Victorian Resources Online (archived)
CFTT17
| Location: Stradbroke. | Australian Soil Classification: Melacic, Humosesquic, Aeric PODOSOL. |
| Great Soil Group: podsol. | Geology: Pleistocene aeolian sediments. |
| General Landscape Description: Longitudinal dunefield. | Mapping Unit: Gormandale. |
| Site Description: 7% slope to the south. | |
Surface Soil
| A1 | 0-30 cm | Very dark greyish brown (10YR3/2); loamy sand; single grained; very weak consistence moist; pH 3.8; clear and smooth transition to: |  Site CFTT 17 Soil Profile |
| A21 | 30-50 cm | Light grey (10YR6/1); sand; single grained; loose when dry; pH 4.2; diffuse and smooth transition to: | |
| A22 | 50-115cm | White (10YR8/1); sand; single grained; loose when dry; pH 4.6; sharp and wavy transition to: | |
| Subsoil | |||
| Bhs | 115-135 cm | Dark reddish brown (5YR3/3) and yellowish red (5YR5/8); sand; with continuous tongues of weakly cemented and massive "coffee rock"; pH 4.2; gradual and smooth transition to: | |
| C | 135-190 cm | Dark reddish brown (5YR3/3) and yellowish red (5YR5/8); sand; single grained; many ferruginous nodules (less than 60 mm). | |
Key Profile Features:
- Deep sandy surface horizons.
- Conspicuously bleached, very thick subsurface (A2) horizons.
- Accumulation or iron-organic matter compounds (i.e. "coffee rock") in subsoil.
Soil Profile Characteristics:
Horizon | pH | Salinity Rating | ||
Surface (A1 horizon) | Extremely Acid | Very low | Non-sodic | None |
Subsoil (Bhs horizon) | Extremely Acid | Very Low | Non-sodic | None |
 | The soil profile is extremely acid throughout. |  | The levels of coarse sand are high throughout the profile. |
 | The level of soluble salts is very low throughout the profile. |  | The clay content is very low throughout the profile. |
Management Considerations:
- Plant Available Water Capacity (PAWC) is very low for sandy soils such as these. The soils are, however, well drained.
- These strongly acidic sandy soils have a very low nutrient holding capacity and are considered infertile – being naturally deficient in nitrogen, phosphorus, sulphur and potassium. Nitrate and sulphate are readily removed by leaching. Deficiencies of trace elements such as copper, zinc and molybdenum are likely to occur. The trace element boron (B) leaches rapidly through acid sandy soils and deficiencies are also likely to occur.
