November Perth Branch meeting featuring Matthias Leopold on soil – an invisible and undervalued treasure in SWWA

Soils have a profound influence on whole ecosystems – to a large degree, soils control what can grow and where. The great diversity of WA’s southwest global biodiversity hotspot is partly due to its soils, which are not only varied but, generally-speaking, “dirt poor”. We have some of the poorest soils in the world and the plants that grow here are specialists in growing in such tough conditions. On top of that, variations of the soil from one locality to the next promotes further variation of what grows in them.

This talk aims to help understanding the fundamentals of soils and to raise awareness of the beauty and the importance of soils. Knowing the chemical, physical and biological properties allow us to assess the value of a soil. However, soils evolve over time and much of what we see and measure in today’s soils is the result of different pedological, climatological and geomorphological processes. A holistic analysis of a soil including its history is necessary to understand some of the wonders and the richness of the biodiversity of the SWWA.

Matthias Leopold is an Associate Professor at the University of Western Australia who specialises in soils and their properties for a better understanding of landscape evolution. This coming Tuesday evening, 8 November at the Palms Community Centre, Subiaco, Matthias will give what will surely be an interesting overview of our soils, and how their variation affects biological diversity. Note that our meeting will NOT be held at our usual venue (the Subiaco Community Centre).

Doors open at 7.45 pm for an 8 pm start with a $3 donation giving you entry into the night’s door prize.