Less than one-fourth of the republic’s area is cultivated. Along with the decrease in farm population, the proportion of national income derived from agriculture has decreased to a fraction of what it was in the early 1950s. Improvements in farm productivity were long hampered because fields typically are divided into tiny plots that are cultivated largely by manual labor and animal power. In addition, the decrease and aging of the rural population has caused a serious farm-labor shortage. However, more recently productivity has been improving as greater emphasis has been given to mechanization, specialization, and commercialization.

Today the Cerrado region provides more than 70% of the beef cattle production in the country, being also a major production center of grains, mainly soybeans, corn, and rice. Large extensions of the Cerrado are also used for the production of cellulose pulp for the paper industry, with the cultivation of several species of Eucalyptus and Pinus, but as a secondary activity. Coffee produced in the Cerrado is now a major export.

The Cerrado was thought challenging for agriculture until researchers at Brazil’s agricultural and livestock research agency, Embrapa, discovered that it could be made fit for industrial crops by appropriate additions of phosphorus and lime. In the late 1990s, between 14 million and 16 million tons of lime were being poured on Brazilian fields each year. The quantity rose to 25 million tons in 2003 and 2004, equalling around five tons of lime per hectare. This manipulation of the soil allowed for industrial agriculture to grow exponentially in the area. Researchers also developed tropical varieties of soybeans, until then a temperate crop, and currently, Brazil is the world's main soybeans exporter due to the boom in animal feed production caused by the global rise in meat demand.

Soils of the cerrado are in the order of Oxisols. Oxisols are an order in USDA soil taxonomy, best known for their occurrence in tropical rain forest, 15-25 degrees north and south of the Equator. They are classified as ferralsols in the World Reference Base for Soil Resources; some oxisols have been previously classified as laterite soils.The main processes of soil formation of oxisols are weathering, humification and pedoturbation due to animals. These processes produce the characteristic soil profile. They are defined as soils containing at all depths no more than 10 percent weatherable minerals, and low cation exchange capacity. Oxisols are always a red or yellowish color, due to the high concentration of iron(III) and aluminium oxides and hydroxides. In addition they also contain quartz and kaolin, plus small amounts of other clay minerals and organic matter.

For more information about the Brazilian Soil Classification system, visit:

www.embrapa.br/en/busca-de-publicacoes/-/publicacao/10940...

For more photos related to soils and landscapes visit:

www.flickr.com/photos/soilscience/sets/72157622983226139/

Soil profile: A representative soil profile of a Mollisol from the Cerado physiographic region--a vast tropical savanna ecoregion of Brazil, particularly in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Minas Gerais and the Federal District of Brazil. (Horizonation is by Brazil soil classification system.)

Landscape: Typical landscape and vegetation (pastureland) occurring on upland side-slopes in Brazil.

Mollisols are a soil order in USDA soil taxonomy. Mollisols form in semi-arid to semi-humid areas, typically under a grassland cover. They are most commonly found in the mid-latitudes, namely in North America, mostly east of the Rocky Mountains, in South America in Argentina (Pampas) and Brazil, and in Asia in Mongolia and the Russian Steppes. Their parent material is typically base-rich and calcareous and include limestone, loess, or wind-blown sand. The main processes that lead to the formation of grassland Mollisols are melanisation, decomposition, humification and pedoturbation.

Mollisols have deep, high organic matter, nutrient-enriched surface soil (A horizon), typically more than 25 cm thick. This fertile surface horizon, known as a mollic epipedon, is the defining diagnostic feature of Mollisols. Mollic epipedons result from the long-term addition of organic materials derived from plant roots, and typically have soft, granular soil structure.

Mollisol (Chernossolos) and landscape BRAZIL--In the Brazil soil classification system, these Chernossolos are well structured soils, rich in organic matter, with high content of exchangeable cations. They are typically found in the south and east parts of Brazil.

A soil profile of an Epiaquept used for paddy rice production in South Korea. Compaction of the upper part of the soil facilitates puddling with irrigation water so that areas remain flooded while the crop matures. The gray colors between depths of about 15 and 30 cm are caused by the human-induced wet soil conditions, which in turn result in the chemical reduction of iron in the upper part of the soil. This soil has an ochric epipedon about 15 cm thick underlain by a cambic horizon that extends below the base of the photo. The right side of the profile has been smoothed; the left side retains the natural soil structure.

Epiaquepts have one or more layers in the upper part of the profile that are saturated for part of the year and underlain by unsaturated layers (a perched water table). They have cool to warm soil temperatures. Before cultivation, most Epiaquepts supported forest vegetation. Epiaquepts are generally nearly level or gently sloping, and their parent materials are typically late-Pleistocene or younger sediments

(Soil Survey Staff. 2015. Illustrated guide to Soil Taxonomy. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service, National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, Nebraska)

For additional information about soil classification, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/soils/survey/cla...

Photo courtesy of EAD-Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi. www.ead.gov.ae/

Saline soils contain enough soluble salts to injure plants. They are characterized by white or light brown crusts on the surface. Saline soils usually have an EC of more than 4 mmho cm-1. Salts generally found in saline soils include NaCl (table salt), CaCl2, gypsum (CaSO4), magnesium sulfate, potassium chloride and sodium sulfate.

A soil scientist is a person who is qualified to evaluate and interpret soils and soil-related data for the purpose of understanding soil resources as they contribute to not only agricultural production, but as they affect environmental quality and as they are managed for protection of human health and the environment. The university degree should be in Soil Science, or closely related field (i.e., natural resources, environmental science, earth science, etc.) and include sufficient soils-related course work so the Soil Scientist has a measurable level of understanding of the soil environment, including soil morphology and soil forming factors, soil chemistry, soil physics, and soil biology, and the dynamic interaction of these areas.

Soil scientists explore and seek to understand the earth’s land and water resources. Practitioners of soil science identify, interpret, and manage soils for agriculture, forestry, rangeland, ecosystems, urban uses, and mining and reclamation in an environmentally responsible way.

For more information about describing soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_052523...

For additional information about soil classification using Soil Taxonomy, visit:

sites.google.com/site/dinpuithai/Home

The dark layer near the surface of the pit is a spodic horizon. What made this area so interesting was the presence of the spodic horizon and underlying subsoil that contained plinthite.

For more information about describing and sampling soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/field...

For additional information on "How to Use the Field Book for Describing and Sampling Soils" (video reference), visit:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_hQaXV7MpM

For additional information about soil classification using USDA-NRCS Soil Taxonomy, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/keys-...

or;

www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/soil-...

The Al Kihef series is a very deep soil formed in sandy alluvial deposits with increasing gravel content with depth. Land use and vegetation. This soil is mostly used for rangeland grazing for camels. In areas where water is available, small farms have been developed. Where water resources have been depleted, cultivated lands are idle and returning to natural vegetation. Commonly described vegetation species include Acacia Tortilis, Calligonum comosum, Calotropis procera, Tribulus arabicus, and Rhazya stricta. Vegetative cover is mostly less than 5%, but may be as much as 10 to 15% in places.

The main distinguishing feature of this soil is the sandy textures with accumulations of calcium carbonate in the subsoil. A desert pavement of fine to medium surface gravel provides some limited protection against wind erosion, but if disturbed, wind erosion can become a problem. Although the soil has limited water and nutrient holding capacity, where quality water is available it can be farmed successfully.

For more information about soil classification using the UAE Keys to Soil Taxonomy, visit:

agrifs.ir/sites/default/files/United%20Arab%20Emirates%20...

For additional information about soil classification using Soil Taxonomy, visit:

sites.google.com/site/dinpuithai/Home

For more information about describing soils using the USDA-Field Book for Describing and Sampling Soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_052523...

Yadkin sandy clay loam, 2 to 6 percent slopes, moderately eroded. (Soil Survey of Iredell County, North Carolina)

archive.org/details/usda-soil-survey-of-iredell-county-no...

Setting

Major land resource area: Southern Piedmont (MLRA 136)

Landscape: High stream terrace on upland and interfluve

Landform position: Summit

Elevation: 700 to 1,200 feet

Map Unit Composition

Yadkin and similar soils: Typically 90 percent, ranging from about 80 to 95 percent

Typical Profile

Yadkin

Surface layer:

0 to 6 inches; dark reddish brown sandy clay loam

Subsoil:

6 to 80 inches; dark red clay

Minor Components

Dissimilar components:

• Clifford soils, which have a red subsoil, in similar areas

• Danripple soils, which have a brown or red subsoil, in similar areas

Soil Properties and QualiYadkin

Available water capacity: Moderate (about 8.5 inches)

Slowest saturated hydraulic conductivity: Moderately high (about 0.6 in/hr)

Depth class: Very deep (more than 60 inches)

Depth to root-restrictive feature: More than 60 inches

Agricultural drainage class: Well drained

Depth to seasonal water saturation: More than 6 feet

Flooding hazard: None

Ponding hazard: None

Shrink-swell potential: Low

Runoff class: Low

Surface fragments: None

Parent material: Old alluvium derived from granite and gneiss

Use and Management Considerations

Cropland

Suitability: Well suited

Management concerns: Erodibility, tilth, and soil fertility

Management measures and considerations:

• Resource management systems that include conservation tillage, crop residue management, stripcropping, and sod-based rotations help to prevent further erosion by stabilizing the soil, controlling surface runoff, and maximizing the infiltration of water.

