Soils which are either: stony or rocky throughout: or gravelly with a cemented layer above 80 cm.
Identifying properties
- Rocks, gravel and stones are dominant throughout the profile
- Ironstone gravelly soils with cemented gravel (ferricrete) at <80 cm
- Usually associated with rock outcrops
Examples
 |
 |
 |
| Calcareous stony soil | Shallow gravel | Stony soil |
| Carnarvon area | Narrogin | Pilbara |
Key soil issues
| Issues | Description |
|---|---|
| Water storage | Stones, gravels and rock restrict soil water storage. Degree of restriction depends on proportion of stones, soil depth and texture of matrix. Ranges from extremely low in shallow sandy gravels to moderate for deeper loamy soils. |
| Fertility | These soils typically have very low to moderate natural fertility |
| Alkalinity | These soils are rarely alkaline. The exception, Calcareous stony soil, is a minor soil type of the Wheatbelt |
| Acidity and aluminium toxicity | These soils are typically moderately acidic in the topsoil and slightly acidic in the shallow subsoil |
| Salinity | Soil salinity is rare |
| Hardpan and gravel | Gravels and stones make this soil poorly suited to cultivation |
| Shallow soil depth | These have highly variable soil depth |
| Boron toxicity | Nil, except Calcareous stony soils |
| Soil structure | Soil structure is variable |
| Perched water tables | Perched water tables are rare |
| Water repellence | Sandy surfaced stony soils are moderately water repellent. |
| Hard setting topsoil | Some with sandy loam surfaces are hard setting |
| Erodibility | Loose topsoils in exposed positions can be susceptibility to wind erosion though surface rocks reduce wind strength. Water erosion can be a problem on sloping land. This can be exacerbated by rapid run-off from rock outcrops. |
| Workability | Depends on the size and quantity of the stones as well as the distribution of rock outcrops |
WA Soil Groups included in this category
|
WA Soil Group (Ref no.) |
Brief description | Common names |
PAWC (mm/m)** |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calcareous stony soil (202) | Soils which are stony or rocky and calcareous throughout | Extremely low to moderately low | |
| Stony soil (203) | Soils which are coarse gravelly, stony or rocky throughout | Moderate to extremely low | |
| Shallow gravel (304) | Ironstone gravel soil over cemented gravels (ferricrete), rock or other hard or permanently cemented layers at <80cm | Buckshotgravel, Ironstone cap, Shallow gravel | Extremely low to low |
**Extremely low: <30 mm/m
Very low: 30 - 50 mm/m
Low: 50 - 70 mm/m
Moderately low: 70 - 100 mm/m
Moderate: 100 - 130 mm/m
High: >130 mm /m
Bold indicates the dominant or most common values
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