small scurf pea—Cullen parvum is a nationally endangered plant that is found in grey box eucalyptus grassy woodlands. It is a trailing herb with stems to 50cm long, with leaves in groups of three, and short sprays of pale purple pea flowers.

small-eyed snake—Cryptophis nigrescens, found in eastern Australia from southern Cape York Peninsula, Queensland to Victoria. Its venom is strongly myotoxic, and it is considered potentially dangerous; apply first aid and seek urgent medical attention for all suspected bites. The small-eyed snake is found in rainforests, wet and dry eucalypt forests and heaths, agricultural and grazing lands, in coastal areas from Cooktown to the Queensland-New South Wales border. To 1m long, glossy dark grey to black; belly commonly pinkish with a line of dark grey spots, but occasionally cream with grey blotches.

smallgoods—delicatessen meats.

smarmy—ingratiating; full of false charm, affection and flattery.

smarten up—improve one's performance: e.g., He'd better smarten up or he'll be fired.

Smarties—M&Ms.

smash-and-grab—swift robbery, such as by smashing a store window and escaping with the goods.

smash-up—a severe collision, as between two vehicles.

smasher—attractive, excellent person or thing.

smashing—great; wonderful; excellent.

smell like a brewery horse's blurt—to have an extremely offensive odour.

smelly—a fart.

Smith, Sir Charles Kingsford—(1897–1935) was born in Hamilton in Brisbane. When he was 18 he joined up as a soldier in the First World War and later became a pilot. He made record breaking flights around Australia, across the Pacific, to England and around the world. These flights were very dangerous because planes in those days kept breaking down and he was often in danger of being killed. Kingsford Smith set up the first Australian airline. He was trying to raise money in 1935 when he disappeared while flying over the Bay of Bengal near India.

Smithton peppermint—Eucalyptus nitida, by far the most common eucalypt on the poor soils of south-west Tasmania. Rough bark at the base but smooth bark on upper trunk and branches, adult leaves falcate, about 6cm -15cm x 1cm -2cm, with the "peppermint" smell.

smoke—(in Aboriginal English) ritually cleanse (a person or place) of unwelcome spirits, especially after death, by the use of smoke.

smoke concert/night/social—an informal social occasion at which guests smoke and chat.

smoke-bush—1. smoke-plant. 2. any of several Western Australian trees of the genus Conospermum.

smoke-oh/smoko—rest or short break from work, such as a tea-break.

smoke-plant/tree—any ornamental shrub of the genus Cotinus, with feathery, smoke-like fruit stalks.

smoking ceremony—smoking heals and purifies people—it enters them and strengthens them when they feel sad or weak. Special leaves are used for smoking. In ceremonies for the dead, those who take responsibility for a service are the brothers or sisters of those who died. The old men are calling out to the spirits of the dead to let them know that the group have come as family and friends. The smoke is used to cover the participants’ bodies, ridding them of what is not needed. It also cleanses the area. The group feels that it is leaving behind troubles and beginning something new. Reasons for holding the rite are then discussed (birth, death, initiation, becoming an elder...). The ceremony ends with entertainment, such as dancing and singing.

smoky—race-horse or professional runner kept hidden in the bush, so no one will know how good he is; a dark horse.

smooth (someone) out—1. set (someone) straight as to the correct facts. 2. placate, calm (someone).

smooth tree-fern—Cyathea brownii, the tallest tree-fern species in the world. The trunk is usually up to 5m, but heights of 20m have been recorded. It is distinguished from the rough tree-fern by a smoother trunk. The centre of the tree fern stems provided early settlers with food for hogs, sheep and goats.

smooth-barked gums —in many species the smooth bark is uniform over the whole trunk in both texture and colour, e.g. brittle gum and karri. In others the bark is mottled, while in a few species, particularly the red and the grey gums, the newly exposed smooth bark can be brilliant orange or yellow, fading to greys, the surface texture of which becomes granular with age. The sugar gum of South Australia and karri of Western Australia show these characteristics to some extent, suggesting an ancient common origin of these various groups.

snack—an easy task.

snaffle—1. grab, take quickly. 2. steal or appropriate.

snag—a sausage: e.g., We're cooking some snags for lunch.

snagger—poor quality shearer of sheep.

