Weeds workshop very successful

If only weeds could talk……..

Well, it turns out they can - we just need to learn their language.

Our workshop with Kim and Angus Deans from Reinventing Agriculture in late May helped us do just that. We were walked through what weeds can tell us about our soil's physical, biological and chemical health.

Diversity is something to aspire to, whether it be biological diversity in the soil, plant diversity or diversity in workshop attendees. We were blessed to have the latter, with our 21 participants including farmers and graziers with an organic, regenerative, transitioning and 'conventional but curious' focus, as well as gardeners and others with an interest in soils. Collectively we represented 5 shires in the north-west, so our discussion covered quite a range of soil and weed types. The breadth and depth of knowledge in the room made for a very engaged and engaging workshop where everyone had a valuable contribution to make.

Soil science can be complex and sometimes daunting to understand. We learnt that by using observation, weeds and physical soil tests, we can glean enough to make management changes that will, over time, correct many issues (chemical soil tests are still recommended annually).

The day concluded with a round-up of problem weeds people had identified when they registered, giving us a snapshot of what the likes of Coolatai grass, capeweed and thistles can tell us about the soil they are growing in (and how we can change that so they no longer want to grow there!)

The workshop was hosted by Northern Slopes Landcare with support from our local Regional Agricultural Facilitator, Sarah Carter, who has provided funding through the Australian Government's Smart Farm funding.