Marong map unit Qa1

Back to: A Land Capability Study of the Rural City of Marong

Map Unit:	Quaternary alluvium, terrace (Loddon River upper)	Map Unit Symbol:	Qa1
		% of Study Area:	0.1

Land-form diagram for Marong map unit Qa1

General Description:
A narrow terrace found intermittently along the Loddon River mainly around Newbridge township. The associated soils are red duplex with brown silty clay loam top soils grading into reddish brown fine sandy clay loams and then reddish brown medium clays. The sandy parent material is encountered at less than one meter. A minor variation in the soil type is an increase in fine sand content throughout the profile. A narrow sandy ridge formed by overbank stream flow occurs within the unit at Newbridge.

Site characteristics:

Parent material age:	Quaternary	Depth seasonal watertable:	> 2.0 m
Lithology:	Alluvium	Potential recharge to groundwater:	Moderate
Landform Pattern:	Alluvial plain	Flooding risk:	Low
Element:	Terrace	Drainage:	Well drained
Slope common:	0 %	Depth to hardrock:	> 1.5 m
Slope range:	0 - 1%
Rock outcrop:	0 %

Major vegetation: Yellow Box, Red Gum, Round-leaf Wattle, Wallaby Grass, Capeweed, introduced grasses

Present land use: Grazing (major), residential (minor)

Land degradation:	Water erosion		Wind erosion	Salting	Acidification
Land degradation:	Sheet/rill	Gully	Wind erosion	Salting	Acidification
Susceptibility	Low	Low	Low	Low	Moderate
Incidence	Low	Low	Nil	Low	Moderate

Soil profile characteristics:

Permeability (measured - average, range):	90, 40-150 mm/day
Permeability (estimated):
Available water capacity:	278 mm H₂O
Linear shrinkage (B horizon):	3.9 %

Soil profile description:

A1	0 -18 cm	Greyish yellow brown (10YR4/2) silty loam, moderate structure, subangular blocky peds 5-10 mm, smooth fabric, moderately firm consistence, high organic matter, pH 5.7. Clear transition to
A2	18 - 32 cm	Bright reddish brown (5YR5/6) fine sandy loam, weak structure, subangular blocky peds 2-5 mm, smooth fabric, moderately firm consistence, pH 5.7. Clear transition to
B	32 - 85 cm	eddish brown (5YR4/3) light clay, moderate/strong structure, angular blocky peds 5-10 mm, smooth fabric, moderately firm consistence, pH 6.0. Clear transition to
C	85 - 150 + cm	Bright brown (7.5YR5/6) sand, pH 6.5.

Soil classification:

Factual Key (Northcote):	Dr 2.21
Australian Soil Classification:	Haplic, Eutrophic, Red, Chromosol; moderate, thick, silty, non-gravelly
Unified Soil Group:	ML

Interpretation of soil analyses*

Horizon	pH	Gravel %	E.C. (salts)	Nutrient Status	P	K	Al	Organic Matter	Dispersibility
A1	5.4	< 1	VL	L	D	S	S	H	M
A2	5.7	< 1	VL	L	S	S	S	L	H
B	6.0	< 1	VL	M	S	S	S	L	H

VL : Very Low; L : Low; M : Moderate; H : High; VH : Very High; D : Deficient; S : Satisfactory; T : Toxic; **: Acid * See Appendix 4 for analytical results

Land capability assessment

Land Use	Class	Major limiting feature(s)/ landuse
Agriculture (CTS values)	C₃T₁S₃	Moderately dispersible top soil, climate
Effluent disposal (septic tanks)	3	Moderate permeability
Farm dams (earthen)	5	Very low suitability of subsoil
Building foundations - slab	2	Nil
Building foundations - stumps/footings	2	Nil
Secondary roads	4	Universal Soil Group
Urban residential	4	Secondary roads
Rural residential	5	Farm dams

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