Snake Gully—any remote, unsophisticated, rustic place or area.

snake juice—very strong alcoholic drink.

snake's hiss—(rhyming slang) piss.

snake-necked turtle—(see: Australian snake-necked turtle).

snakewood—Acacia xiphophylla, a tree in the family Fabaceae. Endemic to Western Australia, it is widespread across the Pilbara from Shark Bay, north-east to the vicinity of Roebourne and Roy Hill, with one collection from near Wiluna, north-western WA. Snakewood grows on sometimes subsaline clay flats, stony plains and hills, in Acacia shrubland and low woodland, dominating in localised areas. It grows as a spreading tree, usually with two or three main trunks. It can grow up to five metres high and eight metres wide. Like most Acacia species, it has phyllodes rather than true leaves. These are blueish grey in colour, and may be up to eight centimetres long and eight millimetres wide. The flowers are yellow, and held in cylindrical clusters about three centimetres long. The pods are up to twelve centimetres long and eight millimetres wide, and have constrictions between the seeds. It often has two or three twisted trunks with dark grey, rough bark. The snakewood tree is found in rainforests or marshland. The heartwood has the appearance of snakeskin or, sometimes, it's splotchy. The snakewood tree was considered useful by the Aboriginal people in the Pilbara and Yamatji regions, where it was favored for use in cooking and making weapons such as the boomerang. The wood is almost as hard and dense as South American snakewood, but rather is dark brown-black with very fine golden streaks, no figure and fine texture.

snaky—spiteful; annoyed; treacherous; bad-tempered.

snap and rattle—any of several trees, especially Eucalyptus gracilis of southern Australia.

snap (one's) fingers at—show scorn, contempt for.

snapper—any of several marine fish of the family Sparidae, especially the pinkish-silver Chrysophyrs unicolor of Western Australia, C. auratus of South Australia, and C. guttulatus of eastern Australia, valued as food.

snappie—snap dragon.

snappy gum—Eucalyptus racemosa, an evergreen tree which grows at a fast rate. The flowers are hermaphrodite and are pollinated by native bees. It has no edible fruits. An oleo-resin is exuded from the tree which contains tannin and is powerfully astringent. It is used internally in the treatment of diarrhoea and bladder inflammation, externally it is applied to cuts etc.

snark—1. an informer, especially for the police. 2. man who sniffs girls' bicycle seats.

snarler—a sausage.

snatch (one's) time—to demand (one's) due wages and leave a job.

snatch-and-grab—take-out food.

snavel—catch; take; steal.

snazzed up—1. elegantly or stylishly dressed. 2. renovated; improved; fixed up.

sneak in by the back door—to enter into politics or some organisation in an illicit or underhanded manner.

sneak-thief—one who steals without breaking in; a pickpocket.

sneezeweed—any of several aromatic herbs of the genus Centipeda, of Australia and elsewhere.

sniff and giggle—the game of Rugby League football.

snifter—1. small alcoholic drink. 2. balloon glass for brandy. 3. excellent.

snip of a thing—small insignificant person.

snitchy—bad-tempered.

snook—gesture of contempt made with thumb to nose and outstretched fingers: e.g., He cocked a snook at the cameraman.

snooker—1. a game played with cues on a rectangular baize-covered table in which the players use a cue-ball to pocket the other balls in a set order. 2. defeat; thwart.

snorker—a sausage.

snot (someone) one—to hit, bash, strike (someone).

snot-log—vanilla-slice—a custard-slice cake.