• Incorporating crop residue into the soil or leaving residue on the soil surface helps to minimize clodding and crusting and maximize the infiltration of water.

• Restricting tillage to periods when the soil is not wet helps to minimize clodding and crusting and increases the infiltration of water.

• Applying lime and fertilizer according to recommendations based on soil tests helps to increase the availability of plant nutrients and maximize crop productivity.

For a detailed description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/Y/YADKIN.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#yadkin

Effect of slope aspect on vegetation and tree seedling survival. (Photo courtesy of Kerry Arroues)

Slope aspect is the compass bearing that a slope faces looking down slope. It is recorded either in degrees, accounting for declination, or as a general compass orientation. The direction is expressed as an angle between 0 and 360 degrees (measured clockwise from true north) or as a compass point, such as east or north-northwest.

Aspect can substantially impact local ecosystems. The impact generally increases as slope gradient and latitude increase. In the mid latitudes of the conterminous United States, this effect becomes particularly important on slopes of approximately 6 to 8 percent or greater. Increased or decreased solar radiation on slopes due to aspect can affect water dynamics across a site. In the northern hemisphere, north-northeast aspects reduce evapotranspiration and result in greater soil moisture levels, improved plant growth and biomass production, higher carbon levels, and improved drought survival rates for plants. Increased solar radiation on south southwest aspects increases evapotranspiration and decreases biomass production, seedling survival rates, and drought survival rates for plants.

Soil Survey Manual, Ag. Handbook 18, 2017, (p. 41).

Salidic Haplocalcids are the Haplocalcids that have an ECe of more than 8 to less than 30 dS m −1 in a layer 10 cm or more thick within 100 cm of the soil surface. These soils are not commonly used for irrigated agriculture due to salt content.

Haplocalcids are the Calcids that have a calcic horizon with its upper boundary within 100 cm of the soil surface. These soils do not have a duripan or an argillic, natric, or petrocalcic horizon within 100 cm of the soil surface. Some of the soils have a cambic horizon above the calcic horizon. Haplocalcids are extensive.

Calcids are the Aridisols with calcium carbonate that was in the parent materials or was added as dust, or both. Precipitation is insufficient to leach or even move the carbonates to great depths. The upper boundary of the calcic or petrocalcic horizon is normally within 50 cm of the soil surface. If the soils are irrigated and cultivated, micronutrient deficiencies are normal. These soils are extensive in the western part of the United States and in other arid regions of the world.

Aridisols, as their name implies, are soils in which water is not available to mesophytic plants for long periods. During most of the time when the soils are warm enough for plants to grow, soil water is held at potentials less than the permanent wilting point or has a content of soluble salts great enough to limit the growth of plants other than halophytes, or both. The concept of Aridisols is based on limited soil moisture available for the growth of most plants. In areas bordering deserts, the absolute precipitation may be sufficient for the growth of some plants. Because of runoff or a very low storage capacity of the soils, or both, however, the actual soil moisture regime is aridic.

The Kina series consists of very deep, very poorly drained soils that formed in partially decomposed organic material derived from sedges. Kina soils occupy depressional bench-like areas associated with drumlinoid hills and the toeslope, lower backslopes, and floors of valleys. Mean annual temperature is about 45 degrees F, and the mean annual precipitation is about 100 inches. Slopes range from 0 to 60 percent.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Dysic Typic Cryohemists

Mean annual soil temperature ranges from 38 to 42 degrees F. The subsurface tier is dominated by hemic material. pH (0.01M CaCl2) is less than 4.5 throughout the control section.

An Oi2 layer up to 8 inches thick may be present and an Oe3 layer up to 20 inches thick may be present. Hue ranges from 10YR to 2.5YR in all horizons. Broken face value and chroma may range as low as 2 for the Oe horizons. Coarse fragment content ranges up to 5 percent.

USE AND VEGETATION: The Kina soils are used for watershed protection and wildlife habitat. The vegetation is dominantly sedges, mosses, and plants of the Ericaceae family.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southeast Alaska. The series is of moderate extent.

For a detailed description, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#kina

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#kina

Clayey soil baking in the hot desert sun. The soil survey of the Northern Emirates, United Arab Emirates (UAE) was conducted during 2010 – 2012. The Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD) in partnership with the Ministry of Environment and Water (MOEW) implemented the Soil Survey through GRM International. The project was funded by the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, and its objective was to develop a digital soil information repository to aid in broad land-use planning and agricultural expansion in the Northern Emirates.

Information from the soil survey is expected to be used by various groups, including the agricultural farming community, decision makers, land-use planners, officials, engineers, and environmental impact assessors. Conservationists and specialists in recreation, wildlife management, waste disposal, and pollution control will also use the soil information to help understand, protect and enhance the environment.

This photo accompanies Figure 13.—Indicator A7, 5 cm Mucky Mineral. [Field Indicators of Hydric Soils in the United States].

Typical landscape and soil pit in a Duckston soil.

The Duckston series (Typic Psammaquents) consists of poorly drained sands near the Lower and Mid-Atlantic coast. They have very slow runoff and very rapid permeability above the water table. The water table fluctuates in relation to the tides and the surface is flooded following heavy rains or high storm tides.

Duckston soils are mainly in shallow depressions between coastal dunes and on nearly level flats between the dunes and marshes generally at elevations less than 5 feet above mean tide level. Slopes are typically less than 2 percent and surfaces are plane to concave. The soil formed in sandy sediments reworked by waves and wind. Average annual precipitation near the type location is about 48 inches and mean annual temperature about 62 degrees F. The soils are periodically flooded with salt water; salinity is variable according to length of time since last flooding.

Vegetation is a coastal shrub plant community. Locally, a maritime forest exists on a minor acreage of the soil. Duckston soils are of moderate extent along the Lower and Mid-Atlantic coast in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia.

Soil profile: The Eva series consists of very deep, somewhat excessively drained, moderately rapid permeable soils. (Soil Survey of Stevens County, Kansas; by Thomas C. Byrd, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

Landscape: Sunflowers in an area of Eva loamy fine sand, 1 to 3 percent slopes, on the south side of the Cimarron River in Stevens County.

Eva soils formed in sandy eolian deposits of Holocene age. These soils are on very gently to strongly sloping dunes and plains of the Southern High Plains, northern part (MLRA 77A). Slope ranges from 1 to 9 percent. Mean annual air temperature is about 13 degrees C (57 degrees F), and mean annual precipitation is about 460 mm (18 in).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Aridic Haplustalfs

Solum thickness: more than 203 cm (80 in)

Thickness of the ochric epipedon: 8 to 48 cm (3 to 19 in)

Thickness of the argillic horizon: 25 to 180 cm (10 to 71 in)

Depth to secondary calcium carbonate: 152 to 203 cm (60 to 80 in)

Depth to lithologic discontinuity (where present): 120 to 185 cm (47 to 73 in)

Particle-size control section (weighted average):

Silicate clay: 8 to 16 percent

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are mainly used for rangeland. Some areas are used for irrigated crops. Native vegetation is dominantly sand bluestem little bluestem, sideoats grama, sand lovegrass, sand paspalum, fall witchgrass, and sand dropseed. Sand sagebrush is the major woody species with lesser amounts of skunkbush sumac and yucca.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southwest Kansas and Southeastern Colorado south of the Cimarron River, and the Oklahoma Panhandle (MLRA-77A in LRR H). This soil is moderately extensive. These soils were formerly included in the Vona series.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/kansas/KS189/0...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/E/EVA.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#eva

A representative soil profile of the Narragansett series. (Photo provided by Mark Stolt University of Rhode Island's Dept. of Natural Resources; New England Soil Profiles)

The Narragansett series consists of very deep, well drained loamy soils formed in a mantle of medium-textured deposits overlying till. They are nearly level to moderately steep soils on till plains, low ridges and hills. Slope ranges from 0 to 25 percent. Permeability is moderate in the surface layer and subsoil and moderately rapid or rapid in the substratum. Mean annual temperature is about 50 degrees F. and the mean annual precipitation is about 47 inches.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy over sandy or sandy-skeletal, mixed, active, mesic Typic Dystrudepts

Thickness of the solum and depth to the lithologic discontinuity range from 18 to 38 inches. Depth to bedrock is commonly more than 6 feet. Rock fragments range from 0 to 25 percent in the solum and from 10 to 50 percent in the substratum. Except where the surface layer is stony, the fragments are mostly subrounded pebbles and typically make up 60 percent or more of the total rock fragments. Unless limed, the soil is extremely acid to moderately acid.

USE AND VEGETATION: Many areas are cleared and used for cultivated crops, hay or pasture. Common crops are silage corn, tobacco and vegetables. Some areas are wooded and scattered areas are used for community development. Common trees are red, white and black oak, hickory, white ash, sugar maple, red maple, gray birch, white pine and hemlock.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Glaciated uplands in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island; MLRAs 144A and 145. The series is of moderate extent; more than 50,000 acres.

