Gypsum for salt land?

Gypsum is used in many parts of the world as a soil dressing for the reclamation of salty country. Farmers have asked whether such applications would improve salt-affected soils in Western Australia. The answer to such questions is that tests made over a period of 20 years, using gypsum on salt-affected soils in various parts of the wheatbelt, have failed to reveal any benefits accruing from even very heavy applications

West Midlands development : the interpretation of Lands Department soil maps of the West Midlands area

Before most Crown land in the West Midlands area was released, Lands Department survey parties examined and mapped the soils using a soil classification system based on technical advice from the Department of Agriculture

Carlton Plains soil survey in the Shire of Wyndham, East Kimberley

The Carlton Plains covers approximately 11,750 ha midway between Wyndham and Kununurra on the northern bank of the Ord River in the Shire of East Kimberley. The survey area is divided into two geomorphic units, the clay plains and the levee areas. Soils of the former generally belong to the Cununurra family of cracking clays while those of the levees are generally more variable and of medium texture.Samples of the major soils were collected for mechanical analysis and basic chemical analysis.Sodium chloride percentages and exchangeable sodium percentages are both high on the clay soils of the western plain. The suitability of these areas for irrigated agriculture is doubtful. Four thousand five hundred hectares of clay soils of the eastern plains could be suitable for furrow irrigation subject to further study of the effects o firrigation on the leaching of salt and the exchangeable sodium percentages.Three thousand nine hundred and forty hectares of variable but generally lighter textured levee soils may be suitable for agriculture provided appropriate management and erosion control measures are used. Lighter textured soils may suffer from surface crusting and water erosion when irrigated

Soil salinity in Western Australia : a summary

Soil salinity problems have long been recognised in Western Australia. The earliest published explanation in 1924 suggested that removing native vegetation increased stream salinity, and this basic cause has been confirmed by many studies since

Salinity and farmhouse water supplies

PROVISION of a satisfactory water supply for the homestead is one of the many problems which have to be faced by all farmers. For those served by the Comprehensive Water Supply Scheme, the solution is fairly simple. For others, finding an adequate supply of good quality water can often be quite a headache

Soil structure changes under wheatbelt farming systems

A review of 14 years of Department of Agriculture research into the effects of wheatbelt fanning practices on soil structure reaches the general conclusion that cultivation and grazing practices influence soil structure, and that structure can be improved by soil amendments and pasture growth. Little data has been obtained to relate plant growth to improved soil structure, as measured