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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 do you see and when?

  • Yellowing or pale green colour in pastures
  • Seen in late winter to spring.

What could this indicate?

  • Deficiency in potassium, nitrogen or sulphur or trace elements such as molybdenum
  • Waterlogging, resulting in transient nitrogen loss.
  • Maturing or flowering winter grass (Poa annua)
  • Dying plants caused by red-headed cockchafer pruning plant roots.
Pictured: Flowering Winter grass (Poa annua)
Pictured: Onion grass (Romulea rosea) infected with yellow brown spots caused by Helminthosporium fungus

What test can I do to confirm?

Pictured: Potassium response in test strip
  • Soil test, with reference to phosphorus, potassium and sulphur. Tissue test for micronutrients, with attention to molybdenum.
  • Abundance of low fertility weeds and absence of high fertility weeds.
  • Test strips of nitrogen and / or potassium, sulphur and molybdenum fertiliser.

 

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