Each state in Australia has a different soil that is dominant, or representative of that state.
Below we’ve quickly outlined where to find out more about these soils.
Soil Types Found In Each State & Territory In Australia
You can find out more about the soil that is representative of a particular state in Australia at soilscienceaustralia.org.au
They list the soils representative of each State (and Territory) as:
- New South Wales – Red Chromosol
- Northern Territory – Kandasol
- Queensland – Vertosol
- South Australia – Calcarosol
- Tasmania – Ferrosol
- Victoria – Mottled Brown Sodosol
- Western Australia – Yellow Chromosol
Abs.gov.au has some further information on the different types of Australian soil
Soil Quality Across Australia
The soil quality in each state can also be examined at soilquality.org.au
What The Soils Found In Australia Are Used For, What They’re Good For, & Their Limitations
The resource above outlines things such as:
- what the type of soil is that is found in a particular state
- what that soil can be used for
- what the soil might be good for
- + more
This information can be useful for farmers, people looking to move to a rural area and grow their own food, gardeners, and others.
Example Of Soil Found In An Australian State
If we take South Australia as an example:
- The South Australian Branch selected a Calcarosol as the State soil.
- Calcarosols are calcareous sandy loams that are well drained, alkaline, moderately fertile and reasonably deep. They occur throughout SA and are used widely for cereal growing, pasture and irrigated horticulture, particularly vineyards.
– soilscienceaustralia.org.au
Another example is Victoria:
- The Victorian branch selected the Mottled Brown Sodosol as their State Soil.
- Also known as Yellow or Brown Duplex soils, Mottled Brown Sodosols are widespread across Victoria, predominantly in the 450 – 800 mm rainfall zone.
- They are used mainly for dairying and grazing, but increasingly land use is changing to cropping in the south-west.
– soilscienceaustralia.org.au
Soil Can Still Differ From Location To Location Within A State – It Isn’t All The Same
Using the above Victoria state soil example:
- Mottled Brown Sodosols are widespread across Victoria, predominantly in the 450 – 800 mm rainfall zone [so, they are widespread but not necessarily found absolutely everywhere]
– soilscienceaustralia.org.au
Representative soil is just the soil that is representative of that state. That doesn’t mean that that soil makes up 100% of soil in that state.
On a particular plot of land, you’ll still need to test or inspect the soil over the whole area of the land to make sure you know what that soil is on that piece of land – soil can differ from location to location even on one plot of land.
Sources
1. https://www.soilscienceaustralia.org.au/about/about-soil/state-soil
2. http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/[email protected]/Previousproducts/1301.0Feature%20Article801966
3. http://www.soilquality.org.au/
4. https://www.soilscienceaustralia.org.au/branches/south-australia/
5. https://www.soilscienceaustralia.org.au/branches/victoria/