Managing a clay soil to support a model railway in suburban Box Hill, Victoria, Australia 

Description:          nondescript eastern suburban garden soil
a clay base to which has been added loam and mulch
(i.e. it is an anthroposol)

Location:               small, flat suburban backyard in the hillier eastern suburbs of Melbourne

Values of this urban soil:
– Foundation for my backyard model railway,
– using my engineering skills for pleasure
– also pleasure in our home and garden

Challenges from ground movement for constructing an outdoors permanent model rail track:
1 Moisture from rain or watering can cause swelling of the soil, followed by drying,
– which cause small movements of the soil, and track laid upon it, up or down
– Which take the track out of alignment and can cause derailments–
2 Plants roots growing from fine threads to pencil thickness can have the same effect

Management strategies for using this soil for bridge and arch foundations
1 Deep solid brick foundation – Columns sit on brick foundations laid at deeper than 20cm below the surface where moisture does not impact soil
2 Flexibility – Some adjustable columns can be moved vertically in response to soil movements

See more about:
– about the engineering of constructing bridges in this pdf soil for external model structures  and on LN as post
– a terradome constructed of clay, visit the Garden of Earthy Treasures Soil Selfies at Dimboola, Australia
– natural walls to hold soil for family farming on steep slopes, see the Alpine Koute de Tyon, from the Savoie, France

Credits: G. S., F I E Aust, of Box Hill gives permission for these 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 2015

return to Soil Selifes location page

page set up 31 October 2015, updated 9 January 2016