For additional information about New England soils, visit:

nesoil.com/images/images.htm

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/N/NARRAGANSETT.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#narragansett

A representative soil profile of the Skyuka series. (Soil Survey of Polk County, North Carolina; by Scott C. Keenan, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

The Skyuka series consists of gently sloping to strongly sloping, very deep, well drained soils on stream terraces of the Piedmont. They formed in old alluvium washed from upland soils underlain dominantly by dark colored high grade metamorphic rocks such as hornblende gneiss, amphibolite, hornblende schist, and biotite gneiss. Slopes range from 2 to 15 percent. Mean annual precipitation is 64 inches and mean annual temperature is 59 degrees F. near the type location.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, mixed, semiactive, thermic Ultic Hapludalfs

Solum thickness ranges from 48 to more than 60 inches. Depth to bedrock is more than 72 inches. Reaction ranges from strongly acid to slightly acid unless lime has been added. Limed soils typically range from moderately acid to neutral in the upper part of the solum. Content of rock fragments ranges from 0 to 15 percent by volume throughout. Fragments are gravel or cobbles. Content of mica flakes ranges from none to common. Content of iron-manganese masses ranges from few to common in the B and C horizons of some pedons.

USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas of this soil are cleared and used for cropland, hayland or pasture. Important crops include corn, soybeans, small grains, and specialty crops such as tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, snap beans, and cabbage. The major forages are tall fescue and ladino clover. A few areas are in forest. Native trees include red maple, sweetgum, yellow poplar, black oak, white oak, southern red oak, shortleaf pine, and Virginia pine. A few areas are managed for improved loblolly pine.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Piedmont area of North Carolina and possibly Georgia, South Carolina, and Virginia. The series is of small extent.

This soil was previously included with the Masada series. Masada soils are Typic Hapludults. Classification of this soil is supported by reference laboratory data from the typical pedon (NSSL Nos. 90P1477, 90P1478). This revision changes the depth to the seasonally high water table to 4 to 6 feet.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/north_carolina...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/S/SKYUKA.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#skyuka

A representative soil profile of Andic Durixerepts in California. These Andic Durixerepts consist of moderately deep, well drained soils that formed in ash over outwash from volcanic rocks. These soils are on outwash terraces. Slopes range from 3 to 20 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 63 inches (1,600 millimeters), and the mean annual air temperature is about 41 degrees F (5 degrees

C).

Depth to restrictive feature: 20 to 40 inches (51 to 102 centimeters) to duripan

Mean annual soil temperature: 40 to 41 degrees F (4.6 to 5 degrees C)

Period that soil moisture control section is dry: July to October (about 90 days)

Particle-size control section (thickest part): 3 to 4 percent clay and 64 to 70 percent rock fragments

Surface fragments: 5 to 50 percent gravel, 1 to 5 percent cobbles, 0 to 3 percent stones, and 0 to 3 percent boulders

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/california/las...

A representative soil profile of the Rainbow soil series. (Photo provided by Mark Stolt University of Rhode Island's Dept. of Natural Resources; photo location is the Great Swamp Management Area, Kingston, RI. 41°28'10.76"N 71°34'33.28"W)

The Rainbow series consists of moderately well drained loamy soils formed in silty mantled lodgement till. The soils are very deep to bedrock and moderately deep to a densic contact. They are nearly level to strongly sloping soils on till plains, hills and drumlins. Slope ranges from 0 to 15 percent. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high or high in the surface layer and subsoil, and low to moderately high in the dense substratum. Mean annual temperature is about 49 degrees F., and mean annual precipitation is about 48 inches.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, active, mesic Aquic Dystrudepts

Thickness of the solum ranges from 18 to 40 inches. Depth to the densic contact commonly ranges from 20 to 40 inches but the range currently includes 18 to 40 inches. Depth to bedrock is commonly more than 6 feet. Rock fragments range from 0 to 20 percent by volume in the solum and from 5 to 35 percent in the substratum. Except where the surface is stony, the fragments are mostly subrounded gravel and typically make up 60 percent or more of the total rock fragments. Unless limed, reaction ranges from very strongly acid to moderately acid.

USE AND VEGETATION: Cleared areas are used mostly for cultivated crops, hay, or pasture. Some areas are used for vegetables, nursery stock, and other specialty crops. Scattered areas are used for community development. Stony areas are mostly wooded. Common trees are ash, hemlock, white pine, hickory, red and white oak, red maple, and sugar maple.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Glaciated uplands in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island; MLRAs 144A and 145. The series is of moderate extent.

For more information about New England soils, visit:

nesoil.com/images/images.htm

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/R/RAINBOW.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#rainbow

Soil profile of Altamira soil and hayland in an area of Altamira gravelly clay, 2 to 20 percent slopes. (Soil Survey of San Germán Area, Puerto Rico by Jorge L. Lugo-Camacho, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

Setting

Landscape: Hills

Landform: Limestone hills

Major uses: Hayland, pasture, and naturalized pastureland

Elevation: 100 to 1,312 feet

Composition

Altamira and similar soils: 85 percent

Dissimilar soils: 15 percent

Typical Profile

Surface layer:

0 to 8 inches—very dark brown gravelly clay

Subsoil:

8 to 14 inches—brown clay that has masses and concretions of calcium carbonate

Substratum:

14 to 33 inches—very pale brown clay loam that has masses and concretions of calcium carbonate

33 to 43 inches—pale brown clay loam that has masses and concretions of calcium carbonate

43 to 54 inches—grayish brown loam that has masses and concretions of calcium carbonate

54 to 80 inches—very pale brown and grayish brown, stratified, soft limestone bedrock

Minor Components

Dissimilar:

• Costa soils, which have fractured limestone bedrock below a depth of 20 inches

• Pitahaya soils, which have fractured limestone bedrock at a depth of 5 to 14 inches

• La Covana soils, which have a petrocalcic horizon

Similar:

• Guayacán soils, which are in a fine-loamy family

Soil Properties and Qualities

Depth class: Deep

Depth to soft bedrock: 40 to 60 inches

Parent material: Material that weathered from soft limestone bedrock

Surface runoff: Medium

Drainage class: Well drained

Permeability: Moderate

Available water capacity: Very low

Flooding: None

Hazard of water erosion: Moderate

Rock fragments in the surface layer: 5 to 60 percent, by volume, pebbles and cobbles

Shrink-swell potential: Moderate

Natural fertility: Moderate

Content of organic matter in the surface layer: Moderate

Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline throughout

Land Use

Dominant uses: Naturalized pastureland

Other uses: Hayland; pasture

Agricultural Development

Cropland

Suitability: Unsuited

Management concerns: Erosion; slope; very low available water capacity

Pasture and hayland

Suitability: Moderately suited

Commonly grown crops: Kleberg’s bluestem

Management concerns: Erosion; slope

Management measures and considerations:

• Erosion is a concern in unprotected areas.

• The moderately steep slopes increase the difficulty of management.

• Including grasses and legumes in the cropping system helps to control further erosion.

• Returning crop residue to the soil helps the soil to retain moisture.

• Overgrazed pastures should be reestablished and then protected from further overgrazing.

Naturalized pastureland

Suitability: Moderately suited

Management concerns: Erosion; slope

Management measures and considerations:

• Erosion is a concern in unprotected areas.

• The moderately steep slopes increase the difficulty of management.

• Overgrazed pastures should be reestablished and then protected from further overgrazing.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/puerto_rico/PR...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/A/ALTAMIRA.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#altamira

World Soil Day (Germany)

Photo and text provided by:

www.iuss.org/meetings-events/world-soil-day/world-soil-da...

In Germany the World Soil Day was used to announce the Soil of the Year 2013: The Plaggic Anthrosol (Plaggenesch). The German name Plaggenesch combines the terms “Plaggen” and “Esch”. “Plaggen”, or sods, are flat blocks of soil material with its above herbal or shrub or grassy vegetation and felted roots, shallowly scraped with a hoe or a spade. “Esch” originated from the Gothic word “astic”, and describes a usually slightly more elevated area of the arable land.

According to German Soil Taxonomy, the diagnostic horizon of a Plaggenesch is the “E” horizon, which is more than 40 cm in thickness, containing at least 0.6 % organic matter and increased phosphate contents. Additionally, artefacts such as charcoal, pieces of bricks and other remnants of daily use are typical findings. Plaggenesch soils can be differentiated into “Brown Plaggenesch” (resulting from loamy meadow sods of a brownish colour and “Grey Plaggenesch” (composed of sandy and greyish heather sods).

Further information and material (posters, flyers, CD’s):

sites.google.com/site/soilsofgermany/home/soil-information

Kuratorium Boden des Jahres, Professor M. Frielinghaus, ZALF Müncheberg, frielinghaus@zalf.de

Prof. Luise Giani, Uni Oldenburg: luise.giani@uni-oldenburg.de

Prof. Klaus Mueller, Dr. Lutz Markowski, HS Osnabrück: k.mueller@hs-osnabrueck.de; l.makowsky@hs-osnabrueck.de

Dr. Wolf Eckelmann, BGR Hannover: w.eckelmann@bgr.de

Bundesverband Boden (BVB), www.bvboden.de

A Typic Haplosalid, aquic from the interior of the UAE.

Although the dominant soil in the UAE are Aridisols, they commonly have a seasonal water table at depths within the soil profile, especially within deplation plains or as you move toward the coast.

This pedon has a water table at a depth of 100 to 200 cm and is identified as a "phase" in classification. In the UAE soil classification system, phases of soil taxa have been developed for those mineral soils that have soil properties or characteristics that occur at a deeper depth than currently identified for an established taxonomic subgroup or soil properties that effect interpretations not currently recognized at the subgroup level. The phases which have been identified in the UAE include: anhydritic, aquic, calcic, gypsic, lithic, petrocalcic, petrogypsic, salic, salidic, shelly, and sodic.

