RECLAIMING THE MARGINS - TURNING UNPRODUCTIVE LAND INTO SUSTAINABLE GRAZING ASSETS USING THE ENRICH PROJECT MODEL

Timeframe: June 2020 - June 2022

Funding Source: Smart Farms Small Grants (Federal Government funding administered jointly by  Departments of Environment and Energy and Agriculture and Water Resources)

Project Coordinators: Jess Brown

SUMMARY

This project will provide broad-acre landholders in the Shire of Jerramungup with practical support to reclaim marginal land. Our guiding model will be the Enrich research project, which assessed the edible biomass, nutritional value, health benefits and grazing preferences for 94 Australian native shrub species. It demonstrated that introducing perennial fodder shrubs into a mixed farming system has a wide range of benefits to soil health, animal health and productivity, and biodiversity.

This project will enable farmers and FBG staff to develop the expertise required to successfully revegetate vulnerable soils using native fodder species. Activities include a visit to a farm that has adopted the model, local native fodder plant identification and farm revegetation planning workshops, reviews of existing local fodder revegetation sites, dissemination of information and bringing together like-minded farmers to establish a support network and provide follow-up support.