Australia
June 29, 2004
Australia's efforts to reverse
dryland salinity have received a boost with the development of a
granular inoculant that helps wattles establish up to five times
faster than normal.
Developed
with CSIRO Plant Industry
and commercialised by
Bio-Care Technology Pty Ltd
Wattle Grow™ Granular Inoculant has the
potential to dramatically increase the success of native
revegetation projects to help address dryland salinity, which
costs Australia $270 million every year.
CSIRO Plant
Industry's Dr Peter Thrall says by harnessing the naturally
occurring nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria, Bradyrhizobium,
Wattle Grow™ helps wattles and adjacent vegetation grow more
quickly.
“In natural
ecosystems Bradyrhizobium occurs where wattles grow but
it is frequently absent in farmland where replanting or
reseeding with native vegetation may be taking place,” says Dr
Thrall.
“Bradyrhizobium
grows in a 'symbiotic' or mutually beneficial relationship with
wattles where it helps the wattle 'fix' atmospheric nitrogen in
the soil - effectively fertilising the wattle and nearby
plants.”
In field
trials across Victoria Dr Thrall and his team applied
Bradyrhizobium to wattle seed to determine the most suitable
Bradyrhizobium strains for a range of wattles.
Managing
Director of Bio-Care Technology, Gary Bullard, says CSIRO's
selection and testing of Bradyrhizobium paved the way for
the development of Wattle Grow™.
Wattle Grow™
contains four 'elite' strains of Bradyrhizobium that are
effective on a range of wattle species commonly used in
revegetation in south east Australia.
“Bio-Care
Technology is a leading developer and producer of inoculants for
legume crops and pastures,” says Mr Bullard.
“We are
excited to be involved in this discovery as we think Wattle
Grow™ has the potential to revolutionise land reclamation and
management in Australia.”
Wattle Grow™ -
available through leading rural merchants - can be mixed into
nursery potting media or applied into the sowing furrow with
wattle seeds in direct seeding.
This
research is done in collaboration with the
Centre for Plant
Biodiversity Research. |