39 Black, grey, brown and red cracking calcareous clays on Quaternary basic volcanics
| These soils occur extensively over the basic volcanic plains, mainly in lower landscape positions, the redder soils occur mainly in the east of the CMA. These soils have either self-mulching or at least strongly pedal surfaces of fine clay aggregates which grade into coarse and fine structured strongly pedal black (dominant) heavy clays. Some soils do have massive surfaces (more likely non-black soils). The surface soils are often slightly acidic becoming more alkaline with depth. The subsoil shows vertic properties of polished surfaces and lenticular structure due to the swelling of the clay. The lower subsoil may be less dark or even mottled and grade into a carbonate layer. The carbonate layer often grades into weathered rock or overlies rock. Shallower soils often overlie rock, with depths of about 60-70 cm. These soils have high nutrient levels and are often sodic, particularly at depth (not SFS2). Notable characteristics include: high shrink-swell potential, strong structure, self-mulching surfaces, high organic matter content in upper soil, some mottling at depth, high clay content throughout, and calcareous (carbonate) at depth. |  |
Soil Sites
Site Code | Soil-landform unit | Component | ASC | FK | 1:100 000 mapsheet |
CLRA46 | Mid slope | ?, Self-Mulching, Brown Vertosol | Ug5.28 | T7621 - Colac | |
CLRA62 | Flat | Epihypersodic, Massive, Black Vertosol | Ug5.4 | T7721 - Geelong | |
| Crest | Episodic-encocalcareous, Epipedal, Grey Vertosol | Ug5.12 | T7721 - Geelong | ||
MM5035 | Upper slope | Episodic, Epipedal, Black Vertosol | Ug5.12 | T7721 - Geelong | |
| Flat | Haplic, Epipedal, Black Vertosol | Ug5.12 | T7721 - Geelong | ||
| Flat | Endohypersodic, Epipedal, Black Vertosol | Ug5.12 | T7722 - Bacchus Marsh | ||
SFS1 | Plain | Vertic (& Sodic), Self-Mulching, Grey Vertosol | Ug5.26 | T7721 - Geelong | |
| Plain | Encocalcareous, Self-Mulching, Black Vertosol | Ug5.11 | T7721 - Geelong | ||
SFS4 | Mid slope | Endocalcareous-Endohypersodic, Self-Mulching, Black Vertosol | Ug5.14 | T7621 - Colac | |
SFS12 | Plain | Calcic, Self-Mulching, Brown Vertosol | Ug5.34 | T7721 - Geelong | |
| Upper slope | Endocalcareous, Self-Mulching, Black Vertosol | Ug5.11 | T7721 - Geelong | ||
SW98 | - | Epihypersodic-Endocalcareous, Epipedal, Black Vertosol | Ug5.13 | T7721 - Geelong | |
| Flat | Episodic-Encocalcareous, Self-Mulching, Black Vertosol | Ug5.11 | T7721 - Geelong | ||
SW102 | Plain | Epihypersodic-Endocalcareous, Epipedal, Brown Vertosol | Ug5.11 | T7721 - Geelong | |
SW103 | Plain | Epicalcareous-Epihypersodic, Massive, Red Vertosol | Ug5.6 | T7721 - Geelong |
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