Bananas

Aim: To determine the effect of basalt and limestone application on yield, soil quality and CO2 capture in irrigated bananas.

Location and design

This trial is in collaboration with Howe Farming, on their banana farm between Cairns and Mareeba. The climate (Köppen, Bureau of Meteorology) is Tropical – savanna, and the soils are Ferrosols supplied with irrigation water from the Mareeba-Dimbulah Scheme.

The trial was established in May-June 2025 and will run to June 2028.

The trial has three treatments:

  • Control without basalt or lime
  • Limestone (1 tonne per hectare in 2025)
  • Basalt (40 tonnes per hectare in 2025)

each with 5 replicate plots. Each plot is 50 metres long and two rows (14m) wide.

Monitoring

  • Fruit yield and quality will be measured throughout the year.
  • Leaching of water and solutes will be measured during the wet season, using ‘drainage flux meters’ installed at 0.9 metre depth.
  • Soil properties will be measured once per year, using soil cores, and soil moisture will be measured continuously.

Bananas

To determine the effect of basalt and limestone application on yield, soil quality and CO2 capture in irrigated bananas.

Avocados

To determine the effect of basalt and limestone application on yield, soil quality and CO2 capture in irrigated avocados.

Grain (Northern)

To determine the effect of basalt application on yield, soil quality and CO2 capture in Northern Region grain crops.

Rice

To determine the effect of basalt application on yield, soil quality and CO2 capture in a rice farming system.

Cotton

To determine the effect of basalt application (in combination with synthetic or organic fertilisers) on yield, soil quality and CO2 capture in rainfed cotton.

Field trial 6

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit dolor

Dairy

To determine the effect of basalt application on yield, soil quality and CO2 capture in an irrigated dairy system.