This projects aims to develop a statewide dryland and broadacre irrigated crop and pasture agricultural project that focuses on ‘optimising water capture and use in the landscape’ with a focus of on-farm extension and adoption.The South Australian Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub (SA Drought Hub) (Hub) brings together a dynamic network of primary producers, industry groups, researchers, government agencies, universities, agribusinesses, traditional owners, and others to work towards a common vision to strengthen the drought resilience and preparedness of our farms and regional communities in South Australia. The Hub works closely with farmers and farmer groups to build resilience to, and preparedness for, drought and climate change in South Australia’s agricultural and pastoral industries.

In late 2021, the SA Drought Hub ran a statewide consultation and co-design process to determine stakeholder, and in particular growers and grower groups, ideas on how farms and communities could best become more drought resilient. A total of 991 ideas were received through community workshops and other consultations held regionally, and though meetings with Industry groups and other key stakeholders. The ideas presented were easily ordered into 10 themes, with the number of ideas within each theme indicating the importance of that theme to the community. The number of duplicate or similar ideas within a given theme helped to identify the project priorities for each region and the opportunities that this presented for project development. The key themes identified through this initial process have continued to guide Hub investment and project delivery, although some themes such as Farm Business management are covered through other FDF Programs such as the FDF Farm Business Resilience Program. The 10 themes identified were:

• Community resilience and wellbeing through support, collaboration, and access to technologies.
• Farm planning and decision making to manage climate and operational risk.
• Farm business management.
• Livestock and fodder management strategies, technologies, and innovations.
• Crop and pasture management strategies, technologies, and innovations.
• Access to drought information and technical support.
• Soil and land management strategies, technologies, and innovations.
• Water security and management strategies, technologies, and innovations.
• Native vegetation, biodiversity, pest management strategies
• Upskilling advisers, researchers, and key influencers.

Projects were ultimately co-designed between Hub Members based on the themes and highest priorities stemming from these initial consultations. Many projects have focused on building the drought resilience of grain production systems, livestock production systems, pasture production, and fodder production and storage. Specific soils projects delivered to date (Murray Mallee, Yorke Peninsula, Mid North) have concentrated on variable rate fertiliser and seeding applications to enhance drought resilience both agronomically and economically.

Project description: 

Project focus

One of the recurring ideas for drought resilience which was, and continues to be, received across all regions was increasing the water availability of crops / improving water utilisation of crops / increasing the water holding capacity of soils, with associated ideas such as mitigating heat stress in cereal crops and legumes. In regions prone to drought, maintaining optimal soil moisture levels can significantly enhance the resilience of cereal crops, reducing the risk of yield losses and promoting sustainable agricultural practices. Effective soil moisture management can also mitigate the effects of cold and heat stress and improve overall crop health, leading to more stable and productive farming systems. SA Drought staff see this as an area with a lot of potential to increase drought resilience of SA dryland production systems and discussions with some grower groups has confirmed their interest in developing a project on this topic.

Scope and deliverables

The following project deliverables are to be undertaken:

1. Provide framework to capture information of past investments and key outcomes relevant to soil water capture, storage and utilisation in dryland broadacre crop and pasture systems.
2. Facilitate consultation with Drought Hub partners and key stakeholders to reflect on past investments, capture gaps in skills and knowledge and scope up future project investments and opportunities with regards to soil water, capture storage and utilisation in broadacre crop and pasture systems.
3. Identify opportunities that meet needs of the groups as a result of the consultation from both a state and regional perspective
4. Develop project scope / concept focussing on the following;

• Dryland broadacre cropping and livestock systems
• Focussing on tailored demonstration and extension activities to achieve increased adoption through small group facilitated learning programs
• Budget for delivery of the project

Further to this, as part of the project, the SA Drought Hub, through the Regional Soils Coordinator will:

• Capture and summarise past investments (2018-current) and key outcomes relevant to soil water capture, storage and utilisation in dryland broadacre crop and pasture systems on supplied template
• Organise workshop venue, catering and inviting participants (in consultation with Hub partners and project participants)
• Act as the link between facilitators and the workshop attendees with regards to disseminating information i.e. sending out pre-workshop information, sending out post-workshop developed content to participants and collecting information for feedback.

Key achievements and results: 

2025 project update

In 2025, the Drought resilient soils- optimising water capture and use in the landscape project progressed well, completing a consultation and stakeholder engagement process to help guide future soils and water-use priorities across South Australia. Four regional workshops were delivered across key locations, with 63 stakeholders participating and contributing insights into local needs and opportunities.

The workshops used a structured co-design approach to capture regional learnings, identify gaps in knowledge and capability, and develop draft concepts for future demonstration and extension activity. Participants valued the strong facilitation and practical structure, noting that “the process was good… the structure of the day was good” and that “there was value in being given specific tasks and points, it kept us on track.”

Across discussions, participants emphasised the importance of planning for variability and preparing early for future opportunities, with one attendee reflecting that it was “good that this project is proactive rather than reactive”, while another noted that “preparation makes our life easier… and [helps] develop the scale of projects across the state”.

Insights from all workshops were compiled into a draft report, which was shared for review with both the SA Drought Hub and participants, with feedback now being incorporated into a final report. Future activities will focus on refining key ‘pillars’ for a future soils project that directly addresses the demonstration and extension gaps identified through the consultation process.