Feeding the ‘red’ garden soil Toowoomba, Darling Downs, Qld, Australia

Description:      a reddy soil (deep clay formed from basalt*), typically acidic, easy to cultivate, crumbles when wet
Location:       flattish , urban garden,
on the Toowoomba Plateau of the Darling Downs,

Values for this soil:
-Grows beautiful flowers to enjoy especially roses
-Grows fresh fruit and vegetables to eat

Challenges to this soil – and its managements
– Naturally acidic– compost helps to correct this   – made from kitchen and garden scraps and a bag of cow manure in two boxes out the back, a couple of times a year
– Repeated use of soil lowers fertility – so replaced with additions for:
o roses -a bag of cow manure
o garden and lawn generally – Seasol fertilizer
o garden and roses- home -made compost
– Hot, dry summer – covering of mulch added with the compost to retain moisture

See more about
– *Soil description as R-MR = Ruthven-Middle Ridge on the pdf map and report (eg p 29) of Toowoomba’s soils
-The diversity of Darling Downs soils from a different soil for a rural backyard garden in the black clays of Meringandan Soil Selfies
– Reddy soils in other family farms in the Soil Selfies on at Scottsdale, Tasmania, and M’fango Island, Kenya
– Soils growing great flowers in the Soil Selfies from Colloroy , NSW, and Somme, France.

Credits : Lesley McNeill, of Toowoomba, gives permission for her photos and information to be used under a (cc) license 2015
Editing and page created by Jeanie Clark, enviroed4all®, Warracknabeal, for use in education under a (cc) licence 2016

return to Soil Selfies main listing

page set up 8 February 2016