snow gum—Eucalyptus pauciflora of the Myrtaceae family, it is Australia's alpine icon, usually found above 1500 metres. Distinguished by its smooth white bark streaked with varying shades of grey, olive green and red, and in its usually stunted and twisted form, the snow gum is a small to medium spreading tree, growing to about 30m tall, common in the snow-covered regions of Victoria and New South Wales. Thick leathery leaves with oil glands survive the freezing temperatures. From October to January, the beautiful white flowers appear profusely and frequently. Eucalyptus pauciflora is found primarily in the Snowy Mountains, right along the tablelands in southern New South Wales through Victoria to Tasmania. It is very long-lived and very slow growing. It can withstand snow and ice, and prospers in well-drained soil and colder areas, but is able to grow in diverse areas from shallow rocky soils in very exposed, dry areas to wet, snowy areas on high ridge tops. Also known as white sallee, cabbage gum, weeping gum or ghost gum.

snow grass—(see: silver tussock).

snow peas—mangetout; sugar peas.

snowberry—Gaultheria hispida, endemic to Tasmania on mountains to 1200m. Usually in wet eucalyptus forests in the montane and sub-alpine zone. It is an evergreen shrub growing to 0.9m. It is in leaf all year, in flower from May to June. The flowers are hermaphrodite and are pollinated by Insects. The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils. Snowberry prefers acid and neutral soils and can grow in very acid soil, but requires that the soil be moist. Fruit—raw or cooked. Somewhat bitter. Not unpleasant, they taste somewhat like gooseberries when cooked but with a slight bitterness. The fruit is about 8mm—10mm wide. Said to be useful in the treatment of cancer.

snowdropper—person who steals laundry; especially women's underwear, off clotheslines.

snowing down south—warning that one's underwear, especially a woman's petticoat, is showing.

Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme—began in 1949 and was 25 years in construction. It harnesses snow melt from the Australian Alps, Victoria, diverting it westwards under the mountains to irrigate the arid interior for food production, while generating hydro-electricity as the water falls to the level of the plains. Of the workers who poured into that rugged frontier in a strange new land to build new lives, many had been recent enemies in a war that had devastated their European homelands. A country founded on stolid British stock almost overnight became one of the world's great pancultures. The mountains still guard the bones of more than one hundred and twenty men who lost their lives in this effort.

Snowy River—once a beautiful, wild river, flowing fast and free and roaring its way through 50km of New South Wales and Victoria. It was Australia's only truly wild river, and is part of Australia's folklore heritage. In 1967 the Jindabyne Dam was completed. The Snowy River is now dying because it does not receive enough of its own water.

Snowy River National Park—some of Victoria's most spectacular river scenery, magnificent deep gorges and diverse forests make Snowy River, 390km north-east of Melbourne, an outstanding national park. The park covers an area of 98,700ha, protecting Victoria's largest forest wilderness. In the north, the Bowen Range and Gelantipy Plateau dominate. Flowing south into the Snowy are the rugged waterways of Mountain Creek and the Rodger River. Vegetation in the park varies from dry rainshadow woodland to ancient forests and sub-alpine woodland. The rich fauna of the area reflects this diversity.

Snr—British abbreviation of 'Senior'.

snuffler—disagreeably ingratiating person; crawler; obsequious person.

snuffy—1. annoyed. 2. irritable. 3. supercilious; contemptuous.

snuggery—a snug place, especially a person's private room or den.

Snugglepot & Cuddlepie—the Australian classic, the 'Adventures of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie' by May Gibbs has been loved by generations of children since it was written in 1918. The adventures of two gumnuts as they meet the Banksia men, Ragged Blossom, Mrs Snake, Winky and Little Obelia.

so bare you could flog a flea across it—pertaining to land and vegetation devastated by drought.

so crooked (one) couldn't lie straight in bed—(of a person) deceitful; criminal; without ethics or scruples.

so low (one) could parachute out of a snake's bum/has to reach up to touch bottom—(of a person) despicable in character; having no scruples or ethics.