Typic Haplosalids are the Haplosalids that do not have a calcic, gypsic, or petrogypsic horizon or a duripan with an upper boundary within 100 cm of the soil surface. Before 1994, these soils were identified as Torriorthents if a salic horizon was the only diagnostic horizon. In the United States, these soils occur in California.

Haplosalids are the Salids that have a high concentration of salts but do not have the saturation that is associated with the Aquisalids. Haplosalids may be saturated for shorter periods than Aquisalids, may have had a water table associated with a past climate, or a water table that occurs below 100 cm. In the Four Corners area of the United States, salic horizons have formed without the influence of a water table in saline parent materials.

Salids are most common in depressions (playas) in the deserts or in closed basins in the wetter areas bordering the deserts. In North Africa and in the Near East, such depressions are referred to as Sabkhas or Chotts, depending on the presence or absence of surface water for prolonged periods. Under the arid environment and hot temperatures, accumulation of salts commonly occurs when there is a supply of salts and a net upward movement of water in the soils. In some areas a salic horizon has formed in salty parent materials without the presence of ground water. The most common form of salt is sodium chloride (halite), but sulfates (thenardite, mirabilite, and hexahydrite) and other salts may also occur. The concept of Salids is one of accumulation of an excessive amount of salts that are more soluble than gypsum. This is implicit in the definition, which requires a minimum absolute EC of 30 dS/m in 1:1 extract (about 2 percent salt) and a product of EC and thickness of at least 900. As a rule, Salids are unsuitable for agricultural use, unless the salts are leached out. Leaching the salts is an expensive undertaking, particularly if there is no natural outlet for the drainage water. Two great groups are recognized—Aquisalids, which are saturated with water for 1 month or more during the year, and Haplosalids, which are drier.

For more information about describing soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_052523...

For additional information about soil classification using Soil Taxonomy, visit:

sites.google.com/site/dinpuithai/Home

For more information about soil classification using the UAE Keys to Soil Taxonomy, visit:

agrifs.ir/sites/default/files/United%20Arab%20Emirates%20...

Soil profile: A representative soil profile of the Hazleton series; the State Soil of Pennsylvania.

Landscape: A wooded area of Hazleton channery sandy loam, 8 to 25 percent slopes, extremely stony. Hazleton soils developed in residuum from sandstone and are found on summits, shoulders, and the upper third of backslopes. (Soil Survey of Clinton County, Pennsylvania; by Joseph J. Eckenrode, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

The selection of Hazleton as the official state soil began in 1995 when the Pennsylvania Association of Professional Soil Scientists (PAPSS) and the Pennsylvania Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) collaborated on efforts to prepare for the National Soil Survey Centennial Celebration in 1999. Pennsylvania’s Soil Survey Centennial was celebrated in 2000 based on the first soil survey published in 1900 for “The Lancaster Area”. In order to increase awareness of our most important natural resource, many states developed plans to designate state soils as part of the centennial celebration.

The Hazleton series consists of deep and very deep, well drained soils formed in residuum of acid gray, brown or red sandstone on uplands. Slope ranges from 0 to 80 percent. Permeability is moderately rapid to rapid. Mean annual precipitation is about 48 inches. Mean annual air temperature is about 51 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, siliceous, active, mesic Typic Dystrudepts

Solum thickness ranges from 25 to 50 inches. Depth to lithic contact ranges from 40 to 80 inches . Rock fragments of angular sandstone, dominantly less than 10 inches in size, range from 5 to 70 percent in individual horizons of the solum and from 35 to 80 percent in the C horizon. Boulders, stones, flags and channers cover about 5 to 60 percent of the surface of some pedons. The control section averages less than 18 percent clay. Reaction ranges from strongly acid through extremely acid throughout where unlimed.

USE AND VEGETATION: Most Hazleton soils are in woodland of mixed oaks, maple, cherry and occasional conifers. Some areas have been cleared for pasture and cropland.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia and possibly Ohio. MLRA's 124, 126, 127, 147, 148. The series is of large extent; over 2 million acres

For additional information about this state soil, visit:

www.soils4teachers.org/files/s4t/k12outreach/pa-state-soi...

For more information about the soil survey area, visit;

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/pennsylvania/P...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/H/HAZLETON.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#hazleton

Soil profile: A representative soil profile of Chemehuevi soil in an area of Chemehuevi-Carrizo-Riverbend complex, 2 to

30 percent slopes. series. (Interim Report for the Soil Survey of Chemehuevi Wash Off-Highway Vehicle Area, California; by Leon Lato, Carrie-Ann Houdeshell, and Heath McAllister, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

Landscape: Typical area of a Chemehuevi soil. Chemehuevi soils are on fan remnants. Slopes range from 2 to 8 percent. These soils formed in alluvium from granite, gneiss, and schist. Elevations range from approximately 145 to 540 meters (about 475 to 1,800 feet). The climate is arid with hot, dry summers and warm, dry winters.

The Chemehuevi series consists of very deep, well drained soils. The mean annual precipitation is about 100 millimeters (about 4 inches) and the mean annual temperature is about 23 degrees C (about 73 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, hyperthermic Typic Haplocalcids

Soil moisture control section: usually dry throughout, rarely moist in some part during summer or winter. The soils have a typic-aridic soil moisture regime.

Soil temperature: 25 to 28 degrees C (about 77 to 83 degrees F).

Depth to calcic horizon: 3 to 25 centimeters.

Organic matter: 0 to 0.5 percent.

Control section -

Rock fragments: averages 35 to 60 percent, mainly fine and medium gravel.

Clay content: averages 8 to 12 percent, ranges from 6 to 12 percent in the upper part and 2 to 8 percent in the lower part.

USE AND VEGETATION: Chemehuevi soils are used for recreation and wildlife habitat. Overland flow for Chemehuevi soils ultimately drains into Lake Havasu. The present vegetation is mainly creosote bush, plantain, spiny turkshead, and burrobush.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Lower Colorado Desert of southeastern California, U.S.A.;MLRA 31. These soils are of small extent. The name is derived from Chemehuevi Wash located in the eastern portion of the Mojave Desert, west of the Chemehuevi Indian Reservation and Colorado River.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/california/CA6...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/C/CHEMEHUEVI.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#chemehuevi

Soil profile: A representative soil profile of the Mazarn soil series. (Soil Survey of Montgomery County, Arkansas; by Jeffrey W. Olson, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

Landscape: An area of Mazarn silt loam, 0 to 3 percent slopes, in the middle ground and Sherless-Littlefir complex, 1 to 8 percent slopes, in the foreground and background. These soils are well suited to pasture and hayland. (Soil Survey of Pike County, Arkansas; by Jeffrey W. Olson, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

The Mazarn series consists of moderately deep, somewhat poorly drained, moderately slowly permeable soils that formed in loamy sediments from shale, siltstone and sandstone. These soils are adjacent to small, upland drains and intermittent streams in the Ouachita Mountains; MLRA 119. Slopes range from 0 to 3 percent. Mean annual temperature is about 62 degrees F., and mean annual precipitation is about 52 inches.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, siliceous, semiactive, thermic Aquic Hapludults

Solum thickness and depth to weathered, shale bedrock ranges from 20 to 40 inches. Reaction is strongly acid or very strongly acid throughout.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used mainly for pasture and woodland. The native vegetation was mixed hardwoods and pine.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas. The series is of small extent.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/arkansas/AR097...

and...

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/arkansas/pikeA...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/M/MAZARN.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#mazarn

Quarries are an example of an anthropogenic landform.

An anthropogenic landform is a discrete, human-made “landform” on the Earth’s surface or in shallow water that has an internal composition of unconsolidated earthy, organic, human-transported materials, or rock. It typically has straight line boundaries or geometric shape. It is the direct result of human manipulation or activities. It can be mapped at common soil survey scales, such as order 2 (> 1:10,000 to < 1:24,000). Anthropogenic landforms can originate from deposition (e.g., an artificial levee) or removal.

Soil Survey Manual, Ag. Handbook 18, 2017, (p. 39).

Soil profile: Chilicotal very gravelly fine sandy loam in an area of Chilicotal very gravelly fine sandy loam, 1 to 8 percent slopes. Rock fragments comprise more than 35 percent of the 10- to 40-inch control section.

Landscape: A healthy plant community, about one year after a prescribed fire, of black grama, Texas prickly pear, and skeletonleaf goldeneye occupy this area of Chilicotal very gravelly fine sandy loam, 1 to 8 percent slopes. Abundant summer precipitation following the fire allowed the vegetation to recover. Some mortality of pricklypear is evident in the foreground. Rock outcrop-Brewster complex, 20 to 70 percent slopes, is mapped on the Chisos Mountains in the background. (Cover of Soil Survey of Big Bend National Park, Texas; by James Gordon, Soil Scientist, James A. Douglass, Soil Scientist, and Dr. Lynn E. Loomis, Soil Scientist, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

The Chilicotal series consists of very deep, well drained, moderately permeable soils that formed in loamy gravelly piedmont sediments from igneous mountains. These soils are on gently undulating to strongly rolling fan remnants and alluvial fans. Slopes range from 1 to 50 percent.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, thermic Ustic Haplocalcids

USE AND VEGETATION: Livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. Grasses in most areas are mainly chino grama, slim tridens, black grama, and threeawns with woody vegetation of lechuguilla, creosotebush, skeletonleaf goldeneye, catclaw, sotol, yucca, and ceniza.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: West Texas in MLRA 42. The series is of moderate extent.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/texas/bigbendT...

