Sandy drifting farm soil, Banyan, Mallee, Victoria Australia

Description: sand in drift

Location: Banyan sand hill
with drift along fence line between farm paddock and roadside
south west of Lake Tyrell in the Mallee

Values for this sandy soil:
– Grows broad-acre crops
– Supports remnant native habitat – trees, other plants, reptiles, birds etc
– Holds up the fence between the two land uses
– Supports ‘dirt’ road in local transportation network

Challenges for this sandy soil – and its management:
– Exposed soil drifts (erodes) with wind especially in summer northerlies – retain stubble in farmland and retain native plants along roadside.
–exposed vertical cutting erodes downward in rainstorms– not possible to protect them

See more
-about the Mallee sand types from the VRO website in this Walpeup, Mallee Research Station, Dept Ag (1961) Technical Bulletin (No. 13) as a pdf on the web as VRO survey 29, or as Calcarosols in the Banyan district between Sea Lake and Woomelang.
– about sands challenged by erosion in a drifting inland lunette sand dune Soil Selfies from Pine Plains, in the Mallee and a beach sand dune Soil Selfies from Semaphore Beach in South Australia
-and as LN post

Credits Barry Clark, of Warracknabeal, gives permission for his 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 more Wimmera-Mallee Soil Selfies or other locations

page published 5 November 2015, updated 9 January 2016