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• Its NOT DIRT!!!
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• SOILS FORM IN MINERAL AND ORGANIC DEPOSITS
• OVER THOUSANDS TO MILLIONS OF YEARS• NEW ENGLAND SOILS ARE YOUNGLESS THAN
15OOO YEARS OLD (AFTER THE LAST GLACIATION)
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• 12 “GREAT GROUPS”OF SOILS IN THE WORLD• 4 FOUND IN NH• ENTISOLS• INCEPTISOLS• SPODOSOLS• HISTOSOLS
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• SOILS CONSIST OF FOUR CONSTITUENTS• MINERAL• ORGANIC • WATER • AIR• IN VARYING AMOUNTS
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• NRCS (OLD SCS) HAS NAMED MANY “SOIL SERIES” BASED ON PROPERTIES
• NOW NUMERIC IN NEWER VERSIONS• OFTEN ASSOCIATED IN COMPLEXES• SOIL CATENAS ARE SIMILAR SOILS IN
DIFFERENT DRAINAGE CLASSES
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• LIMIT OF MAPPING IS ABOUT FIVE ACRES• MOST MAPPED UNITS WILL HAVE SOME OR
MANY INCLUSIONS OF OTHER SOILS
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• SOILS FORM IN PARENT MATERIALS WITH VARYING CHARACTERISTICS
• WHICH WILL STRONGLY INFLUENCE THE DEVELOPED SOIL
• COARSER, FINER, MORE OR LESS COMPACT
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• FOUR SOIL FORMING PROCESSES• ADDITIONS• TRANSFORMATIONS• TRANSLOCATIONS• LOSSES
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• ADDITIONS MAY INCLUDE FERTILIZERS, POLLUTANTS, WIND AND WATER MOVED MATERIALS
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• TRANSFORMATIONS ARE CHANGES THAT TAKE PLACE WITHOUT MOVING MATERIALS-”IN SITU”
• BY WEATHERING, BIOLOGIC ACTION, FROST, ETC
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• TRANSLOCATIONS MOVE MATERIALS DOWN, OR SIDEWAYS OR UP, SOMETIMES LEAVING THE SOIL
• WATER MOVES SOLUBLE SALTS, CLAYS, ORGANICS, CHEMICALS DOWN OR SIDEWAYS
• AND SOMETIMES UP
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• LOSSES COME FROM WATER MOVEMENT• MAJOR LOSSES FROM EROSION OR WIND• MAY RESULT IN ADDITIONS ELSEWHERE
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• SOILS HAVE DIMENSION- HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL
• AND ARE SURROUNDED BY OTHER SOILS WITH DIFFERENT PROPERTIES
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• SOILS HAVE DISTINCT LAYERS CALLED “HORIZONS”
• “O” FOR ORGANIC• ABOVE THE MINERAL HORIZON• DECOMPOSING MATERIALS
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• A-TOPSOIL • FIRST MINERAL HORIZON• DARK DUE ORGANIC MATERIAL• AND LOSS OF IRON AND OTHER COMPOUNDS• THIN IN FORESTED AREAS • THICKER WHERE PLOWED “Ap”
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• E HORIZON SOMETIMES FOUND- GRAY DUE TO LOSS OF IRON, ALUMINUM AND CLAY
• “ELUVIATED” DOWNWARDS• “ALBIC” HORIZON”
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• B OR SUBSOIL COLORED BY IRON AND OTHER MATERIALS “ILLUVIATED” FROM ABOVE
• WEATHERED BY WATER, FROST, ROOTS, BOILOGIC ACTIVITY
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• C IS SUBSTRATUM, LESS AFFECTED BY WEATHERING- “PARENT MATERIAL”
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• R IS ROCK• SOMETIIMES WEATHERED INTO SAPROLITE-
NOT REALLY SOIL
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• SOILS HAVE PROPERTIES• TEXTURE• STRUCTURE• CONSISTENCE• COLOR
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• TEXTURE IS COARSENESS-FINENESS• PROPORTIONS OF SAND, SILT, CLAY• SAND IS >0.05 MM, >2.0 MM• SILT IS > 0.002MM• NAMES INCLUDE SAND, LOAM, SILT LOAM,THE
COMMON “FINE SAND LOAM”• CLAY IS RARE
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• STRUCTURE IS THE WAY SOIL PARTICLES OR “PEDS” ARE ARRANGED
• GRANULAR, PLATY, BLOCKY, MASSIVE• IN SANDY SOILS, SINGLE GRAIN
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• WATER MOVES THROUGH STRUCTURAL CRACKS, ROOT CHANNELS
• OR AROUND SAND GRAINS• BY ADHESION OR BY GRAVITY
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• CONSISTENCE IS THE FIRMNESS OF THE SOIOL PEDS OR MASSES
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• COLOR IS USUALLY FROM THE COATINGS OF IRON, ALUMINUM AND CLAY
• MOST MINERALS IN NH GRAY• COLOR CHANGES DUE TO SOIL FORMING,
WETNESS, BOILOGIC ACTIVITY, TRANSLOCATION
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• COLORS ARE THE PROPERTIES THAT GUIDE US TO MANY INFERENCES ABOUT SOIL CONDITIONS
• PARTICULARLY WETNESS
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• SEASONAL HIGH WATER TABLE IS A CONCEPT• NOT THE HIGHEST OBSERVED EVENT• BUT AN AVERAGE OVER TIME• DURING THE GROWING SEASON
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• IRON AND COLORING AGENTS THAT COAT THE SOIL
• ARE CHANGED DURING WET TIMES • BY BIOACTIVITY• BECOME “REDUCED” AND CAN DISSOLVE• THEY TRANSLOCATE
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• IRON OXIDIZES WHEN SOIL DRIES• GRAY PATCHES ARE LEFT
BEHIND-”DEPLETIONS”• IRON DEPOSITS ARE CALLED
ACCUMULATIONS• THESE APPEAR AS “MOTTLES”• AGAINST THE “MATRIX” COLOR
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• THE MODERN TERM IS “REDOXIMORPHIC” FEATURES
• WHICH REFERS TO THE REDUCTION AND OXIDATION THAT DRIVES THE PROCESS
• REDOX FEATURES ARE DUE TO WETNESS• EXCLUDES OTHER PROCESSES THAT MAY
PRODUCE COLOR DIFFERENCES
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• DRAINAGE CLASSES RUN FROM EXCESSIVELY WELL DRAINED TO VERY POORLY DRAINED
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• POORLY AND VERY POORLY DRAINED ARE THE “HYDRIC” SOILS
• ONE OF THREE PARAMETERS FOR DETERMINING WETLAND STATUS
• ALONG WITH HYDROPITIC PLANTS AND HYDROLOGY
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• URBAN SOILS ARE OFTEN VERY ALTERED• COMPACTED, MOVED, ADDED, ERODED• PROPRETIES TAKE SOME TIME TO FORM• COLOR USUALLY COMES FIRST, AND MAY
FORM QUICKLY
Soils Somewhat Simplified
• THANKS!!!
Soils Somewhat Simplified