Soil Nitrogen

AUS-TMI-LVG-SON General Moderate confidence

Benchmark Value

No specific value — see range

Range: 1500 to 5000 mg/kg

Optimal Range: 1500 to 5000

Direction: Higher is desirable ↑

Form: OptimalRange

Scoring Curve

Scoring curve unavailable

The scoring engine could not generate a curve for this benchmark context. The primary form is CompositeFramework, but the benchmark data may be missing required fields (e.g., optimal range bounds for an OptimalRange benchmark). This is typically a data quality issue in the benchmark pipeline.

Contributing Benchmarks

CompositeFramework Primary MinimumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MaximumOnly Guard MinimumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MaximumOnly Guard Point Guard Point Guard MinimumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard MaximumOnly Guard

Evidence & Context

The Optimal Range for a high-health tropical pasture system is proposed as 1500 to 5000 mg/kg.

Metric Definition:

Optimal range of Total Soil Nitrogen concentration supporting healthy, resilient, and productive tropical pasture ecosystems.

Benchmark Definition:

Range of Total Soil Nitrogen concentrations associated with sustainable and productive grazing systems in tropical Australia.

Justification:

Synthesized from multiple sources including Holbrook Landcare and empirical data from Leucaena pastures.

Sources (2)

Preview of Regrowth performance of tropical forage legumes on infertile soils - ResearchGate

Regrowth performance of tropical forage legumes on infertile soils - ResearchGate Journal

Soil quality and health in pasture systems - Holbrook Landcare Network

View Source

Soil organic carbon and total nitrogen under Leucaena leucocephala pastures in Queensland

Soil organic carbon and total nitrogen under Leucaena leucocephala pastures in Queensland

View Source

Supporting Sources (28)

Additional references from the underlying research that informed this benchmark.

(PDF) Response of Grazing Land Soil Health to Management Strategies: A Summary Review - ResearchGate

Contextual Support Journal

(PDF) Response of Grazing Land Soil Health to Management Strategies: A Summary Review - ResearchGate

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(PDF) Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia - ResearchGate

Methodology Source

(PDF) Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia - ResearchGate

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Celebrating the Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia's half-birthday! - TERN Australia

Contextual Support Methodology Source Government

Celebrating the Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia's half-birthday! - TERN Australia

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Climate Change & Invasive Species: A Review of Interactions November 2006 Workshop Report - DCCEEW

Contextual Support Journal

Climate Change & Invasive Species: A Review of Interactions November 2006 Workshop Report - DCCEEW

View Source

Effect of competition from a C4 grass on the phosphorus response of a subtropical legume - BioOne Complete

Contextual Support Journal

Effect of competition from a C4 grass on the phosphorus response of a subtropical legume - BioOne Complete

View Source

Environmental Effects of Conservation Practices on Grazing Lands - USDA ARS

Contextual Support Journal

Irrigation and fertiliser strategies for minimising nitrogen leaching from turfgrass Louise Barton and Tim Colmer School of Plan - Agronomy Australia Proceedings

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Guidelines for the application of IUCN Red List of Ecosystems Categories and Criteria

Contextual Support Journal

Guidelines for the application of IUCN Red List of Ecosystems Categories and Criteria

View Source

Preview of Hydrology and runoff water quality from three improved pastures compared with virgin brigalow (Acacia harpophylla) woodland over 8 years in semiarid Australia - CSIRO Publishing

Hydrology and runoff water quality from three improved pastures compared with virgin brigalow (Acacia harpophylla) woodland over 8 years in semiarid Australia - CSIRO Publishing

Contextual Support Journal

Hydrology and runoff water quality from three improved pastures compared with virgin brigalow (Acacia harpophylla) woodland over 8 years in semiarid Australia - CSIRO Publishing, accessed July 18, 2025,

View Source

Leucaena The productive and sustainable forage legume | MLA

Contextual Support Journal

Leucaena The productive and sustainable forage legume | MLA

View Source

Managing cattle grazing intensity: effects on soil organic matter and soil nitrogen, accessed August 5, 2025,

Contextual Support Journal

Is tree planting enough? Investigation of soil condition and composition of vegetation and invertebrate assemblages after ecological restoration in agricultural landscapes - Murdoch Research Portal, accessed July 23, 2025

View Source

Managing cattle grazing intensity: effects on soil organic matter and'soil'nitrogen

Contextual Support Journal

Effect of fire and tree‐grass patches on soil nitrogen in Australian tropical savannas

View Source

Nitrogen the key to fighting big losses from 'rundown' in sown pastures - FutureBeef

Contextual Support Journal

Nitrogen the key to fighting big losses from 'rundown' in sown pastures - FutureBeef

View Source

North Australia Program - MLA

Contextual Support Journal

Phosphorus: a finite resource essential for life, critical for agriculture and food security, accessed July 28, 2025,

View Source

Northern Australia beef situation analysis - Cooperative Research ...

