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Visual indicators of soil condition

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  1. Pasture growth

    In the paddock
    1 quiz
  2. Indicator 1 - dark green patches
    1 quiz
  3. Indicator 2 - yellowing pastures
    1 quiz
  4. Indicator 3 - grass dominant pasture
    1 quiz
  5. Indicator 4 - stock camps
    1 quiz
  6. Indicator 5 - reduced summer growth
    1 quiz
  7. Indicator 6 - lucerne stunting
    1 quiz
  8. Sub-Clover and Legume Nodulation
    Plants and pastures
  9. Indicator 7 - small, dark green leaves
    1 quiz
  10. Indicator 8 - bronzing of sub-clover
    1 quiz
  11. Indicator 9 - stunted sub-clover plants
    1 quiz
  12. Indicator 10 - few or white nodules
    1 quiz
  13. Soil Characteristics
    Soil surface and clover roots
  14. Indicator 11 - soil surface
    1 quiz
  15. Indicator 12 - soil disturbance
    1 quiz
  16. Weeds as Indicators of Soil Condition
    High fertility indicators
    1 quiz
  17. Low fertility indicators
    1 quiz

What weeds do you see and when?

  • High content of bent grass, fog grass, silver grass, onion grass, flatweed, sweet vernal grass and/or sorrel within pasture.
  • Seen from autumn to December.
Bent grass (Agrostis spp)
Fog grass (Holcus lanatus)
Flatweed (Hypochaeris radicata)
Sweet vernal grass (Anthoxanthum odoratum)
Silver grass (Vulpia bromoides)
Onion grass (Romulea rosea)
Sorrel (Rumex vulgaris)

What could this indicate?

  • Low fertility. Bent grass and fog grass are general indicators of low fertility, especially nitrogen and also phosphorus, potassium, sulphur and soil acidity.
  • Low nitrogen. Silver grass
  • Low phosphorus. Onion grass
  • Low potassium. Flatweed, sorrel and sweet vernal grass Common on light textured soils (as potassium leaches) and on paddocks repeatedly cut for hay or silage.
  • Soil acidity. Sorrel
  • Also favours silver grass, bent grass and fog
    grass growth as nitrogen fixation of legumes
    declines.

What test can I do to confirm?

  • Soil test with reference to nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and soil pH.
Pictured: Sorrel becomes obvious during spring due to red seed heads.

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