Professor Graeme Blair

Biography

Appointed as Senior Lecturer in the Department of Agronomy and Soil Science at the University of New England in 1970 Dr Blair developed courses in plant nutrition for Rural Science undergraduates. He also commenced teaching and research activities in agrostology, nutrient cycling and animal production in Indonesia. Author or co-authored over 200 peer-reviewed journal papers, in excess of 150 national and international conference proceedings, several books and book chapters, institutional publications and industry literature.

Throughout his career, he has supervised 40 PhD and 20 Masters students to completion. Some of the key research outcomes are (i) plant nutrition- sulfur fertilisation, sulfur soil tests, sulfur fertilisers, phosphorus and sulfur interactions, plant nutrient dynamics in crops and pastures; (ii) forage science – forage and pasture management and livestock feeding systems and; (iii) soil organic matter dynamics – labile soil carbon pools, decomposition of plant residues. Through various secondment and consulting roles, he has assisted a large number of Research and Development organizations in the management of their research portfolios including the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), ACIAR, Australian International Development Assistance Bureau (AIDAB), Australian Meat Research Corporation, the Dairy Research and Development Corporation and the Wool Research and Development Corporation. He was seconded to the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) to manage the forage research projects throughout Southeast Asia, the Pacific and the Middle East. In 2000, the International Fertiliser Association (IFA) recognised his work on sulfur with the International Crop Nutrition Award. He was made a fellow of the Australian Society of Agronomy in 2012 and in 2015 received the Donald Medal for his contributions to Australian Agronomy.