Location: Murtoa
Morphological Soil Type: Drung Sandy Clay Loam
Australian Soil Classification: Calcic, Subnatric, Red SODOSOL
Northcote Factual Key: Dr 2.33
Great Soil Group: red-brown earth
Mapping Unit: Drung Sandy Clay Loam
General Landscape Description: Crest of a slight rise in the prior stream flood plain landscape.
Site Description: Cleared and cultivated area, six kilometres south west of Murtoa.
Geology: Late Tertiary to Quaternary Shepparton Formation.
Native Vegetation: Probably originally Buloke (Casuarina luehmannii) vegetation.
IS14 Landscape |
Soil Profile Morphology:
Surface soil
A1 | 0-5 cm | Dark brown (7.5YR3/4); fine sandy clay loam; plastic; hardsetting surface condition; weak coarse angular blocky structure; strong consistence dry, moderately sticky consistence wet; pH 7.8; sharp and wavy change to: | IS14 Profile |
A2 | 5-10 cm | Brown (7.5YR4/3) sporadically bleached (10YR7/1); fine sandy clay loam; weak coarse blocky structure; pH 8.1; sharp and wavy change to: | |
Subsoil | |||
B21 | 10-25 cm | Reddish brown (5YR4/4); light clay; plastic; moderate coarse prismatic structure; strong consistence dry, moderately sticky consistence wet; pH 8.7; sharp and wavy change to: | |
B22 | 25-45 cm | Yellowish red (5YR4/6); light clay; plastic; moderate coarse prismatic structure; strong consistence dry, moderately sticky consistence wet; pH 9.3; clear and wavy change to: | |
B231k | 45-90 cm | Strong brown (7.5YR5/6) with faint yellowish red (5YR4/6) fine mottles; medium clay; plastic; weak blocky structure; strong consistence dry, moderately sticky consistence wet; contains very few (< 2 %) hard carbonates and a few (2-10%) soft carbonates; pH 9.3: | |
B232k | 90-130+ cm | Strong brown (7.5YR5/6) with faint yellowish red (5YR4/6) fine mottles; medium clay; plastic; weak blocky structure; strong consistence dry, moderately sticky consistence wet; contains very few (< 2 %) hard carbonates and a few (2-10%) soft carbonates; pH 9.3. |
pH | Salinity Rating | |||
Surface (A1 horizon) | Slightly Alkaline | Low | Non-Sodic | None1 |
Subsoil (B21 horizon) | Strongly Alkaline | Low | Sodic | Slight |
Deeper Subsoil (at 1 m) | Very Strongly Alkaline | High | Very Strongly Sodic | None2 |
The surface soil is slightly alkaline. The upper subsoil is strongly alkaline becoming very strongly alkaline with depth. | The salinity rating is low in the surface and upper subsoil becoming high with depth. | The surface is non-sodic. The upper subsoil is sodic becoming very strongly sodic with depth. | The clay content jumps markedly at the surface subsoil boundary. |
Horizon | Sample Depth cm | pH | EC dS/m | Sodium Chloride % | Exchangeable Calcium cmol-/kg | Exchangeable Magnesium cmol-/kg | Exchangeable Potassium cmol-/kg | Exchangeable Sodium cmol-/kg | Exchangeable Aluminium mg/kg | Exchangeable Acidity cmol-/kg | Field Capacity -30okPa | Permanent Wilting Point -1500okPa | Coarse Sand % | Fine Sand % | Silt % | Clay % | |
H2O | CaCl2 | ||||||||||||||||
A1 | 0–5 | 7.8 | NA | 0.11 | 0.01 | 7 | 3.8 | 0.7 | 0.6 | NA | 2.7 | 19.6 | 8.4 | 20 | 45 | 8 | 24 |
A2 | 5–10 | 8.1 | NA | 0.07 | 0.01 | 4.7 | 3.4 | 0.4 | 0.9 | NA | 2 | NA | 6.7 | 22 | 48 | 9 | 20 |
B21 | 10–25 | 8.7 | NA | 0.18 | 0.03 | 10 | 12.5 | 1.6 | 3.9 | NA | 1.3 | NA | 23.3 | 12 | 24 | 5 | 56 |
B22 | 25–45 | 9.3 | NA | 0.48 | 0.06 | 9.4 | 17.1 | 1.6 | 6.8 | NA | NA | NA | 26.7 | 6 | 17 | 4 | 69 |
B31k | 45–90 | 9.3 | NA | 1.03 | 0.13 | 6 | 13.3 | 1.5 | 8 | NA | NA | NA | 23.3 | 9 | 20 | 5 | 55 |
B32k | 90–130 | 9.3 | NA | 1.17 | 0.18 | 5.2 | 12.6 | 1.4 | 7.8 | NA | NA | NA | 20.1 | 13 | 22 | 7 | 47 |
B233 | 130–190 | 9.2 | NA | 1.11 | 0.16 | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | 20.3 | 12 | 22 | 9 | 53 |
B234 | 190–230 | 8.6 | NA | 1.05 | 0.17 | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | 21.1 | 11 | 26 | 7 | 54 |