For a detailed description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/C/CHILICOTAL.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#chilicotal

Anhyorthel Landscape, Wright Valley, Antarctica — Antarctica averages less than 150 mm (6 inches) of annual precipitation, making it the driest and coldest continent on earth. Dry valleys such as the one shown here may receive less than 50 mm (2 inches) of annual precipitation. As a result, the soils contain very little moisture and are characterized by dry permafrost — the soil material is loose rather than ice-cemented. (Image courtesy of Dr. Megan Balks, University of Waikato, NZ) (Notes and photo downloaded from: www.uidaho.edu/cals/soil-orders/gelisols)

For more information about Dr. Balks and her research, visit;

nzsss.science.org.nz/megan-balks/

Anhyorthels are the Orthels that have anhydrous conditions. They often have dry permafrost (i.e., insufficient moisture for interstitial ice to occur). The cold deserts commonly receive less than 30 mm of annual precipitation. These soils support little or no vegetation. These soils are limited in extent but are known to occur in continental Antarctica, the High Arctic (northern Greenland and Ellesmere Island), and the cold, dry mountains of Eurasia at elevations of more than 3,700 m.

Orthels are the Gelisols that show little or no evidence of cryoturbation and are the second most abundant suborder of Gelisols. These soils occur primarily within the zone of widespread permafrost or in areas of coarse textured materials in the continuous zone of permafrost. Orthels are generally drier than Turbels and Histels. They occur in the southern Andes and the high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere.

For additional information about U.S. Soil Taxonomy, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/soils/survey/cla...

Note: The left side of the profile is dry colors; the right side has been moistened.

A representative soil profile of the Southwick series in Washington State. Soil color on the left side of the profile is dry, whereas color on the right side is moist. (Soil Survey of Spokane County, Washington; by Scott H. Bare, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

Note: The Southwick soils in this survey area are a taxadjunct to the series because the upper part has properties that meet the criteria for the Vitrandic subgroup. They formed in loess with an influence of volcanic ash in the upper part over older loess. This difference, however, does not significantly affect the use, management, and interpretations of the soils

Landscape: These soil are on loess hills in the Columbia basalt plateau. They are dominantly used as cropland of wheat, barley, peas, hay, pasture, and for timber production.

Slope--3 to 40 percent; dominantly north-facing slopes

Parent material--recent loess over older loess

Mean annual precipitation--about 585 mm

Mean annual air temperature--about 8 degrees C

Depth class--very deep

Drainage class--moderately well drained

Soil moisture regime--xeric

Soil temperature regime--mesic

Soil moisture subclass--oxyaquic

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Oxyaquic Argixerolls

Note: The classification of this series was changed from fine-silty, mixed, mesic Boralfic Argixerolls to fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Oxyaquic Argixerolls based on the latest revision to Soil Taxonomy. This pedon does not meet the criteria for the aquic subgroup based on the absence of redoximorphic depletions (zones with chroma less than that of matrix) within a depth of 75 cm of the mineral soil surface. The Btxb horizon is not currently considered to meet the criteria for a fragipan, but further study is needed.

Depth to diagnostic horizons and other features are measured from the top of the first mineral layer.

Thickness of mollic epipedon--40 to 75 cm

Depth to argillic horizon--70 to 100 cm

Moisture control section--dry 45 to 60 consecutive days late in summer and early in fall

Mean annual soil temperature--8 to 12 degrees C

Content of clay in particle-size control section (weighted average)--24 to 35 percent

An Oi horizon is in some pedons.

USE AND VEGETATION:

Use--dominantly wheat, barley, peas, hay, pasture, and timber production

Natural vegetation--ponderosa pine, common snowberry, white spirea, rose

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Idaho; MLRA 9; moderate extent

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/washington/spo...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/S/SOUTHWICK.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#southwick

A representative soil profile of the Pittstown series. (Photo provided by Mark Stolt University of Rhode Island's Dept. of Natural Resources Science; New England Soil Profiles)

These soils are moderately well drained and formed in loamy dense till derived primarily from carboniferous rocks and minerals dominated by sandstone, slate, schist, phyllite, and shale. The dark colored till is due to the high carbon contained in minerals within the parent rocks. The dark colors of the soil causes some difficulty to determine the depth to estimated average seasonal high water table. Pittstown soils are in a catena with well drained Newport soils, poorly drained Stissting soils and very poorly drained Mansfield soils. These soils are mapped primarily in the Narragansett Basin and in the Boston Basin in southern New England.

The Pittstown series formed in lodgement till derived mainly from slate, phyllite, shale, and schist. These soils are very deep to bedrock and moderately deep to a densic contact. They are nearly level through moderately steep soils on uplands. Slope ranges from 0 through 25 percent. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high or high in the mineral solum and moderately low or moderately high in the substratum. Mean annual temperature is about 49 degrees F. (9 degrees C.), and mean annual precipitation is about 45 inches (1143 millimeters).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, active, mesic Aquic Dystrudepts

Thickness of the mineral solum and depth to dense substratum ranges from 20 through 30 inches (50 through 76 centimeters), but the range currently includes 15 through 30 inches (38 through 76 centimeters). The solum in the fine earth fraction is silt loam, loam, or very fine sandy loam with more than 65 percent silt plus very fine sand. Rock fragments consist of dark phyllite, slate, and schist. Rock fragments, by volume, larger than 10 inches range from 0 through 20 percent in the surface and 0 through 5 percent in the subsoil and substratum. 3 through 10 inch size fragments range from 0 through 15 percent in surface, 0 through 10 percent in the subsoil, and 0 through 15 percent in the substratum. Fragments less than 3 inches range from 5 through 25 percent in the surface, 5 through 25 percent in the subsoil, and 15 through 30 percent in the substratum. The soil, below the A or Ap horizon and above a depth of 30 inches (76 centimeters), is very strongly acid through moderately acid where not limed, and ranges from very strongly acid through slightly acid below a depth of 30 inches (76 centimeters).

USE AND VEGETATION: Mostly forested. Cleared areas are used for growing hay and pasture in support of dairy farming. Principal trees are northern red, white and scarlet oak, red and sugar maple, gray and yellow birch, white ash, eastern white pine, and eastern hemlock.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Glaciated uplands in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, and eastern New York. MLRA 144A. The series is of moderate extent, estimated to be about 125,000 acres.

For additional information about New England soils, visit:

nesoil.com/images/images.htm

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/P/PITTSTOWN.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#pittstown

Soil profile: A representative soil profile of the Whipple series in an area of Stormjade-Whipple complex, 8 to 50 percent slopes. (Interim Report for the Soil Survey of Chemehuevi Wash Off-Highway Vehicle Area, California; by Leon Lato, Carrie-Ann Houdeshell, and Heath McAllister, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

Landscape: Typical area of a Whipple soil. Whipple soils are on backslopes of hills. Slopes range from 8 to 50 percent. These soils formed in residuum and colluvium from granite. Elevations are 390 to 490 meters (1280 to 1600 feet). The climate is arid with hot, dry summers and warm, dry winters.

The Whipple series consists of very shallow and shallow, somewhat excessively drained soils. The mean annual precipitation is about 100 millimeters (4 inches) and the mean annual air temperature is about 24 degrees C (75 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, hyperthermic Lithic Haplargids

Soil moisture control section: usually dry throughout, rarely moist in some part during summer or winter. The soils have a typic-aridic soil moisture regime.

Soil temperature: 22 to 26.7 degrees C (72 to 80 degrees ).

Depth to argillic horizon: 2 to 4 centimeters.

Depth to bedrock: 13 to 36 centimeters.

Control section - Clay content: averages 12 to 18 percent.

USE AND VEGETATION: Whipple soils are used for recreation and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly burrobush, brittlebush and creosote bush.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Colorado Desert of southeastern California, U.S.A.; MLRA 31. These soils are of small extent.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/california/CA6...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/W/WHIPPLE.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#whipple

A representative soil profile of the Orelia fine sandy loam, 0 to 1 percent slopes. The lighter colors below a depth of about 46 cm are influenced by lime or calcium carbonate. Soil Survey of Goliad County, Texas; by Jonathan K. Wiedenfeld, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

The Orelia series consists of very deep, well drained, slowly permeable soils that formed in loamy fluviomarine deposits of Pleistocene age. These nearly level soils are on flats on coast plains. Slope ranges from 0 to 3 percent. Mean annual air temperature is about 21 degrees C (71 degrees F), and mean annual precipitation is about 737 mm (29 in).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, mixed, superactive, hyperthermic Typic Argiustolls

Soil Moisture: An ustic soil moisture regime. The soil moisture control section is 10 to 30 cm (4 to 12 in). These soils remain dry in the soil moisture control section for more than 90 cumulative days. The dry period occurs from January to April and in July to August.

