Cropping solutions for the sugarcane farming systems of the Burdekin

Abstract

This project studied the cropping opportunities within the sugar dominant farming systems of the Burdekin district in Queensland (QLD). Approx. 15,000ha of fallow land annually provides opportunities for growers to adopt more sustainable farming systems and grow complementary crops such as pulses in the sugarcane system. Rotations with pulses have been proven beneficial to the sugarcane system from the Sugar Yield Decline Joint Venture (SYDJV) research project.

Through a rigorous agronomy trial program, this project developed locally relevant agronomic packages for soybeans and mungbeans in tropical sugarcane systems and investigated the profitability and productivity implications of longer fallows within this system.