Cropping Communities
Supporting crop growers to build soil health and drought resilience
We’re working with growers and on-ground regional partners around the country to build soil health and drought resilience.
Over the past three years Soils for Life’s Cropping Resilience project supported 1,200 growers to adopt regenerative soil and plant health practices. We produced dozens of resources including practice guides, videos, podcasts, webinars, and more. These practices can improve farms’ resilience to drought and often the bottom line, through improved crop health and reduced input costs.
Register your interest
Cropping Communities brings our cutting-edge resources into the field through on-farm and online training for farmers and advisers, rolled out across Australia.
Register to participate or receive updates, contact Jono Forrest – [email protected]
Opportunities for farmers: build your skills and networks
- On-farm training program to build soil health and drought resilience skills for growers in 8 cropping regions, aligned with the farming calendar. Delivered with on-the-ground partners in the following regions:
- Wimmera, VIC
- Riverina, NSW
- Southern Wheatbelt, WA
- Northern Wheatbelt, WA
- Southern QLD/Northern NSW
- Central Queensland
- Northern and Yorke, SA
- Central West NSW
- Online training program for farmers outside of these regions.
- Field days and skills workshops around Australia showcasing best practices, available for a larger audience of interested growers seeking an entry point to new techniques.
- Podcasts offering accessible, on-the-go conversations exploring ideas, challenges and real-world experiences.
- Peer learning opportunities providing practical training and knowledge building in a group setting, and connections to relevant specialists.
- Equipping leading farmers to champion best practices in their communities and the cropping industry.
Opportunities for advisers: access training and resources
- Specialist training program delivered online to build your capacity to support growers.
- Ongoing curriculum resources available for your use with growers across the cropping industry.
- Professional learning network of advisers trained to support growers with soil health and drought resilience.
Get involved
We’re currently accepting applications from interested growers and advisers. Express your interest in participating in one of our on-farm training programs, online programs, or attending field days and skills workshops. We’ll be in touch as planning gets underway. Contact Jono Forrest – [email protected]
Cropping Resources
Practice Guides
Explore cropping practices that build soil health and drought resilience. We’ve released ten practice guides with case study examples from Australian grain growers. Find the full series here!
Case Studies
Read about grain growers experimenting with regenerative approaches. We also profile growers in our Practice Guides.
Recordings and other resources
Check out our webinars, Cropping Convos and podcasts with farmers and specialists in the field of building soil health and resilience in cropping systems.
Cropping Convo with Graeme Sait on essential micronutrients
Cropping Convo Jill Clapperton on companion planting
Cropping Convo with Ellen Walker on soil biology in cropping systems
Cropping Convo with Lee Fieldhouse on producing and using vermicast at scale
Cropping Convo with Matthew Newell on perennial grains
Cropping Convo
And ‘Ask Me Anything’ session on plant nutrition with Graeme Sait
Cropping Convo
And ‘Ask Me Anything’ session on multispecies cover crops with Jade Kiloran
Cropping Convo
And ‘Ask Me Anything’ session on reducing insecticides and fungicides with Joel Williams
Cropping Convo
And ‘Ask Me Anything’ session on managing complexity in mixed farming systems with David Bushell
Cropping Convo
And ‘Ask Me Anything’ session on Johnson-Su composting at scale with Bec Hamersley
Webinar: Brewing your own biological workforce
Basics of brewing your own biofertilisers, applying them, and how to measure for success.
Interview
Small steps for big change in cropping with Joel Williams
Interview
Behind the scenes of Goodies Farm, with Penny Goodwin
Webinar
Tracking soil health with Nicole Masters and three Australian farmers
Project partners
Delivered in partnership with VicNoTill, Dawson Catchment Coordinating Assoc, RegenWA, Perth NRM, Macintyre Ag Alliance, Northern and Yorke Landscape Board, Grower Group Alliance, and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Australia.
This project is supported by Soils For Life, through funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund.
We’ll keep you updated
Sign up to our mailing list to hear about upcoming field days, webinars, farmer groups and more.
Join our events!
We’ll post any events related to our Cropping Resilience project here. For timely notifications you can sign up to our newsletter or follow us on social media.
Reach out with any questions
Do you have any questions or feedback? Get in touch