Mean annual soil temperature: 22.2 to 23.4 degrees C (72 to 74 degrees F)

Depth to argillic horizon: 8 to 30 cm (3 to 12 in)

Depth to secondary calcium carbonate: 46 to 86 cm (18 to 34 in)

USE AND VEGETATION: The dominant land use is crop production, livestock grazing, and wildlife habitat. Crops grown include cotton, grain sorghum, and corn with a few areas used for vegetables. Some areas are used for livestock grazing. Native vegetation consists of curlymesquite, feather bluestem, fourflower, trichloris, grassbur, threeawn, mesquite trees, blackbrush, spiny hackberry, pricklypear, and tasajillo. (Ecological site name: Loamy Prairie 28-40" PZ; Ecological site number: R150AY535TX)

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Gulf Coast Prairies (MLRA 150A in LRR T) on the coastal plain of southern Texas. The series is extensive.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/texas/goliadTX...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/O/ORELIA.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#orelia

Soil profile: Laidig soil in an area of Laidig channery loam, 3 to 15 percent slopes, rubbly. A fragipan (a dense subsurface horizon that restricts water flow and root penetration) begins at a depth of about 122 centimeters. (Soil Survey of New River Gorge National River, West Virginia by Wendy Noll and James Bell, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

Landscape: Laidig soils are on middle and lower slopes. Slopes are mostly 8 to 55 percent but range from 0 to 55 percent. Laidig soils formed in loamy colluvium, 6 or more feet thick, derived largely from acid gray sandstone with small amounts of siltstone and shale of the adjacent uplands. Most areas are forested. Red, white, and chestnut oaks are the most common trees with some sugar maple, beech, and hemlock. A relatively small acreage of these soils is cleared and used for cropland or pasture.

Map Unit Setting

Major land resource area (MLRA): 127—Eastern Allegheny Plateau and Mountains

Landscape: Mountains

Elevation: 473 to 962 meters

Mean annual precipitation: 1,034 to 1,289 millimeters

Mean annual air temperature: 5 to 17 degrees C

Frost-free period: 141 to 190 days

Map Unit Composition

Laidig and similar soils: 70 percent

Dissimilar minor components: 30 percent

Soil Classification: Fine-loamy, siliceous, semiactive, mesic Typic Fragiudults

Setting

Landform: Mountain slopes

Landform position (two-dimensional): Footslope

Landform position (three-dimensional): Mountain base

Down-slope shape: Linear and concave

Across-slope shape: Concave and linear

Aspect (representative): Southwest

Aspect range: All aspects

Slope range: 3 to 15 percent

Parent material: Rubbly colluvium derived from interbedded sedimentary rock

Properties and Qualities

Depth to restrictive feature: 76 to 127 centimeters to fragipan

Shrink-swell potential: Low (about 1.2 LEP)

Salinity maximum based on representative value: Nonsaline

Sodicity maximum: Not sodic

Calcium carbonate equivalent percent: No carbonates

Hydrologic Properties

Slowest capacity to transmit water (Ksat ): Moderately low

Natural drainage class: Well drained

Flooding frequency: None

Ponding frequency: None

Seasonal water table (depth, kind): About 76 to 117 centimeters; perched (see

table 24)

Available water capacity (entire profile): Very high (about 23.4 centimeters)

Interpretive Groups

Land capability subclass (nonirrigated areas): 7s

West Virginia grassland suitability group (WVGSG): Very Rocky, Acid Soils (RA3)

Dominant vegetation map class(es):

Oak - Hickory Forest

Disturbed Area

Eastern Hemlock - Sweet Birch - Tuliptree / Great Laurel Forest

Deciduous Tree / Great Laurel Forest

Hydric soil status: No

Hydrologic soil group: C

Representative Profile

Oi—0 to 2 centimeters; stony slightly decomposed plant material

A—2 to 9 centimeters; gravelly highly organic loam

A/B—9 to 19 centimeters; gravelly loam

Bt1—19 to 80 centimeters; gravelly loam

Bt2—80 to 122 centimeters; gravelly loam

Btx—122 to 200 centimeters; gravelly loam

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/L/LAIDIG.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#laidig

The view looking east from the Canyon Rim Visitor Center Overlook. Layland-Dekalb-Rock outcrop complex, 55 to 80 percent slopes, extremely stony is the dominant detailed soil map unit on the steep slopes of the New River Gorge in this

area.

New River Gorge National River is located in parts of Fayette, Raleigh, and Summers Counties, West Virginia. Established as part of the National Park Service in 1978, the park encompasses more than 70,000 acres of land along the New River and extends along the New River from Hinton, West Virginia, north to Hawks Nest State Park near Anstead, West Virginia, a distance of 53 miles (84.8 kilometers). New River Gorge National River is rich in cultural and natural history and offers an abundance of scenic and recreational opportunities. The New River is a rugged, whitewater river that flows northward through deep canyons. It is one of the oldest rivers on the continent.

A soil survey is a detailed report on the soils of an area. The soil survey has maps with soil boundaries and photos, descriptions, and tables of soil properties and features. Soil surveys are used by farmers, real estate agents, land use planners, engineers and others who desire information about the soil resource.

For more information, visit:

archive.org/details/usda-soil-survey-of-new-river-gorge-n...

Profile of a La Tea soil in an area of La Tea-Limestone outcrop complex, 20 to 60 percent slopes. La Tea soils are characterized by a surface layer of very cobbly clay and a subsurface layer of gravelly clay over hard, unweathered limestone bedrock from the Cretaceous period. They are in the udic soil moisture regime. (Soil Survey of San Germán Area, Puerto Rico by Jorge L. Lugo-Camacho, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

The La Tea series consists of shallow, well drained, slowly permeable soils on summits and side slopes of limestone hills and mountains of the Humid Mountains and Valleys MLRA of southern Puerto Rico. They formed in material that weathered from limestone bedrock. Near the type location, the mean annual temperature is about 77 degrees F., and the mean annual precipitation is about 75 inches. Slopes range from 20 to 60 percent.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Clayey, vermiculitic, isohyperthermic, shallow Typic Argiudolls

Depth to a lithic contact with limestone bedrock ranges from 14 to 20 inches. The upper few inches of the limestone bedrock is highly fractured in most pedons. Reaction ranges from slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline throughout the profile. Rock fragments include pebbles, cobbles, and stones composed of limestone. The combined total of rock fragments in the control section is less than 35 percent, by volume. Soil Survey of San Germán Area, Puerto Rico By Jorge L. Lugo-Camacho, Natural Resources Conservation Service

USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas of La Tea soils are used for forestland or for wildlife. The vegetation consists of Flamboyant, Turpentine, White cedar and White manjack trees.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Summits and side slopes of the humid limestone hills and mountains of southern Puerto Rico. This series is of small extent.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/puerto_rico/PR...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/L/LA_TEA.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#la%20tea

A representative soil profile of a coarse-loamy, mixed, active, frigid Oxyaquic Dystrudept. (Photo and initial observations courtesy of Stan Buol, NCSU.)

Although the gray color of the glacial till below 60 cm may suggest saturation and reduction the ground water table is deep and the soil is considered well drained. Permeability is moderate above the dense till but slow below 46 cm causing short term saturation but no evidence of reduction therefore the Oxyaquic subgroup classification.

_______________________________

The Lanesboro series consists of well drained soils on glaciated uplands. They are moderately deep to a densic contact and very deep to bedrock. They formed in till derived mainly from dark gray phyllite, shale, slate, or schist. Slope ranges from 0 to 45 percent. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high or high in the solum and low to moderately high in the substratum. The mean annual temperature is about 46 degrees F. and the mean annual precipitation is about 45 inches.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, active, frigid Oxyaquic Dystrudepts

A--0 to 2 inches; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) loam; weak fine granular structure; friable; many fine and medium roots; 10 percent phyllite channers; strongly acid; abrupt smooth boundary. (0 to 5 inches thick)

Bw1--2 to 8 inches; dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) channery silt loam; weak fine granular structure; friable; many fine and medium roots; 15 percent phyllite channers and 5 percent flagstones; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary. (3 to 10 inches thick)

Bw2--8 to 15 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) channery silt loam; weak fine granular structure; friable; many fine and common medium roots; 15 percent phyllite channers and 5 percent flagstones; strongly acid; clear smooth boundary. (5 to 12 inches thick)

Bw3--15 to 19 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) channery silt loam; moderate medium granular structure; friable; many fine and few medium roots; 20 percent phyllite channers and 5 percent flagstones; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 6 inches thick)

Bw4--19 to 29 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) very channery loam; weak medium subangular blocky structure; friable; common fine and medium roots; 25 percent phyllite channers and 10 percent flagstones; moderately acid; clear smooth boundary. (0 to 12 inches thick)

Cd--29 to 65 inches; light olive brown (2.5Y 5/3) very channery loam; weak thin platy structure; firm; 35 percent phyllite channers and 10 percent flagstones; common fine prominent strong brown (7.5YR 5/6) and common fine distinct brown (7.5YR 4/4) redoximorphic concentrations; moderately acid.

TYPE LOCATION: Berkshire County, Massachusetts; town of Lanesborough, 10 feet east of trail and 400 feet north of old foundation at a point about mile west of Silver Street on road which is located about mile north of power line. USGS Stephentown Center quadrangle, latitude 42 degrees 31 minutes 59 seconds N. and longitude 73 degrees 16 minutes 11 seconds W., NAD 27.