so sharp you must sleep in the knife-drawer—a sarcastic reproof to someone who is being over-clever or smart.

so smart he's/she's got more degrees than a protractor—(of a person) well educated; extremely intelligent.

soak—drunkard; alcoholic.

soap mallee—Eucalyptus diversifolia, a small tree to 8m in height, characterised by multiple branches arising at or near the base. Has dense, blue-green foliage and cream/white flowers. Grows on calcareous sands and limestone soils near the coast. Widespread and common in South Australia, restricted to Cape Nelson in Victoria. Also known as coast gum, white coast mallee.

soapie—a soap opera.

sod—a disagreeable, unpleasant person.

soda—any easy task.

soddy—saturated; wet.

sodosols—have an abrupt clay increase down the profile and high sodium content, which may lead to clay dispersion and instability. Seasonally perched water tables are common because of the structure of the subsoil. These soils are usually associated with a dry climate and they are widely distributed in the eastern half of Australia and the western portion of Western Australia, where they are used extensively for grain crops. These soils are usually very hard when dry and are prone to crust formation. The dispersive subsoil makes them prone to tunnel and gully erosion. Also known as red-brown earths; desert soils; texture contrast soils.

soft answer—a good-tempered answer to abuse or an accusation.

soft fruit—small stoneless fruit (strawberry, currant, etc).

soft furnishings—curtains, rugs, etc.

soft goods—textiles

.soft in the crumpet—silly; foolish; irresolute; weak.

soft spinifex—Triodia pungens, a somewhat glutinous tussock grass. Leaves rigid, spreading, sharp-pointed, the sheaths sometimes woolly. Panicle narrow, 8-15 cm long. Spikelets on slender pedicels, 8-12 mm long; outer glumes 6-8 mm long, glabrous, five- to seven-nerved; flowering glume purplish, cut halfway down into three broad, three-nerved lobes, silky-villous toward the base. For grazing management rotational spelling of paddocks during the wet season every three to four years will allow the softer, edible, associated plants to build up a seed reserve to ensure their continuing presence. Burn every three to four years at the end of the dry season or after the first storms to remove old, dry, spiny material and promote soft growth for grazing. Burning after the wet season destroys the softer, edible plants. Uncontrolled grazing leads to complete removal of vegetation, increasing erosion and permanently reducing productivity. Soft spinifex is not very palatable to cattle, but eaten in the absence of other forage.

soft sugar—granulated or powdered sugar.

soft tack—bread or other good food.

soft toys—stuffed animals etc.

soft wicket—(cricket) a wicket with moist or sodden turf.

soft-centred—(of a person) soft-hearted, sentimental.

soft-fruited tea tree—Leptospermum glaucescens, a shrub or small tree. Leaves glaucous, oblanceolate. Capsules dark and fleshy, which "bleeds" when you press a thumbnail into it.

soft-plumaged petrel—Pterodroma mollis is commonly seen off the southern and south-west coast of Western Australia in winter and early spring. It is a dark brown and white petrel—juveniles and adults are alike. They feed mainly on squid, krill and fish. Breeding starts in September, on the Tristan-Gough Islands, the Prince Edwards, Iles Crozet, Kerguelen and the Antipodes. After that, a single egg is laid in November or December. Incubation takes about 50 days, and the chicks are raised for about 90 days. Very small numbers of Soft-plumaged Petrels breed inAustralian territory. The only potential threat onMaatsuyker I. is the accidental introduction ofpredators (Milledge, 1972). Introduced predators,including cats, rats and Wekas Gallirallus australis, haveprobably been responsible for the petrel’s scarcity onMacquarie I. (N. Brothers). On Amsterdam I., Soft-Plumaged Petrels are frequently taken by feral cats(Roux and Martinez, 1987) and are almost extinct

softly softly—(of an approach or strategy) cautious; discreet and cunning.

