Developments in microbial technology have become increasingly significant in sustainable land management.
And an innovative business out of NSW’s Mid North Coast, recognised as a champion in the Australian Government Innovation in Farming category at the 2019 NSW Landcare Awards, is focusing on cutting edge research driving best agriculture practice across the industry.
Established by couple Cathy Eggert and Jeremy Bradley, Beechwood Biological Solutions’ practical approach to improving soil health with minimal inputs and their enthusiasm for sharing results with farmers has led to widespread adoption of soil building techniques.
While breaking new ground in practice change for non-chemical management of problem weeds, BBS have pioneered the use of Nigraspora fungi for the specific management of Giant Parramatta grass, designing, trialing, manufacturing and making available the first practical inoculum to Australian farmers from their farm laboratory outside of Port Macquarie.
Jeremy Bradley (pictured) teaching young soil microbe enthusiasts during a bioprospecting expedition to Western NSW
Image: Supplied
The SoilTrooper inoculum is now used in many regions on East Coast farmland where Giant Parramatta grass is an issue, offering farmers an economical and highly effective management strategy.
‘This is a problem we faced on our own farm and could see existed on many other farms,’ Cathy explained. ‘And seeing our neighbours affected, and the general wider rural industry, we set about designing and trialling biological solutions that other farmers could easily and successfully adopt.’
BBS are also involved as scientific volunteers to the not-for-profit research institute Soil C Quest 2031 (SCQ) in the research & development of a Soil Carbon Inoculum Package. In the many hours of volunteer work given to SCQ, Jeremy and Cath have developed innovative bioprospecting and laboratory methods and techniques that have allowed significant steps forward towards the development of a viable microbial inoculum that helps plants store large quantities of carbon in the soil.
The couple undertake microbe isolation techniques in the Beechwood Biological Solutions laboratory.
Image: Supplied
‘The aim is to develop and deploy a microbial technology that significantly increases soil organic carbon in agricultural soils across large agricultural landscapes,’ Cathy said.
A power couple within the agriculture research community, Jeremy specialises in endophyte research and bio-herbicides. While Cathy has worked with the Farming for the Future program and Landcare.
For more information, visit beechwoodbiological.com.au
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