Pro Ag Soil Management - Phil Barnett
Pro Ag Consulting
82 William St, Norwood SA 5067
Mobile: 0417 925824
Fax: 08 83612715
After hours: 08 83319689
Email: phil@proagsoil.com.au
Web: www.proagsoil.com.au
Soil Management Services
Pro Ag Consulting offers a unique, independent soil testing and assessment service that is able to quickly identify limitations and rectify them with practical, cost effective programs.
Pro Ag Consulting provides balanced soil and plant nutrient programs for a wide range of producers and land managers in broad-acre agriculture, viticulture and horticulture and also in amenity horticulture and landscaping.
Pro Ag Consulting principal, Phil Barnett is a soil practitioner with a farming background who specialises in remediating difficult soils and returning them to productivity.
The service is independent and because it is not associated with any particular fertiliser or product, provides advice you can trust. The recommendations are soundly based on testing and measurement to apply only what is needed because too much fertiliser can be as damaging to the soil as too little.
Pro Ag Consulting utilises both analysis and practical experience to find solutions for soil and plant nutrition problems. The focus is on optimising production, quality or amenity value by starting with the basics – measuring and identifying soil limitations and then working from the “ground up”.
The aim of the programs is to build healthy, biologically active soils for long term sustainable production by supplying balanced nutrition, creating good soil structure and supporting microbial activity. These soils are then able to support high yielding, disease resistant plants producing top quality, fruits grains and herbage.
Good soil management is also the key to water use efficiency because well structured soil :
• has higher infiltration rates and absorbs more water from rainfall or irrigation
• can store more water in its pore spaces
• loses less water through evaporation in hot weather.
Healthy soils are also “Water-wise Soils” - more information
The service ranges from interpretation of soil test data from samples submitted to the laboratory, to full on site soil assessment sampling and reporting.
Please contact Pro Ag to discuss your soil or plant issues or to arrange a quotation for an on site assessment.
Philip Barnett
Diploma Agriculture - Roseworthy - 1973
Graduate Certificate Sustainable Agriculture
University of Sydney - 1996
AIAST
• Soil and petiole testing service. 
• Annual fertiliser and soil management programs for vines including organic vineyards
• Trouble-shooting soil and vine nutrition issues.
• Pre-plant soil amendment and fertiliser programs at vineyard establishment – working with soil surveyors.
Projects for:
Fosters Clare Valley, Eden Valley and Barossa Vineyards
Taylors Wines
Tim Adams Wines
Barton Springs Vineyards
• Annual fertiliser and crop management programs for olives, orchards, flower & vegetable .JPG)
production.
• Trouble-shooting soil and crop nutrition issues - soil and leaf testing programs.
• Pre-plant soil amendment and fertiliser programs at orchard establishment – working with soil surveyors.
Projects for:
Olivefields
Big River Olives
Cottage Flowers
Cowlings Cherries
• Pre-planting property assessment and soil amendment and fertiliser programs. 
• Annual testing and fertiliser programs for blue-gum production.
• Trouble-shooting soil and tree nutrition issues.
Projects for:
McEwen Contracting
Macquarie Forestry
• Preliminary soil assessment of proposed development areas to enable .JPG)
appropriate planning and design.
• Soil management plans for development sites to meet landscaping requirements.
• Detailed soil amendment specifications for landscaping contractors.
• Plans for remediation of soil and plant problems in existing developments.
Projects:
Newport Quays
St Clair
Victoria Square
Techport development
Defence SA LeFevre Project
Tidbinbilla Wetlands – ACT
Coast to Coast Tramway
Beyond Today – Victor Harbor
Bowden Redevelopment (Clipsal site)
• Annual monitoring and assessment of ovals and reserves. 
• Amendment and fertiliser programs for balanced, water efficient soils.
• Trouble-shooting soil problems and issues of tree and turf decline.
• Identifying soil limiting factors and developing soil management plans for park and reserve developments.
Some 2007/2008 Projects:
Adelaide City Council – assessing tree decline areas in the parklands
City of Salisbury – monitoring reclaimed water use sites – Mawson Lakes
City of Mitcham – general soil testing of ovals and reserves
“The resulting benefits of applying Pro Ag recommendations have been a considerable improvement in grass and tree establishment in our reserves and streets. This translates to the landscape providing greater amenity value to users, and will also save money in the long term as plant losses and water use will be reduced, due to improved soil structure”.
Landscape Design Officer, City of Salisbury
• Assessment and testing of proposed development areas to enable appropriate landscape planning and design. 
• Soil management plans for development sites to meet landscaping requirements.
• Detailed soil amendment specifications for landscaping contractors.
Projects:
Tramway Extension Project – monitoring the transplanted Brachychiton in Victoria Square.
Bakewell Underpass - landscaping.
Walkerville redevelopment
Turf and Irrigation Contractors
• Annual monitoring and assessment of ovals and reserves. 
• Amendment and fertiliser programs for balanced, water efficient soils.
• Trouble-shooting soil problems and issues of turf decline.
• Identifying soil limiting factors and developing soil management plans for irrigation developments.
Projects for:
Greene Eden Water Systems – subsoil irrigation
Sportsground Construction Services
Karinya Reserve
• Preliminary soil assessment of garden development areas to enable appropriate planning and .jpg)
design.
• Soil management plans for garden redevelopments to ensure the successful establishment of landscape plantings.
• Detailed soil amendment specifications for landscaping contractors.
• Remediation programs for soil and plant problems in existing gardens including programs for organic garden care.
"No garden project should begin without a comprehensive soil test to optimise soil conditions"
Alan Fisher - Gardens Australis