soils of the alpine and perhumid zones—these soils include the high moor peats and alpine humus soils of the Australian Alps and Tasmanian Highlands, and the peaty podsols of the cold perhumid western region of Tasmania. The characteristics common to them are highly organic surface horizons, extreme acidity and excessive moisture supply. No form of arable agriculture is undertaken, not only because of the above-mentioned properties, but also because of their unsuitable climate and rugged terrain. To a large extent the soils are mixed with much exposed rock and are themselves often excessively stony. Of these soils the alpine humus soils are forested in part, and some timber is extracted. However, the commonest form of land use on all of them has been the seasonal grazing of sheep and cattle, stock being moved on to them in late spring and removed to lower and more hospitable areas in autumn. Because of their abundant rainfall and seasonal snow cover, both the Australian Alps and the Tasmanian Highlands have progressively become the scene of major engineering enterprises connected with water storage. The objectives are the development of electric power and the regulated supply of water for irrigation of lands outside the mountain regions themselves. These projects have brought a re-appraisal of the long-term value of seasonal grazing and its effects on the alpine vegetation. These impacts arise from ancillary practices such as burning to stimulate new growth of greater palatability to stock. As a consequence there has been some erosion damage to the landscape. Engineering works themselves, such as roads and channels, have also brought problems of landscape stability in their train. Techniques to combat these are being developed. Meanwhile there is a trend towards the stricter control or elimination of the seasonal moving of stock in an effort to conserve the alpine areas for their most valuable long-term national use, the conservation and regulation of water.

soils of the arid zones—these soils fall into three broad categories: (a) those that are coarse-textured enough to be moved by wind action—the desert sandhills and desert sand plains; (b) those that resist wind action—the arid red earths, the desert barns and the stony desert soils; and (c) the calcareous desert soils of the Nullarbor Plain.

soils of the seasonally humid zones—in these climatic zones the rainfall is sharply seasonal, with a winter incidence in the south and a summer incidence in the north. In the latter it is also erratic. The soils fall into five main groups, the red-brown earths, black earths (or chernozems), solodic soils, red and yellow earths, and lateritic podsolic soils.

soils of the semi-arid zones—the major soils of the semi-arid zones include the highly calcareous solonized brown soils restricted to southern Australia, the massive, structured, variably calcareous and gypseous, grey and brown soils of heavy texture, and the red-earth soils of the old land surfaces.

soils on calcareous materials—shallow, neutral to alkaline soils resting on limestones can be either red—terra rossas—or black—rendzinas. The terra rossas are variable in texture, but the rendzinas are generally well structured clay soils, some having seasonally rising and falling groundwater. The only extensive occurrence of rendzinas is in the south-east of South Australia, where they occupy the wet calcareous floors of long swales between ridges of ancient stranded coastal dunes. These soils have been extensively drained and developed, and are now mostly devoted to pastures. They respond to superphosphate and, variably, to the trace elements copper, zinc and manganese. Terra rossas, which are well drained shallow soils, are often so stony or intruded by so much outcropping limestone that their usefulness is very limited. The largest aggregate area is on the better drained positions in association with rendzinas in the south-east of South Australia. They are most frequently used for pastures, either natural or sown, and, where deeper, for vines and stone fruits.

SOL—ill-temper (shit on the liver): e.g., He's got a bad case of SOL.

solanum plants—contain an unidentified toxin that, when ingested by sheep, causes degeneration of the white matter of the spinal cord and degenerative changes in the brain. These changes are microscopic and are usually not obvious in a post mortem. Solanum plants are perennial forbs with star-shaped, five-petalled purple flowers with yellow centres; leaves are greyish green in colour, and velvety; the fruits are fleshy, globular berries 1–1.5cm across. Sheep find the fruit of this plant palatable, which results in a condition known as "humpy back", frequently resulting in death.

