This essential reference provides an introduction to the remarkable soils and landscapes of Australia. It reveals their great diversity and explains why an understanding of soil properties and landscape processes should guide our use of the land. Using striking photographs of characteristic landscapes, it begins by describing the basic properties of soils and how Australia's distinctive soils and landscapes have co-evolved. We gain a greater understanding of why particular soils occur at certain locations and how soil variation can influence landscape processes, agricultural productivity and ecosystem function. The book explains the impact of various forms of land use and the changes they can bring about in soil. This is followed by an invaluable compendium that describes and illustrates over 100 of the more important and widespread soils of Australia, along with their associated landscapes. There is a brief account of each soil's environment, usage and qualities as well as details on chemical and physical properties so we can make more informed decisions about appropriate land-use. Australian Soils and Landscapes will be a valuable resource for farmers, natural resource managers, soil and environmental scientists, students and anyone with an interest in Australia's unique environment.

Soils in the Australian Landscape provides a comprehensive and clearly explained discussion of Australian soils, with a focus on landform development of the continent, and on the land uses across it. Soils are the skin of landforms, and the book begins by reviewing the broad patterns and evolution of landforms in Australia. The distinctive landform and climatic history of Australia - together with the great age of most of the land surface - explains much of the variety of soils in Australia. This variety is described using the Australian Soil Classification, now adopted by all Australian governmental authorities. Special attention is given to regolith, paleosols, and indurated soils such as laterites and other duricrusts. While its focus is primarily on Australia, Soils in the Australian Landscape also explains processes and classification systems that are applicable world-wide, adopting a broad, interdisciplinary approach towards its subject. Founded on clear and detailed explanations of technical material, this book will be a valuable resource for all undergraduate students of geography, geoscience, environmental engineering, and agricultural, soil, and environmental sciences, as well as practising conservationists, land managers, and environmental engineers.

Provides a clear, practical template for specifying landscape soils based on scientific criteria.

The Australian Soil and Land Survey Field Handbook specifies methods and terminology for soil and land surveys. It has been widely used throughout Australia, providing one reference set of definitions for the characterisation of landform, vegetation, land surface, soil and substrate. The book advocates that a comprehensive suite of land and soil attributes be recorded in a uniform manner. This approach is more useful than the allocation of land or soil to preconceived types or classes. The third edition includes revised chapters on location and vegetation as well as some new landform elements. These updates have been guided by the National Committee on Soil and Terrain, a steering committee comprising representatives from key federal, state and territory land resource assessment agencies. Essential reading for all professionals involved in land resource surveys, this book will also be of value to students and educators in soil science, geography, ecology, agriculture, forestry, resource management, planning, landscape architecture and engineering.

A unique compendium of the most important and widespread soils of Australia and their associated landscapes.

The Australian Soil Classification provides a framework for organising knowledge about Australian soils by allocating soils to classes via a key. Since its publication in 1996, this book has been widely adopted and formally endorsed as the official national system. It has provided a means of communication among scientists and land managers and has proven to be of particular value in land resource survey and research programs, environmental studies and education. Classification is a basic requirement of all science and needs to be periodically revised as knowledge increases. This Second Edition of The Australian Soil Classification includes updates from a working group of the National Committee on Soil and Terrain (NCST), especially in regards to new knowledge about acid sulfate soils (sulfidic materials). Modifications include expanding the classification to incorporate different kinds of sulfidic materials, the introduction of subaqueous soils as well as new Vertosol subgroups, new Hydrosol family criteria and the consistent use of the term reticulate. All soil orders except for Ferrosols and Sodosols are affected by the changes.