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SOILS > MAJOR SOILS + LAND MANAGEMENT > Flashcards

MAJOR SOILS + LAND MANAGEMENT Flashcards

1
Q

Histosols
= Soils with thick organic layers

A

SOC can be lost upon land conversion & by drainage!! The formation of these peats can take thousand of years, they have a very large carbon store.

  • tropics: extremely fertile soils (plantations + fruit and vegetable cropping smallholders)

RESULTS DRAINAGE

  • CO2 and CH4 emissions (GHG)
  • subsidence and instability
  • enhanced wild fire risk

To counter these emissions there are laws in place for protection and restoration of peatlands, overall reduction in emissions

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2
Q

Anthrosols
= Soils with strong human influence, with long and intensive agricultural use.

A

LM: Agriculture

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3
Q

Technosols
= Soils with strong human influence, containing significant amount of artefacts.

A

LM: Restricted use for fear of toxic substances
used for land-files or bio-remidation
afforestation, urbanparcs.

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4
Q

Cryosols
= Soils with limitations to root growth, permafrost affected.

A

landuse/cover: Tundra & Taiga

  • Building of houses can lead to melting of permafrost, houses can collapse.
  • Very short growing seasons, so only short season crops
  • Bad management: resulting badlands, wildfires thawing the permafrost, …
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5
Q

Leptosols
= Soils with limitations to root growth, thin or with many coarse fragments.

A

Land use: forest & pastures
Occurence: mountains and dry regions

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6
Q

Solonetz
= Soils with limitations to root growth, high content of exchangeable Na.

A
  • leaving land to nature
  • watch out with extensive grazing (livestock densities)
  • reducing excessive alkalinity (adding gysium (CaSO4), adding organic matter, …
  • organic matter management
  • Salt and drought tolerant vegetation & crops
  • Implications on irrigation & drainage!! Watch out for water sources which are high in sodium, leaching with clean water
  • reversing sodium hazard through exchange reactions
    1. Exchange sodium on the clay complex by calcium from gypsum or equivalent
    Na2-clat + SO4(2-) + Ca(2+) <-> Ca-clay + Na2SO4
    2. Leaching of Na2SO4
  • crust formation, hard to get water into the soil
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7
Q

vertisols
= Soils with limitations to root growth, alternating wet-dry conditions, shrink-swell clays

A
  • difficult soils with high potential
  • gilgai relief: causes localized flood problems, moisture induces differences
  • water logging (subsequent due to ploughing), frequent low applications of water (irrigation)
    => best: shallow and infrequent tillage
  • consequences
    instability + gully erosions enhanced by cracks

NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT
N and P need special attention

  • farmyard manure => soil structure, acidity & supply of N&P
  • legumes => Nfix, contribution to organic matter

PHYSICAL MANAGEMENT
conservation agriculuture!!
- drainage + evacuation exces surface water
raised beds & furrows, contour , cultivation & bunds, tied ridges

  • improved rooting conditions
    surface drainage & organic manure
  • gully control
    grassed waterways
  • water harvesting
    small ponds & micro dams
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8
Q

Solonchaks
= Soils with limitations to root growth, high concentrations of soluble salts.

A

Land use: salt mining (Tanzania & Vietnam) + pastures

  • drainage canals to flush out salts
  • flocculated soils, not as serious physical properties as solonetz (sodic soils)
  • improper management can lead to sodic soils
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9
Q

Gleysols
= Soils distinguished by Fe/Al chemistry, Groundwater-affected, underwater & tidal areas.

A
  • Grassland, pastures when drained
  • WET: suldifes dominate the soil profile
  • DRY: ocidation to acid sulphate (There is an oxidation proces after drainage)

ACID SULPHATE SOILS
- low pH, aluminium toxicity, acidification of surface waters, corrosion of construction works => liming

  • salinity => leaching
  • iron toxicity => K-fertilisation
  • H2S toxicity after flooding of sulfuric horizon

RECOMMENDATIONS

  • avoid disturbance/ drainage iron sulfide layer, shallow drainage without disturbance
  • liming: neutralization but costly
  • covering with water to prevent further oxidation, keep water on the affected area
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10
Q

Andosols
= Soils distinguished by Fe/Al chemistry, Allophanes or Al-humus complexes.

A

Vulnerability to erosion by for example extensive grazing

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11
Q

Podzols
= Soils distinguished by Fe/Al chemistry, subsoil accumulation of humus and/or oxides

A

liming + high input of fertilisers

  • Low nutrient status
  • Low level of available
    moisture
  • Low soil-pH
  • Aluminium toxicity and
    phosphorus deficiency
  • Dense illuviation horizon or
    hardpan

=> unnattractive soils for arable farming

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12
Q

plinthosols
= Soils distinguished by Fe/Al chemistry, Accumulation and redistribution of Fe

A

Poor natural soil fertility, water logging in lowlands and drought on shallow and/or skeletal Plinthosols in uplands pose serious limitations, notably to root growth. The occurrence of petroplinthite hinders agriculture, the land is best left for grazing.

