Soils Flashcards
How are soil horizons labelled?
O, A, B, C, R
What is the O horizon in soils?
organic matter
What is the A horizon in soils?
Topsoil
What is the B horizon in soils?
Subsoil
What is the C horizon in soils?
Unconsolidated material
What is the R horizon in soils?
Bedrock/parent material
Where are Vertisols found?
SE Asia, in tropical monsoon climate
Where are Gelisols found?
polar tundra climate
What percentage of the World’s population is supported by gelisols?
0.1%
What % of the Earth’s surface is gelisols?
13%
What % of particles in vertisols are clay-sized?
30%
What feature of clay soils makes them suitable for rice farming?
impermeable when saturated
How do vertisols mix?
shrinking and swelling due to varying dry and wet climate
How do gelisols mix?
cryoturbation
frozen soil freezes and melts, when it melts, nutrients and soil can move across horizons
What % of the Earth’s surface is vertisols?
2.7%