These soils occur on moderately moist and moist/wet aspects of the Southern Uplands underlain by Cretaceous sediments. The surface soil is a moderately fine structured dark organic fine sandy loam to clay (5–40 cm deep) with an occasional clear change to a weak structured fine sandy loam to fine sandy clay loam subsurface soil (A2 horizon 30–60 cm) which grades into a dark or brown medium to heavy clay subsoil which is often mottled, particularly with depth. Subsoil structure ranges from coarse to fine, often with obvious clay skins. Subsoils are generally strongly acidic with little sodicity evident, the result of increasing rainfall and subsequent leaching. Soil depth is usually greater than 100 cm before grading into weathered sandstone, often clearly. Combined with steep slopes these soils can be slip prone, though high organic matter content of the surface horizons helps stabilise these soils. Friable whole coloured soils occur in the wetter areas. Notable characteristics include: high clay content with fine sand component, weathered deep profiles with little rock fragment content, gradual increase of clay with depth, variable surface soil depth, pale mottled lower subsoils, strongly acidic but moderate nutrient holding capacity. |
Site Code | Soil-landform unit | Component | ASC | FK | 1:100 000 mapsheet |
Hillcrest | Melacic-Mottled, Mesotrophic, Brown Dermosol | Gn4.71 | T7620 - Otway | ||
CLRA27 | Upper slope | Melanic, ?, Brown Dermosol | Gn4.32 | T7821 - Sorrento | |
- | Acidic, Eutrophic, Brown Dermosol | Gn3.51 | T7520 - Princetown | ||
Mid slope | Melacic, Mesotrophic, Black Dermosol | Gn3.41 | T7520 - Princetown | ||
OTR416 | Mid slope | Acidic-Mottled, Mesotrophic, Yellow Dermosol | Gn3.90 | T7620 - Otway | |
OTR418 | Upper slope | Haplic, Mesotrophic, Brown Dermosol | Gn3.21 | T7520 - Princetown | |
OTR428 | Mid slope | Acidic, Dystrophic, Brown Dermosol | Gn3.21 | T7520 - Princetown | |
OTR732 | Upper slope | Melanic, Mesotrophic, Black Kandosol | Gn2.02 | T7721 - Geelong | |
OTR736 | Upper slope | Melacic, Dystrophic, Brown Dermosol | Uc1.41 | T7620 - Otway | |
OTR748 | Mid slope | Acidic-Mottled, Magnesic, Brown Dermosol | Gn3.21 | T7521 - Corangamite | |
OTR750 | Mid slope | Acidic-Mottled, Magnesic, Brown Dermosol | Gn3.51 | T7520 - Princetown |