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SFS12

Location: Mt Pollock

Australian Soil Classification: Calcic, Self-Mulching, Brown VERTOSOL

Site Description: Southern Farm Systems (SFS) field day raised bed demonstration site.
Land Use: Canola crop.

Image: SFS12 landscape
SFS12 Landscape. Also shows the Map Units within the Gnarwarre SFS trial site (Adcock, 1998).

Soil Profile Morphology:

Surface Soil
Image: SFS 12 profile
SFS12 Profile
Ap0-20 cmVery dark greyish brown (10YR3/2); self-mulching surface condition; light medium clay; fine to medium friable structure; very firm to strong consistence dry; pH 5.5; sharp change to:
Subsoil
B21tg20-30/60 cm Very dark grey (10YR3/1) with prominent common strong brown (7.5YR4/6) mottles as well as distinct common light grey (2.5Y7/2) and yellow (2.5Y7/6) mottles; medium heavy clay; very coarse prismatic, parting to fine prismatic, parting to blocky structure; irregular smooth faced peds; pH 6.7; gradual and irregular change to:
B22ss30/60-90 cmDark grey (5Y4/1) becoming dark greyish brown (2.5Y4/2); light medium clay; coarse slickensides evident; pH 8.5; gradual change to:

NOTE: most moisture is at this depth (base of cracks).
B23g90-130 cmPale olive (5Y6/4) with fine to coarse olive yellow (2.5Y6/6) mottles; sandy light clay; massive apedal structure; friable consistence moist; very few coarse calcium carbonate concretions; slight effervescence at B22/B23 junction; pH 9.1.

Key Profile Features:
Soil Profile Characteristics:



pH

Salinity Rating
Surface
(A1 horizon)
Strongly Acid
Low-Medium
Non-Sodic
None1
Subsoil
(B21 horizon)
Slightly Acid
Low-Medium
Sodic
Strong
Deeper Subsoil
(at 1 m)
Very Strongly Alkaline
Medium-High
Strongly Sodic
Strong
1 Moderate dispersion after remoulding.
Image: SFS12 graphs
    The pH in the surface is strongly acid. The pH in the upper subsoil is slightly acid becoming very strongly alkaline with depth.
The salinity rating is low to medium in the surface and upper subsoil, becoming medium to high in the deeper subsoil.The surface is non sodic. The subsoil is sodic becoming strongly sodic with depth.The clay content is moderate throughout the profile.



Horizon
Horizon Depth
(cm)
pH
(water)
pH
(CaCl2)
EC
dS/m
NaCl
%
Exchangeable Cations
Ca
Mg
K
Na
meq/100g
Ap
0-20
5.5
4.9
0.20
7.0
5.6
0.43
0.92
B21
20-30/60
6.7
5.7
0.25
5.5
7.9
0.66
3.3
B22
30/60-90
8.5
7.9
0.67
0.09
6.7
11
0.6
6.5
B23
90-130
9.1
8.3
0.56
0.08
4.9
9.6
0.3
6.4

Horizon
Horizon Depth
(cm)
Exchangeable Aluminium
mg/kg
Exchangeable Acidity
meq/100g
Oxidisable Organic Carbon
%
Total
Nitrogen
%
Field
Capacity
pF2.5
Wilting Point
pF4.2
Coarse Sand
(0.2-2.0 mm)
Fine Sand
(0.02-0.2 mm)
Silt
(0.002-0.02 mm)
Clay
(<0.002 mm)
Ap
0-20
14
12
1.6
0.15
28.2
15.2
18
29
16
34
B21
20-30/60
8.1
35.1
18.9
14
26
17
40
B22
30/60-90
<5
48.2
25.7
10
19
16
53
B23
90-130
15
35
15
35

Management Considerations:

Whole Profile
Profile Described By: Richard MacEwan (November 1999).

Reference:

Adcock D 1998. Gnarwarre Soil Survey. Centre for Environmental Management, University of Ballarat. unpublished.
CC BY 4.0 AU

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