Victorian Resources Online (archived)

SFS3

Location: Mt Pollock.

Australian Soil Classification: Vertic (& Ferric), Mottled-Subnatric, Grey SODOSOL

General Landscape Description: Possible alluvial fan below eruption point to east.
Site Description: Southern Farming Systems (SFS) 'Concept Farm' crop runoff trial site.
Geology: Quaternary - Newer Volcanics.

SFS3 Landscape.

Soil Profile Morphology:

Surface Soil			SFS3 Profile.
Ap	0-10 cm	Dark brown (10YR3/3) with rusty root channel mottling; fine sandy clay loam; weakly pedal; very firm consistence dry; contains many fine ferruginous nodules; pH 6.2:
Subsoil
B21cg	10 – 75 cm	Dark greyish brown (10YR4/2) with brownish yellow (10YR6/6) mottles; fine gravelly clay; fine polyhedral structure; shiny ped faces; abundant fine buckshot; fragments of sub-rounded basalt (up to 100 mm diameter); pH 7.4:
B22	75 – 100/110 cm	Brownish yellow (10YR6/6) with dark grey (10YR4/1) infill in earthworm channels; sandy clay; many quartz fragments; very few ferruginous nodules; pH 9.1; wavy change to:
B23ss	100/110 + cm	Greyish brown (2.5Y5/2); gravelly clay; abundant fine and coarse buckshot; slickensides present (50-100 mm in size); contains weathered basalt fragments; pH 9.0.

NOTE: Buckshot is magnetic throughout the profile.

Buckshot and mottling within the B21 horizon.

Plough pan at the intersection between the surface and subsoil.

Key Profile Features:

Strong texture contrast between surface (A) horizon and subsoil (B21) horizon.

Soil Profile Characteristics:

	pH	Salinity Rating	Sodicity	Dispersion
Surface (A1 horizon)	Slightly Acid	Low	Non-Sodic	None
Subsoil (B21 horizon)	Slightly Alkaline	Low	Sodic	None¹
Deeper Subsoil (at 1 m)	Very Strongly Alkaline	Low	Strongly Sodic	Strong

¹ Strong dispersion after remoulding

The pH in the surface is slightly acid. The pH in the subsoil is slightly alkaline becoming very strongly alkaline with depth.

The salinity rating is low throughout.

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	0-10	6.2	5.6	0.21		9.7	4.9	0.65	0.81
B21g	10-75	7.4	6.2	0.15		6.6	12	1.2	2.8
B22	75-100/110	9.1	7.8	0.23		4	9.4	0.47	4.3
B23	100/110+	9	7.9	0.35	0.03	5.5	13	0.7	6.5

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	0-10	<10	9.7	2.3	0.21	31.5	14.6	16	38	14	29
B21g	10-75		7.3			40.5	20.8	22	19	7	49
B22	75-100/110		1.5			31.7	14.5	17	42	8	33
B23	100/110+		2.4			44.9	21.3	14	31	12	43

Management Considerations:

Whole Profile

Plant available water capacity (PAWC) is considered to be medium (estimated at 107 mm) in the upper 75 cm of this soil profile. Effective rooting depth (ERD) is restricted to 75 cm due to the highly sodic subsoils (ESP>20).

Profile Described By: Richard MacEwan (May 1999).

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