Welcome to the Saltland Pastures Association pocket site

Dryland salinity is a serious problem affecting agricultural land and the natural environment across southern Australia . Predictions show that the area of salt affected land is going to increase, despite our best efforts to control it. Adapting to the saline environment will be crucial as the area of productive land turning saline increases. But the future is not all grim. The notion of saline land having productive and economic value is relatively new, but growers and researchers are now working together to find sustainable, plant-based solutions to managing this land.

This pocket site houses the knowledge and products that have been produced by the Saltland Pastures Association to provide growers and community members with resources that can assist them in making their saltland productive. You can find technical information on growing plants on saltland as well as advice on grazing saltland pastures.

Often the hardest thing to do is to make a start. We hope that the information provided here will encourage you to "have a go" and that your success will encourage others.

Surveys show that farmers grow saltland pastures for two main reasons:
    1. to improve the aesthetic value of the land, and
    2. to increase farm profitability.

If your reason for revegetation of saline areas is to improve the "look" of your farm then you may need to plant saltland pastures - benefits can be achieved by: fencing sites, controlling grazing and allowing natural revegetation to occur using the highly salt tolerant samphire species. Swamp sheoak, a highly waterlogging tolerant tree, can also establish on saltland if it is protected from grazing.

There is no "silver bullet" solution and we need to adapt saline land, integrate and manage it as a part of the whole farm system. Establishing saltland pastures will return some profit on previously unproductive land while at the same time creating other benefits from providing groundcover for the saltland. Groundcover limits evaporation from the soil surface which is a major factor in concentrating salts in the soil and increasing salinity at a site. Saline sites are also often unstable and susceptible to erosion, which groundcover is criticial in preventing.

The information on this website is a tool to help you make wise management decisions for your situation as there is no one "recipe" or solution on establishing saltland pastures on saline land. It aims to help you begin answering the questions: which plant, how do I establish them, and where? But be informed - gather as much information as you can and try to imagine the outcome of each option for your situation. Though don't overestimate either. Just as you might underrate the information you glean from one source and another you might also rely on too heavily on what you perceive to be someones else's expertise - whilst persuasive sounding - ensure that their information is not out of date or inaccurate. So gather as much information from as many sources as possible. This will give you more to work with when it comes to decision making.

Finally, don't forget to learn and make decisions based on your own knowledge and experience. So have a go - identify the best possible solution for your particular situation, start small (starting small will minimise any economic losses due to failures) and learn from your own experience as well!! And if you are unsuccessful, try, try and try again!!

And if you have a question don't hesitate to use the Saltland Genie Forum or contact Genie to ask a question!