Victorian Resources Online (archived)
Site SW53
| Location: Cooriemungle. | Australian Soil Classification: Vertic (& Sodic), Calcic, Grey CHROMOSOL |
| Geology: Gellibrand Marl. |
 Site SW53 Landscape. |
Soil Profile Morphology:
Surface Soil
| A1 | 0-15 cm | Very dark greyish brown (10YR3/2 moist and 10YR5/3 dry); silty clay loam; weakly pedal; medium to fine (2-20 mm) polyhedral structure; pH 5.7; abrupt and smooth change to: |  Site SW53 profile. |
| Subsoil | |||
| B21g | 15-60/70 cm | Dark greyish brown (2.5Y4/2 moist) with common (~15%) yellowish brown (10YR5/8 moist) mottles; medium clay; coarse (20-50 mm) polyhedral, parting to medium to fine (2-20 mm) polyhedral structure; pH 5.7; gradual and wavy change to: | |
| B22g | 60/70-105/115 cm | Light olive grey (2.5Y5/4 moist (50%) and grey 2.5Y5/1 moist (50%)); medium to heavy clay; coarse (50 mm) polyhedral or angular blocky, parting to medium to fine (5-20 mm) polyhedral structure; slickensides (>20 mm); pH 7.4; abrupt and irregular change to: | |
| B23kgss | 105/115-160 cm+ | Light olive grey (5Y6/2 moist); common (~20%) yellowish brown (10YR5/8 moist) mottles; heavy clay; very coarse (100-300 mm) angular blocky, parting to coarse (20-50 mm) polyhedral or angular blocky, and medium to fine (2-20 mm) lenticular structure; soft white calcareous accumulations (up to 10 cm) at top of horizon; slickensides (>10 mm); pH 8.9. | |
Key Profile Features:
- Strong texture contrast between surface (A) horizon and subsoil (B21) horizon.
- Vertic properties (slickensides present) in deeper subsoil.
Key Profile Characteristics:
pH | Salinity Rating | |||
Surface (A1 horizon) | Moderately Acid | Low | Non-Sodic | None |
Subsoil (B21 horizon) | Moderately Acid | Low | Non-Sodic | None |
Deeper subsoil (at 105+ cm) | Strongly Alkaline | Low-Medium | Sodic | None |
 |
Horizon | Horizon Depth (cm) | pH (water) | pH CaCl2 | EC 1:5 | NaCl % | Exchangeable Cations | |||
Ca | Mg | K | Na | ||||||
meq/100g | |||||||||
A1 | 0-10 | 5.7 | 4.9 | 0.11 | 8.8 | 3.8 | 0.63 | 0.48 | |
B21 | 15-60 | 5.7 | 4.5 | 0.1 | 8.5 | 9.4 | 0.51 | 1.2 | |
B22 | 70-105 | 7.4 | 6.2 | 0.16 | 16 | 13 | 0.43 | 3.2 | |
B23 | 105-160 | 8.9 | 8.9 | 0.77 | 0.09 | 16 | 14 | 2.9 | 5.8 |
Horizon | Horizon Depth (cm) | Exchangeable Aluminium mg/kg | Exchangeable Acidity meq/100g | 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) |
A1 | 0-10 | 13 | 15 | 39 | 17 | 7 | 25 | 30 | 27 |
B21 | 15-60 | 240 | 13 | 45 | 24 | 1 | 17 | 19 | 59 |
B22 | 70-105 | 53 | 26 | 1 | 12 | 18 | 65 | ||
B23 | 105-160 |
Management Considerations:
Surface (A) Horizon
- In its natural state the surface soil is well structured and strongly pedal. The description here "weakly pedal" is a reflection of the damaged caused by pugging, a common winter effect in the Heytsbury.
- The level of exchangeable aluminium measured in this horizon is high. This may restrict the growth of aluminium sensitive species.