Dystrudepts are the acid Udepts of humid and perhumid regions. They developed mostly in late-Pleistocene or Holocene deposits. Some developed on older, steeply sloping surfaces. The parent materials generally are acid, moderately or weakly consolidated sedimentary or metamorphic rocks or acid sediments. A few of the soils formed in saprolite derived from igneous rocks. The vegetation was mostly deciduous trees. Most of the Dystrudepts that formed in alluvium are now cultivated, and many of the other Dystrudepts are used as pasture. The normal horizon sequence in Dystrudepts is an ochric epipedon over a cambic horizon. Some of the steeper Dystrudepts have a shallow densic, lithic, or paralithic contact. Dystrudepts are extensive in the United States. They are mostly in the Eastern and Southern States.

For more information about the soil series, visit;

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/osdname.aspx

For more information about the series extent and associated data, visit;

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#lanesboro

For more information about describing soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_052523...

For additional information about soil classification using Soil Taxonomy, visit:

sites.google.com/site/dinpuithai/Home

Soil Profile: Guanajibo gravelly sandy clay loam, 2 to 12 percent slopes. Guanajibo soils are characterized by a surface layer of gravelly sandy clay loam, clayey subsurface layers, and a content of plinthite of 5 percent or more. They are in the udic soil moisture regime.

Landscape: Naturalized pastureland in an area of Guanajibo gravelly sandy clay loam, 2 to 12 percent slopes. (Soil Survey of San Germán Area, Puerto Rico; by Jorge L. Lugo-Camacho, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

Setting

Landscape: Coastal plains

Landform: Coastal terraces and alluvial fans

Major uses: Naturalized pastureland

Elevation: 15 to 165 feet

Composition

Guanajibo and similar soils: 90 percent

Dissimilar soils: 10 percent

Typical Profile

Surface layer:

0 to 10 inches—very dark reddish brown gravelly sandy clay loam

Subsoil:

10 to 21 inches—strong brown clay that has red mottles

21 to 37 inches—strong brown clay that has plinthite and red mottles

37 to 63 inches—mottled light olive brown, pale yellow, dark red, strong brown, and brown clay that has plinthite

Minor Components

Dissimilar:

• Delicias soils, which do not have plinthite in the subsoil and are in the higher positions

Soil Properties and Qualities

Depth class: Very deep

Depth to bedrock: More than 80 inches

Parent material: Fine-textured sediments of mixed origin

Surface runoff: Low or medium

Drainage class: Well drained

Permeability: Moderate

Available water capacity: Very high

Seasonal high water table: None within a depth of 80 inches

Flooding: None

Hazard of water erosion: Low or moderate

Rock fragments in the surface layer: 0 to 30 percent, by volume, pebbles

Shrink-swell potential: Low

Natural fertility: Moderate

Content of organic matter in the surface layer: Moderate to high

Reaction: Very strongly acid or strongly acid throughout

Land Use

Dominant uses: Naturalized pastureland

Other uses: Pasture; urban development

Agricultural Development

Cropland

Suitability: Well suited

Commonly grown crops: Sugar cane

Management concerns: Slope

Management measures and considerations:

• Using a resource management system that includes terraces and diversions, stripcropping, contour tillage, no-till planting, and crop residue management reduces the hazard of erosion, helps to control surface runoff, and maximizes rainfall infiltration.

• Applying lime and fertilizer on the basis of soil testing increases the availability of nutrients to plants and maximizes productivity.

Pasture and hayland

Suitability: Well suited

Commonly grown crops: African star grass; guineagrass; pangola grass

Management concerns: Slope

Management measures and considerations:

• Using rotational grazing and implementing a well planned schedule of clipping and harvesting help to maintain the pasture and increase productivity.

• Applying lime and fertilizer on the basis of soil testing increases the availability of nutrients to plants and maximizes productivity during the establishment, maintenance, or renovation of hayland and pasture.

• Overgrazed pastures should be reestablished and then protected from further overgrazing.

Naturalized pastureland

Suitability: Well suited

Commonly grown crops: Guineagrass

Management concerns: Slope

Management measures and considerations:

• Applying lime and fertilizer on the basis of soil testing increases the availability of nutrients to plants and maximizes productivity during the establishment, maintenance, or renovation of pasture.

• Overgrazed areas should be reestablished and then protected from further overgrazing.

Interpretive Group

Land capability classification: IVe

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/puerto_rico/PR...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/G/GUANAJIBO.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#guanajibo

Craggey soils are abruptly underlain by hard felsic to mafic, igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks.

Lithic contact is the boundary between soil and a coherent underlying material such as bedrock. Except in Ruptic-Lithic subgroups, the underlying material must be virtually continuous within the limits of a pedon. Cracks that can be penetrated by roots are few, and their horizontal spacing is 10 cm or more. The underlying material must be sufficiently coherent when moist to make hand-digging with a spade impractical, although the material may be chipped or scraped with a spade. The material below a lithic contact must be in a strongly cemented or more cemented rupture-resistance class. Commonly, the material is indurated. The underlying material considered here does not include diagnostic soil horizons, such as a duripan or a petrocalcic horizon.

A lithic contact is diagnostic at the subgroup level if it is within 125 cm of the mineral soil surface in Oxisols and within 50 cm of the mineral soil surface in all other mineral soils. In Gelisols composed mainly of organic soil materials, the lithic contact is diagnostic at the subgroup level if it is within 50 cm of the soil surface in Folistels or within 100 cm of the soil surface in Fibristels, Hemistels, and Sapristels. In Histosols the lithic contact must be at the lower boundary of the control section to be recognized at the subgroup level.

For more information about describing and sampling soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/field...

or Chapter 3 of the Soil Survey manual:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2022-09/The-Soil-Su...

For additional information on "How to Use the Field Book for Describing and Sampling Soils" (video reference), visit:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_hQaXV7MpM

For additional information about soil classification using USDA-NRCS Soil Taxonomy, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/keys-...

or;

www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/soil-...

A representative soil profile of the Lakewood series. These excessively drained soils formed in sandy fluviomarine sediments. They are on flats and knolls. (Soil Survey of Cumberland County, New Jersey; by Lenore Matula Vasilas, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

DEPTH CLASS: Very deep

DRAINAGE CLASS: Excessively drained

PERMEABILITY: Rapid

SURFACE RUNOFF: Slow to rapid

PARENT MATERIAL: Sandy marine sediments

SLOPE: 0 to 25 percent

MEAN ANNUAL AIR TEMPERATURE (type location): 56 degrees F.

MEAN ANNUAL PRECIPITATION (type location): 44 inches

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Mesic, coated Spodic Quartzipsamments

Solum Thickness: 30 to 50 inches

Depth to Bedrock: Greater than 60 inches

Depth to Seasonal High Water Table: Greater than 60 inches

Rock Fragments: 0 to 15 percent, by volume in the A, E, and B horizons and 0 to 30 percent in the C horizon, mostly gravel

Soil Reaction: Extremely acid to very strongly acid throughout the profile, unless limed

MAJOR USES: Dominantly woodland

VEGETATION: Wooded areas are dominantly pitch pine, black oak, and white oak. Where wildfires have been severe the trees are dwarfed, growing less than 5 feet tall and consist primarily of pitch pine, scrub oak, and blackjack oak.

DISTRIBUTION: New Jersey and possibly Maryland

EXTENT: Large

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/new_jersey/NJ0...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/L/LAKEWOOD.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#lakewood

Dig It! The Secrets of Soil. Get the dirt on dirt – one of the most valuable resources on Earth. Soils are crucial to our everyday lives, storing carbon, filtering water, growing plants, and so much more. Discover a whole new world beneath your feet. The Secrets of Soil exhibit from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. This exhibit was on display at the Museum from July 18, 2008, through Jan 10, 2010.

For more soil related images, visit:

www.flickr.com/photos/soilscience/sets/72157622983226139/

A soil profile of Acove loamy sand, 1 to 5 percent slopes. These soils are moderately deep, well drained with a sandy loam surface and clayey subsoil. There is a characteristic stone line within the profile at approximately 15 to 19 inches (38 to 48 cm). (Soil Survey of Mason County, Texas; by Julia A. McCormick, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

The Acove series consists of soils that are moderately deep to paralithic sandstone bedrock. These well drained soils formed in loamy residuum derived from sandstone of Cambrian age. These nearly level to strongly sloping soils are on shoulders and summits of ridges on dissected plateaus of the Central Basin. Slope ranges from 0 to 12 percent. Mean annual air temperature is about 19 degrees C (67 degrees F), and mean annual precipitation is about 686 mm (27 in).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, mixed, active, thermic Typic Haplustalfs

Depth to paralithic contact: 61 to 100 cm (24 to 40 in)

Solum thickness: 61 to 100 cm (24 to 40 in)

USE AND VEGETATION: Used mostly for rangeland. Some areas are used for growing peanuts, small grains, and grain sorghums. Native vegetation is sideoats grama, fall witchgrass, threeawn, sand dropseed, and little bluestem. Scattered trees include post oak, mesquite, prickly ash, and hackberry.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southwest Plateaus and Plains Range and Cotton Region, LRR-I. MLRA 82A-Texas Central Basin. The series is of moderate extent.

www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/10/7/708#:~:text=As%20established%....

Story Range is located south of the Demilitarized Zone. The range has been used for about 30 years. U.S. forces use Story Range about 75 percent of the time, with South Korean soldiers using the balance. The range is used for mortar, grenade, mine, anti-tank missile and artillery practice. Story Range is the smallest impact area used by the US Army. Multiple targets are in a 500m X 500m area less than 1 km from the southern edge of the DMZ.

