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Story: Soils

Layers of volcanic ash

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Layers of volcanic ash

This soil profile beside the Desert Road in the central North Island shows the many volcanic showers and associated materials that have been deposited there over the last 20,000 years.

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Te Ara - The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

by Alastair McLean

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How to cite this page

Allan Hewitt, Soils – Soil features, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/12271/layers-of-volcanic-ash (accessed 15 June 2026).

Story by Allan Hewitt, published 1 March 2009.