Soil Wealth ICP team member Camilla Humphries in collaboration with Katrina Hill and Lisa Hasson from VegNET WA and vegetablesWA, delivered a farm walk through a newly commissioned greenhouse at Grown Smart Produce in Carabooda, one hour north of Perth, Western Australia.

Owner and operator Doug Chamberlain is working with the Soil Wealth ICP project with the support VegNET WA on a demonstration site to manage nutrition balance in an intensive cucumber hydroponic system. The aim is to improve crop health and nutrient use efficiency by making the right fertigation decisions.

At the farm walk, growers and other industry stakeholders saw the hydroponic cucumber cropping system where Doug explained the trial and what is working well with fertigation practices. WASP Agri Technical representative David Margi explained the remote sensing technologies which have been set up in the greenhouse to help monitor the crop by measuring electrical conductivity, pH, nutrient levels, temperature and humidity to help with fertigation decision-making.

The demonstration site discussion was led by Camilla and participants shared their insights and asked questions with the key takeaways including:

  • Regular monitoring by conducting weekly plant sap tests provides a good indication of plant health status – any change in the fertigation regime is identified in the plant sap tests a few days later which indicates if the plant is utilising the nutrients.
  • Nutrient use efficiency can be improved by making good fertigation decisions – the trial has shown that nutrient inputs can be reduced by half, resulting in cleaner tanks and no negative effect on crop health.
  • Sensors can be used to monitor the crop remotely in real-time – measuring factors such as humidity and temperature in conjunction with plant nutrient testing can provide a better indication of the plant’s physiological status, including transpiration rates which provides further evidence on plant nutrient uptake.

Stay tuned for more information on the demonstration trial and the cucumber cropping season’s trial summary.

Doug Chamberlain with his baby cucumbers at the farm walk on 8 October 2025.