Crops

The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development continues to support the growth and international competitiveness of all crop industries in Western Australia.

With a 2400 kilometre span from its tropical north to its temperate south, WA supports a broad range of cropping industries from rain-fed winter cereals through to irrigated horticultural crops.

In the 2012/13 year the WA cropping industries exported a total of $3.9 billion which comprised: $3.1 billion of cereals, $859 million of pulses, pastures and oilseeds, $142 million of horticultural crops. The major contributors to these exports were wheat ($2.7 billion), canola ($756 million), barley ($377 million), lupins ($42 million), carrots at $48 million, oats ($12 million), and strawberries at $5.5 million.

Articles

Wheat yield potential and land management constraints in the south-west of Western Australia

10 November 2015

The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development assessed the potential and reported wheat yield of the 18 million hectares of agricultural land in the south-west of Western Australia
Estimating soil texture by hand

27 February 2014

Estimating or measuring soil texture provides valuable information about soil properties affecting crop and pasture growth. Soil texture affects the movement and availability of air, nutrients and
Carbon farming: claying to increase soil carbon content in Western Australia

18 November 2013

Spreading clay on light, sandy soils helps to increase soil water holding capacity, retain nutrients and overcome water repellence.
Reducing nitrous oxide emissions from agricultural soils of Western Australia

13 November 2013

Nitrous oxide, a highly active greenhouse gas, is released from pastures and crops using nitrogen fertilisers.
Carbon farming management options in Western Australia

13 November 2013

The aim of carbon farming is to sequester more carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as part of Australia's response to climate change.
Soil organic matter: influence on nutrient availability

15 November 2013

Soil organic matter influences nutrient supply and water-holding capacity in soil.
Soil organic carbon and carbon sequestration in Western Australia

6 November 2013

A large amount of carbon is stored in soils – mostly as soil organic matter – and there is potential in some areas to sequester more atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) in soil organic carb
Environmental impact of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilisers in high rainfall areas of Western Australia

10 December 2013

The most commonly used nitrogen and phosphorus fertilisers in the high rainfall south-west of Western Australia can be leached into the groundwater and washed into waterways, resulting in serious e
Carbon farming and Western Australian agriculture

10 December 2013

Carbon farming is the agricultural practices or land use to increase carbon stored in the soil and vegetation (sequestration) and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from livestock, soil or vegetati
Soil organic carbon in Western Australian

17 November 2016

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is inherently low in Western Australian soils – limited by climate and soil type – with some potential to increase through management.