MICROMORPHOLOGY OF SOILS DEVELOPED FROM VOLCANIC ASH AND RIVER ALLUVIUM IN THE KOKODA VALLEY, NORTHERN DISTRICT, PAPUA

Summary Soils found on fan surfaces in the Kokoda Valley are derived from both volcanic ash and river alluvium. The alluvium is variable, some of it being mixed with volcanic ash. The main differences in the micromorphology of the soils appear to be related to the relative amounts of volcanic ash present in the soil profile. The plasma of soils formed on volcanic ash is isotropic in thin section. The plasma of alluvial soils exhibits increasing birefringence with decreasing amounts of volcanic ash. It is suggested that random structures in the clay fraction of the volcanic ash may account for its isotropic nature.