Soil Chemistry Overview

This data reflects both the natural elemental composition at the site and the historical influence of nutrient management. Some soil properties such as organic carbon indicate overall soil health, whilst other such as Sodicity, Aluminium and salinity may indicate constraints to root growth and soil water extraction. Comparison between sites of the same soil type will help better understand the difference between these two influencing factors. High or low levels of some nutrients may indicate that some changes in nutrient management may be necessary and we suggest that you contact your local agronomist for their recommendations.

The soil profile is moderately acid to very strongly acid with pH ranging from 6.0 _h20 in the A1 horizon to 4.9 _h20 in the B2 horizon. The cation exchange capacity (without inclusion of aluminium) is moderate ranging from 16.0 meq/100g in the A1 horizon to low in the B2 horizon at 7.1 meq/100g. This indicates the soil has moderate ability to hold and supply nutrients to the tree. Exchangeable aluminium levels in the A1 horizon are non toxic, however in the B2 horizon the level of exchangeable aluminium at 3.2 meq/100g greatly exceeds the toxicity threshold for apple trees of 0.4 meq/100g. The organic carbon content in the A1 horizon is high at 2.8 %. The soil profile is not saline and not sodic.