herd management and disease prevention, and booths and displays created space for attendees to ask questions, test tools, and access direct support.

For the TNQ Drought Hub’s Regional Soil Coordinator Dhiraj Gajera, the event was an ideal opportunity to deepen local soil knowledge and connect soil health directly to drought preparedness, carbon outcomes and profitability.

“It’s important to share information about Australia’s National Soil Strategy and guiding national soil stewardship with producers so we can ensure the future of our land through sustainable management practices,” Dhiraj said.

“Attendees were extremely interested in discussing soil biology and why organic matter and soil organic carbon are critical in climate-smart grazing systems."

“We were able to practically show how soil health is linked to resilience through productivity, carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas mitigation.”

As part of the forum, Dhiraj and Reef Catchments conducted on-the-spot assessments and 14 soil biology tests, including fungal-to-bacterial ratio analysis. Producers supplied the samples, and results demonstrated the diversity of soil microbial communities across the region which ranged from bacteria-dominated soils to more fungal-leaning paddocks.

“We used a soil biology framework to interpret the results and shared advice on building microbial balance and improving carbon storage potential,” Dhiraj added.

Attendees described soil biology as the “heartbeat of soil”, recognising that the more they understand what’s happening below-ground, the more confident they feel about futureproofing above-ground production.

Going forward, continued soil monitoring, benchmarking and extension will help producers better understand their soil assets over time, and identify the management adjustments that drive resilience in a variable climate.

Regional events like this accelerate learning, empower producers locally, and sow the seeds for long-term change.