  • preventing hardening with strong protection against erosion of the overlying layers
  • soft plinthite, carefully managed to avoid irreversible hardening upon wetting and drying
  • road construction material + stable foundations for buildings + brick mining
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13
Q

Planosols
= Soils distinguished by Fe/Al chemistry, stagnating water, ABRUBT textural difference

A

drainage limitations
- dry seasons too dry
- wet seasons too wet

Land use: Mostly pastures, sometimes forests (low diversity), few cases of afgriculture

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14
Q

Stagnosols
= Soils distinguished by Fe/Al chemistry, stagnating water, structural difference and/or moderate textural difference

A

COMPACTATION OF SOIL

  • decreased pH
  • leaching base cations
  • poor aeration & water saturation (winter)

remediation

  • reduced tillage and compost to counteract soil degradation
  • compost: positive effect on pH
  • cover crops
  • non-inversion tillage, reducing leaching base cations & organic compounds
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15
Q

Nitisols
= Soils distinguished by Fe/Al chemistry, low activity clay, P fixation, many Fe oxides, strongly structured

A

fertile tropical soils BUT:

  • low P availability
  • low base status
  • deep stable soils with favorable physical properties
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16
Q

Ferralsols
= Soils distinguished by Fe/Al chemistry, dominance of kaolinite and oxides

A
  • in beginning reasonable yields, then gradual decline, many years needed for restoring
  • traditional: no-tillage agriculture
  • high input of fertilizers needed in PC, close to housing (higher input of organic material)

MANAGEMENT

  • topsoil conservation
  • addition organic matter, macro + micro nutrients
  • minimal tillage
  • crop residue management
  • good crop rotations
17
Q

Chernozems
= Pronounced accumulation of organic matter in the mineral topsoil, very dark topsoil, secondary carbonates

A

Among best arable soils, high fertility rates lead to very high crop yields

gully erosion due to intense land-use & cultivation

  • tree windbreaks
  • manure & mulching
  • crop rotation
  • restoring grass vegetations

=> more reliable carbon sinks than trees

  • less impacted by droughts and wild fires
  • sequestering of carbon underground, in forest this is in woody biomass
18
Q

Kastanozems
= Pronounced accumulation of organic matter in the mineral topsoil, dark topsoil, secondary carbonates

A

land use: natural grasslands or dry forests

  • agriculture mostly rainfed
19
Q

Phaeozems
= Pronounced accumulation of organic matter in the mineral topsoil, dark topsoil, no secondary carbonates (unless very deep), high base status

A

high agricultural potential due to prominent reserves of organic carbon in topsoil

20
Q

Umbrisols
= Pronounced accumulation of organic matter in the mineral topsoil, dark topsoil, low base status

A

Fertilization needed for agriculture

  • low base saturation => acidic soils that lak nutrients for optimal plant growth
  • liming
  • preventing leaching by mulching & cover crops (P > ET in these regions)
21
Q

durisols
= Acculumulation of moderate soluble salts or non saline substances, accumulation of and cementation by, secondary silica

A

Problems

  • serious subsurface erosion
  • exposing the duripan

solutions

  • arable cropping only when irrigation water is available
  • duripan must be broken to remove barrier for root and water penetraition
22
Q

gypsisols
= Acculumulation of moderate soluble salts or non saline substances, accumulation of secondary gypsium

A

Occurance: hot desert areas

  • xerophytes and ephemeral grasses & herbs

tunneling
- irregular subsidence of the land surface and overal instability due to dissolution of gysium

solution : very localize irrigation systems

23
Q

calcisols
= Acculumulation of moderate soluble salts or non saline substances, accumulation of secondary carbonates

A

occurance: dry climates almost all year + short rainy period

mostly extensive grazing (nomadic herdings)

  • water deficit is major problem
    => tree planting in peepholes to last water accumulate & infiltrate
24
Q

Retisols
= Soils with clay enriched subsoil, inter fingering of coarser-textured, lighter colored material into a finer-textured, stronger coulourd layer

A
  • stagnic properties & reducing conditions, N loss, …
  • subsurface drainage lowers the water table of the saturated soil
  • Not always effective, but purpose was to take away the stagnic properties
25
Q

acrisols
= Soils with clay enriched subsoil, low activity clays, low base status

A

problems
- low CEC and low base-saturation, acidification, prone to aluminium
toxicity

  • nutrient availability is limited
  • liming, organic matter, slow release N-fertilizers, erosion control, rotation with N-fixators, acid tolerant crops, …
26
Q

lixisols
= Soils with clay enriched subsoil, low activity clays, high base status.

A

low CEC, but high base saturation
- occur in drier parts of the tropics & subtropics

  • organic matter additions (crop residues, green manuring, cover crops, …)
  • fertilizer application needed for agriculture
  • limited capacity to retain additional nutrients, applying fertilizers carefully (leaching risk)
27
Q

alisols
= clay enriched subsoil, high activity clays low base-status

A

high CEC and low base saturation

  • good capacity to hold cations, lack of base cations
  • high concentrations of Al3+ and H+, acidity
  • liming needed, calcium and potassium are likely to be deficient
  • problem of Al toxicity and P deficiency
28
Q

luvisols
= clay enriched subsoil, high activity clays high base-status

A

Among the most productive soils in the world

  • loess: string erosion by wind and water
29
Q

cambisols
= soils with little or no profile differentiation, moderately developed

A

Broad range form high yielding to low productive. Management dependent on qualifiers.

30
Q

Fluvisols
= soils with little or no profile differentiation, stratified fluviatile, marine and lacustrine sediments

A

Climate change:
Sea Level Rise

  • Salt Water Intrusion from normally one month to four months
  • Threat to local rice based farming systems and fisheries
  • Fresh water supplies are a major problem
  • Technology for desalinating brackish river water

=> flood control is needed

31
Q

Arenosols
= soils with little or no profile differentiation, sandy

A

only agriculture with high input of fertilizers and irrigation (not that sustainable)

  • low plant available water, low residual water contents, but high drainage water contents
  • revegetation with drought tolerant, fire resistant savanna species, cashew trees (combating desertification)
  • high evaporation rates, drought and heat stress, …
  • addind LNC = liquid natural clay
32
Q

regosols
= soils with little to no profile differentation, no significant profile development

A
  • Low moisture holding capacity, Irrigation is costly (frequency!)
  • Dry farming practices
    Vineyards; Olive plantations
    Extensive grazing in arid areas

SOILS (10 decks)

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