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Bald Hills Land System

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Inland from Anglesea is a deeply dissected landscape with very stunted native vegetation, referred to as the Bald Hills. The Tertiary sediments exposed here include both sands and clays and are characterized by soils of extremely low fertility.

Heaths and low woodlands are found on the upper parts of the landscape, where the sand soils tend to predominate. Xanthorrhoea australis is particularly common and tends to dominate on sites with hardpans developed in the soil profile. Lower down in the landscape, low forests or open forests of Eucalyptus nitida and E. obliqua tend to occur.

Productive land uses are limited to the mining of sand and gravel in numerous shallow extraction pits, and mining of coal near Anglesea. Nature conservation and recreation are other forms of land use.
A Study of land in the catchments of the Otway Range and adjacent plains - bald hills

A Study of land in the catchments of the Otway Range and adjacent plains - bald hills
Low open woodlands of
E. nitida with Xanthorrhoea australis
in the understorey typify this land system, hardpan areas being
demarcated by the absence of the tree stratum.

A Study of land in the catchments of the Otway Range and adjacent plains - bald hills



Area: 92 km
2
Component and its proportion of land system
1
10%
2
25%
3
10%
4
40%
5
15%
CLIMATE
Rainfall, mm

Annual
: 700 – 1,000, lowest January (35), highest August (100)
Temperature, 0oC
Annual: 13, lowest July (8), highest February (18)
Temperature: less than 10oC (av.) mid June – mid August
Precipitation: less than potential evapotranspiration November - March
GEOLOGY
Age, lithology

Palaeocene unconsolidated quartz sand, gravel and clayey silt.
TOPOGRAPHY
Landscape

Elevation, m
0 – 210
Local relief, m
90
Drainage pattern
Dendritic
Drainage density, km/km2
2.1
Land form
Hill
Valley floor
Land form element
Upper slope, crest
Upper slope, crest
Broad, slightly depressed area of impeded drainage
Lower slop
-
Slope (and range), %
7 (3-15)
15 (2-35)
7 (3-12)
19 (10-35)
1 (10-3)
Slope shape
Convex
Convex
Concave
Linear
Concave
NATIVE VEGETATION
Structure

Low woodland

Low open woodland

Closed heath
Open forest

Closed scrub
Dominant species
E. nitida
E. nitida
Xanthorrhoea australis, Casuarina pusilla, Platylobium obtusangulum, Leptospermum myrsinoides
E. obliqua
E. nitida
E. ovata, Leptospermum juniperinum, Leptospermum lanigerum, Acacia verticillata
SOIL
Parent material

Kaolinitic silty clay; surface layers of quarts sand

Quartz sand and gravel
Quartz sand and gravel
Sand, silt and clay

Plant remains; alluvial silt, sand and gravel
Description
Grey sand soils, kaolinitic clay underlay
Grey sand soils, uniform texture
Grey sand soils with hardpans, uniform texture
Yellow gradational sols, weak structure
Grey gradational soils
Surface texture
Sandy loam
Loamy sand
Loamy sand
Loamy sand
Silty loam
Permeability
Low
Very high
Low
High
Very low
Depth, m
>2
>2
0.6
>2
>2
LAND USE
Uncleared areas: Nature conservation; extraction of gravel an sand; active and passive recreation; some attempts at pine establishment.
Minor cleared areas: Mining for coal.
SOIL DETERIORATION HAZARD
Critical land features, processes, forms
Weakly structured surface soils and slowly permeable subsoils on moderate slopes are prone to sheet and rill erosion. Clay subsoils subject to periodic saturation are prone to landslips.
Very low inherent fertility and high permeability lead to nutrient decline. Steeper slopes with compacted soils are prone to sheet, rill and gully erosion (scouring).
Very low inherent fertility with some leaching of permeable surface soils leads to nutrient decline. Impermeable hardpans prevent vertical drainage leading to seasonal waterlogging.
Low inherent fertility and high permeability lead to nutrient decline. Steeper slopes with weak structured surface soils are prone to sheet erosion.
High seasonal water table leads to waterlogging and soil compaction. Rapid run-off from adjacent hills leads to flooding, siltation and gully erosion.


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