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Conquest of Ninety-Mile DesertPrint Page 
Location
| Address: | Dukes Highway, Coombe, 5267 |
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| State: | SA |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -35.998231 Long: 140.264579 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
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| Monument Theme: | Technology |
| Sub-Theme: | Science |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Wednesday 22nd October, 1986 |
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Erected by the Australian Institute of Agricultural Science
To commemorate the conquest of Ninety - Mile Desert
Unveiled by His Excellency Lt-Gen Sir Donald Dunstan, KBE, CB, Governor of South Australia
22 October 1986
Desert Conquest
The breakthrough which led to the transformation of the infertile wastelands of the Ninety-Mile Desert into the productive farmlands now known as the Coonalpyn Downs was made possible by the field experiments of Dr. David Riceman of C.S.I.R.O. during the period 1944 - 1950.
These experiments, located on several properties in the Keith District, revealed the need for trace amounts of copper and zinc, in addition to superphospate, for the successful growth and persistence of legume-based pastures, which paved the way for the development of this huge area. One of the properties involved was that of Mr. Jack Summers adjacent to this marker.
Tribute is also paid to the many agricultural scientists associated with the C.S.I.R.O., Waite Institute and Department of Agriculture, whose research findings provided solutions to other problems encountered in the course of land development undertaken by the A. M. P. Society, Hugh Robinson & Co, and individual farmers.
