Soil Management

Despite having very good structure and exceptional drainable porosity, this soil holds remarkably little readily available soil moisture at 35 mm, and plant available soil water at 88 mm. Given the subsoils appear to exceed the aluminium toxicity threshold, root growth and function in the B21 and B22 horizons is likely to be impacted. Excavation of the soil profile revealed the presence of only few fine roots in the subsoil which tends to support this assertion. If roots are not active in the two subsoil horizons, the ‘true’ readily available soil moisture would be around 10 mm and the ‘true’ plant available soil water would be around 20 mm. Consequently, this soil needs careful irrigation management including the use of soil moisture sensors to avoid moisture stress. In relation to irrigation, the refill point for the A1 horizon is between 28 % (50 kPa) to 25 % (100 kPa) soil moisture. While soil carbon levels are moderate, management should seek opportunities to increase application of plant residues to the tree mound to encourage carbon cycling. Given low pH and probability of aluminium toxicity it is recommended that application of lime be discussed with your local agronomist.

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