Information
Strategies to reduce nitrate leaching losses from intensive crop production in northern Tasmania
Level 1 General description
Purpose:
To model the fate of nitrogen and water across seven mixed vegetable based farming enterprises in the Panatana catchment.
Methods (brief)
Soil, management and climate data/information collected from each case farm was used to calibrate and parameterise the farming system model, Agricultural Production Systems Simulator.
Key findings (brief)
Substantial drainage (> 100mm) was simulated from both the summer and winter phases of the rotation. Crop N demand was close to crop N supply for all rotation elements with the exception of potato which had an average surplus of 89 kg N/ha.
The potential exists for substantial seasonal N leaching losses from all elements of the crop rotations but potato was the ‘leakiest’ of all crops with an average loss of 29 kg N/ha.
Location
Panatana catchment in central north Tasmania ~41o12’S, 146o26’E
Related studies
N/A