Contextual Support Journal

Northern Australia beef situation analysis - Cooperative Research ...

View Source

Preview of Northern Territory Department of Business, Industry and Resource Development Primary Industry Group Technical Annual Report 2001

Northern Territory Department of Business, Industry and Resource Development Primary Industry Group Technical Annual Report 2001

Contextual Support Journal

Northern Territory Department of Business, Industry and Resource Development Primary Industry Group Technical Annual Report 2001

View Source

Regrowth performance of tropical forage legumes on infertile soils - ResearchOnline@JCU

Contextual Support Journal

Regrowth performance of tropical forage legumes on infertile soils - ResearchOnline@JCU

View Source

SLGA: Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia (Soil Attributes) | Earth Engine Data Catalog, accessed July 30, 2025,

Methodology Source

Soil and Landscape Grid National Soil Attribute Maps - Cation Exchange Capacity (3" resolution) - Release 1 - Research Data Australia

View Source

SMART ROTATIONS: FARMING SYSTEMS FOR THE FUTURE - Charles Sturt University

Contextual Support Journal

SMART ROTATIONS: FARMING SYSTEMS FOR THE FUTURE - Charles Sturt University

View Source

Preview of Soil and Landscape Grid National Soil Attribute Maps - Total Nitrogen (3" resolution) - Release 2 - CSIRO Data Access Portal, accessed August 5, 2025,

Soil and Landscape Grid National Soil Attribute Maps - Total Nitrogen (3" resolution) - Release 2 - CSIRO Data Access Portal, accessed August 5, 2025,

Methodology Source Government

Geology | Norfolk Island National Park | Parks Australia

View Source

Soil Attribute Product Details - Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia

Methodology Source Government

Soil Attribute Product Details - Soil and Landscape Grid of Australia

View Source

Soil Fertility (Part III) - Properties and Management of Soils in the ...

Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Soil Fertility (Part III) - Properties and Management of Soils in the ...

View Source

Soil organic carbon and total nitrogen under Leucaena leucocephala pastures in Queensland - CSIRO Publishing

Direct Evidence Journal

Soil organic carbon and total nitrogen under Leucaena leucocephala pastures in Queensland - CSIRO Publishing

View Source

Soil organic carbon and total nitrogen under Leucaena leucocephala pastures in Queensland - ResearchGate

Direct Evidence Journal

Soil organic carbon and total nitrogen under Leucaena leucocephala pastures in Queensland

View Source

Soil quality and health in pasture systems - Holbrook Landcare Network

Direct Evidence Journal

Declining soil pH reduces microbial biomass-driven soil multifunctionality - Institute for Environmental Genomics

View Source

SUPPLEMENT - GRDC Ground Cover

Contextual Support Journal

SUPPLEMENT - GRDC Ground Cover

View Source

Preview of Survey of long-term productivity and nutritional status of Leucaena leucocephala-grass pastures in subtropical Queensland | Request PDF - ResearchGate

Survey of long-term productivity and nutritional status of Leucaena leucocephala-grass pastures in subtropical Queensland | Request PDF - ResearchGate

Contextual Support Journal

Survey of long-term productivity and nutritional status of Leucaena leucocephala-grass pastures in subtropical Queensland | Request PDF - ResearchGate

View Source

The nitrogen book: Principles of soil nitrogen fertility management in southern Queensland and northern New South Wales farming

Contextual Support Journal

Soil condition | NSW State of the Environment, accessed August 4, 2025,

View Source

Tropical Pastures - Bob McCown, Agricultural Systems Scientist

Contextual Support Journal

Tropical Pastures - Bob McCown, Agricultural Systems Scientist

View Source

Context

Region Australia
Biome Tropical & Subtropical Maritime Islands
Land Use Livestock Grazing & Pasture
Assessment Not Stated
Evidence Type TargetCondition

Lifecycle

Status Active
Version 1
Effective From 1 Jun 2026

Notes

Systems within this range are considered ecologically sound and sustainable, with the lower end suitable for lower-fertility soils and the upper end representing best practice on fertile soils. No upper detrimental threshold — higher values are always better up to natural saturation. AssessmentContext defaulted to 'Not Stated' because the source document did not state one.

Related Benchmarks

Other benchmarks in the AUS-TMI-LVG-SON family.