Living soils and the new NPK (nutrients, physical structure, key biology)

Did you know that 2015 is International Year of Soils? Soil is often an overlooked partner in sustainability but it is critical in producing healthy food, fibre, fuel and medicine. Soil supports our planet’s biodiversity and plays an important role in the carbon cycle, climate change and climate adaptation.

• Learn about what we can do to improve our own soils and garden more sustainably.
• Join us in a discussion on the diversity and complexity of life and the inter-relationships that make a healthy soil.
• Learn about the Soil Food Web and the new NPK (Nutrients, Physical structure and Key biology) which explores the biological (life), nutrient (chemistry) and soil structural requirements of healthy soils.
• Delve with us into the relationship that pH has with soil structure and microbiological activity.
• See the life and activity within real soils samples through live projections on screen from a microscope.

Speakers:

• Gerhard Grasser – Studied Soil & Plant Health Sciences from 1984. He is Managing Director of AgriSolutions and has been consulting on soil and plant health to the farming community for nearly 30 years. Gerhard is an active partner in a biologically farmed property in Gippsland and has lectured in Soils, Dip.Sust.Agriculture at ECG McMillan TAFE. He is an Advisory Committee member, Soil Health Policy – West Gippsland and is a founder of Tree Preservation Australia.
• Matthew Daniel – Is an internationally experienced Arboriculturalist, studied Plant & Soil Health Care for Arboriculture in USA & Australia, established a plant & soil Health Care business in QLD and is a founder of Tree Preservation Australia.