soldier settlement schemes—some 10,000 returned servicemen took up blocks of land in Victoria immediately after the First World War. Unfortunately the size of the blocks, their locations, the individuals’ lack of capital, the lack of public infrastructure at the time and depressed produce prices saw some extraordinary hardships and personal tragedies, and up to 60 per cent of those who had designated blocks eventually walked off them. The blocks given them by the government were a square mile of uncleared mallee country, in areas of quite arid zone agriculture today. In addition, they were given no financial support. Given the circumstances, and with just a few dry years, it was a disaster waiting to happen. So the grateful nation, while well-intentioned, had got it terribly wrong when it came to the soldier settlement scheme that was established in 1917. After the Second World War it was believed that there should be another soldier settlement scheme. In the First World War scheme, the more expensive the land the smaller the block, which meant that you could barely survive. In the Second World War scheme, blocks were purchased in areas that were viable and productive. Individuals were interviewed to see what their aptitude, skills and understanding of agriculture were before they were given a block. There were in fact some 6,000 ex-servicemen, with 21,000 dependants, who participated in the Second World War soldier settlement scheme. They were paid an allowance for the first 12 months. On each property shedding was built, there was fencing, and a water supply was established. Theis more flexible and reasonable scheme succeeded.

soldiers bold—(rhyming slang) cold.

solid—unfair, unreasonable, severe treatment.

solid smile—vomit.

Solitary Islands Marine Park—located on the mid-north coast of New South Wales between Coffs Harbour and the Sandon River. The diversity of marine life found around the islands and rocky outcrops is considered to be amongst the most outstanding in Australia. The waters around the Solitary Islands are bathed by the warm southward-flowing East Australian Current, which begins its journey from the equator. Adding complexity to this region, the coastline and nearshore islands are also influenced by cooler currents from the southern latitudes. The result is a fascinating mix of marine life, where species from the Great Barrier Reef can be found together with marine life which occur as far south as Tasmania.

solonetz soils—occur in all states, and are particularly extensive in the sub-coastal regions of Queensland, where they form the bulk of the spear-grass country. They have commonly formed on old alluvial deposits and on a wide range of rocks. The soils have a grey sandy to loamy surface, moderately to strongly acid in reaction, sharply differentiated from a mottled yellow, brown, orange, and grey dense clay subsoil. The subsoil may exhibit a strong prismatic structure with well-marked flat-topped columns at the junction with the surface soil. Usually in the lower horizons the acidity falls, and in some cases calcareous concretions are present. In their natural state these soils are very infertile, and are deficient in nitrogen and phosphorus as well as trace elements. Although commonly containing concretionary calcium carbonate in the deep subsoil, the calcium levels of the surface soil are often so low as to be deficient for such shallow rooting plants as the introduced pasture species. Deficiencies of potassium occur in many areas, and molybdenum deficiency is widespread. Their development, which has so far only been undertaken in limited areas, requires the rectification of these deficiencies and the introduction of a suitable legume.

solonized brown soils—lie largely in a zone of low rainfall, approximately 9 to 15 inches per annum of unreliable, winter incidence. They are deep, sandy to shallow loamy soils overlying deep rubbly and powdery caleareous clay subsoils, and are neutral to alkaline at the surface, becoming more alkaline with depth. Their landscape is frequently characterized by a parallel, east-west dune system. These soils make up a large part of the low-yielding wheat lands of southern Australia. They are farmed on a wide rotation, comprising volunteer pasture-fallow-wheat, in which superphosphate is used solely with the wheat. Sheep graze the pastures. These soils, especially the sands, are very susceptible to wind erosion, and much effort is now devoted to the stabilization of the once cleared and cultivated dunes. The common plant for reclamation is cereal rye. Where the solonized brown soils lie adjacent to the Murray River they are widely irrigated, especially for horticultural production, principally of grapes and citrus fruits. Under skilled management they are very productive, but are liable to rising groundwater and secondary salinity problems where drainage is inadequate.

some hope!—no hope.

something out of the bag/box—outstanding; excellent; exception: e.g., This new wine is really something out of the bag.

son (or daughter) of the manse—the child of a Presbyterian etc minister.

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