South Korean farmers see the range as valuable soil, frequently planting crops near the range, despite warnings to stay away. The range is a typical example of how South Korea's population has encroached on once-rural training areas.

In 1996 and 1998, unexploded ordnance killed two Korean civilians who had entered the range to look for scrap metal. We were there in August of 1997 conducting a Natural Resource Survey for 8th Army.

Unexploded munitions and live-fire exercises make the area very dangerous. Unexploded ordnance in that area presents a very real and significant danger to anyone walking in the impact area. This danger is greatly amplified if someone is planting or harvesting crops (or digging excavations to identify soils).

The South Korean Army supervises farming. Farmers must have a pass to cross any of the three bridges, guarded by South Korean soldiers, leading to the range. Normally, range control officials and Army explosive ordnance disposal teams would clear munitions from the impact area annually. But the impact area at Story Range is swampy, and teams can only look for duds on the surface. Additionally, the entire area just south of the DMZ is rife with mines. Many are newer mines laid by the South Korean Army as part of the DMZ defense. But there are unmarked mine fields, and monsoon rains shift mines around. Korean contractors and 8th Army personnel have uncovered about 30 mines while putting in fence posts.

In June 2001, USFK and the South Korean Defense Ministry agreed to put a fence around the range by January 2004. USFK lobbied the South Korean government to allow fencing of the entire range more quickly so no one is hurt. To protect the farmers, USFK has erected a three-strand barbed wire fence with metal gates and posted danger signs, in English and Korean, to clearly mark the impact area. USFK erected a barbed-wire fence after farmers ignored warning signs in English and Korean to stay out of the impact area. The barbed-wire fence angered farmers, but they continued in 2001 to raise crops on other sections of the range.

A Typic Haplogypsid, petrogypsic from the interior of the UAE.

Typic Haplogypsids are the Haplogypsids that do not have have a gypsic horizon with its upper boundary within 18 cm of the soil surface. These soils do not have a lithic contact within 50 cm of the soil surface. In the United States they occur in Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico.

The gypsic horizon is a horizon in which gypsum has accumulated or been transformed to a significant extent (secondary gypsum (CaSO 4) has accumulated through more than 150 mm of soil, so that this horizon contains at least 5% more gypsum than the underlying horizon). It typically occurs as a subsurface horizon, but it may occur at the surface in some soils.

This pedon has a petrogypsic horizon at a depth of 100 to 200 cm (130 cm in this pedon) and is identified as a "phase" in classification. In the UAE soil classification system, phases of soil taxa have been developed for those mineral soils that have soil properties or characteristics that occur at a deeper depth than currently identified for an established taxonomic subgroup or soil properties that effect interpretations not currently recognized at the subgroup level. The phases which have been identified in the UAE include: anhydritic, aquic, calcic, gypsic, lithic, petrocalcic, petrogypsic, salic, salidic, shelly, and sodic.

The petrogypsic horizon is a horizon in which visible secondary gypsum has accumulated or has been transformed. The horizon is cemented (i.e., extremely weakly through indurated cementation classes), and the cementation is both laterally continuous and root limiting, even when the soil is moist. Th e horizon typically occurs as a subsurface horizon, but it may occur at the surface in some soils.

Haplogypsids are the Gypsids that have no petrogypsic, natric, argillic, or calcic horizon that has an upper boundary within 100 cm of the soil surface. Some Haplogypsids have a cambic horizon overlying the gypsic horizon. These soils are commonly very pale in color. They are not extensive in the United States. The largest concentrations in the United States are in New Mexico and Texas. The soils are more common in other parts of the world.

Gypsids are the Aridisols that have a gypsic or petrogypsic horizon within 100 cm of the soil surface. Accumulation of gypsum takes place initially as crystal aggregates in the voids of the soils. These aggregates grow by accretion, displacing the enclosing soil material. When the gypsic horizon occurs as a cemented impermeable layer, it is recognized as the petrogypsic horizon. Each of these forms of gypsum accumulation implies processes in the soils, and each presents a constraint to soil use. One of the largest constraints is dissolution of the gypsum, which plays havoc with structures, roads, and irrigation delivery systems. The presence of one or more of these horizons, with or without other diagnostic horizons, defines the great groups of the Gypsids. Gypsids occur in Iraq, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Somalia, West Asia, and some of the most arid areas of the western part of the United States. Gypsids are on many segments of the landscape. Some of them have calcic or related horizons that overlie the gypsic horizon.

For more information about describing soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_052523...

For additional information about soil classification using Soil Taxonomy, visit:

sites.google.com/site/dinpuithai/Home

For more information about soil classification using the UAE Keys to Soil Taxonomy, visit:

agrifs.ir/sites/default/files/United%20Arab%20Emirates%20...

Kaolin clay is derived from the mineral Kaolinite which comes from the Earth’s crust. It is a hydrous aluminum silicate formed by the decomposition of minerals such as feldspar. The mineral Kaolinite, also referred to as Kaolinite clay, is a layered silicate mineral and is soft, earthy, and usually white in color, produced by the chemical weathering of aluminum silicate minerals. Rocks that are rich in Kaolinite are also known as Kaolin or China Clay. This means the terms Kaolin clay and Kaolinite clay can be used interchangeably.

Kaolinite is a common clay that has a variety of uses. Because of its low shrink-swell potential, kaolinite is used for making ceramics, bricks, and tile. It is also the source of white pigment in paper, light bulbs, and paint and an active ingredient in digestive medicines.

For more information about describing and sampling soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/field...

or Chapter 3 of the Soil Survey manual:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2022-09/The-Soil-Su...

For additional information on "How to Use the Field Book for Describing and Sampling Soils" (video reference), visit:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_hQaXV7MpM

For additional information about soil classification using USDA-NRCS Soil Taxonomy, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/keys-...

or;

www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/guides-and-instructions/soil-...

www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/10/7/708#:~:text=As%20established%....

Story Range is located two miles south of the Demilitarized Zone. The range has been used for about 30 years. U.S. forces use Story Range about 75 percent of the time, with South Korean soldiers using the balance. The range is used for mortar, grenade, mine, anti-tank missile and artillery practice. Story Range is the smallest impact area used by the US Army. Multiple targets are in a 500m X 500m area less than 1 km from the southern edge of the DMZ.

Rice production in South Korea is important for the food supply in the country, with rice being a common part of the Korean diet. In 2009, South Korea produced 3,899,036 metric tonnes (4,297,951 tons) of rice. Camp Casey sits in between the South Korean capital of Seoul and the Demilitarized Zone.

South Korean farmers see the range as valuable soil, frequently planting crops near the range, despite warnings to stay away. The range is a typical example of how South Korea's population has encroached on once-rural training areas.

In 1996 and 1998, unexploded ordnance killed two Korean civilians who had entered the range to look for scrap metal. Unexploded munitions and live-fire exercises make the area dangerous. Unexploded ordnance in that area presents a very real and significant danger to anyone walking in the impact area. This danger is greatly amplified if someone is planting or harvesting crops.

The South Korean Army supervises farming. Farmers must have a pass to cross any of the three bridges, guarded by South Korean soldiers, leading to the range. Normally, range control officials and Army explosive ordnance disposal teams would clear munitions from the impact area annually. But the impact area at Story Range is swampy, and teams can only look for duds on the surface. Additionally, the entire area just south of the DMZ is rife with mines. Many are newer mines laid by the South Korean Army as part of the DMZ defense. But there are unmarked mine fields, and monsoon rains shift mines around. Korean contractors and 8th Army personnel have uncovered about 30 mines while putting in fence posts.

In June 2001, USFK and the South Korean Defense Ministry agreed to put a fence around the range by January 2004. USFK lobbied the South Korean government to allow fencing of the entire range more quickly so no one is hurt. To protect the farmers, USFK has erected a three-strand barbed wire fence with metal gates and posted danger signs, in English and Korean, to clearly mark the impact area. USFK erected a barbed-wire fence after farmers ignored warning signs in English and Korean to stay out of the impact area. The barbed-wire fence angered farmers, but they continued in 2001 to raise crops on other sections of the range.

www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/story.htm

A representative soil profile of the Acorph series. (Soil Survey of Lassen Volcanic National Park, California; by Andrew E. Conlin, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

The Acroph series consists of shallow, well drained soils that formed in tephra over residuum from andesite, dacite and rhyodacite. Acroph soils are on scoured glacial-valley walls and floors and roche moutenees in the southern Cascade mountains. Slopes range from 5 to 80 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 107 inches (2718 mm) and the mean annual temperature is about 40 degrees F (5 degrees C).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Ashy-skeletal, glassy Lithic Vitricryands

Depth to restrictive feature: Lithic contact 10 to 20 inches (25 to 51 cm).

Mean annual soil temperature: 38 to 42 degrees F (3 to 6 degrees C).

Mean summer soil temperature: 43 to 46 degrees F (6 to 8 degrees C).

Soil moisture control section is dry: July to October (about 90 days).

Particle-size control section (thickest part): 2 to 5 percent clay, and 35 to 62 percent rock fragments.

Surface fragments: 5 to 66 percent gravel, 3 to 15 percent cobbles, 2 to 6 percent stones, and 2 to 5 percent boulders.

USE AND VEGETATION: This soil is used for wildlife habitat, recreation, ecosystem management and watershed. Vegetation is pinemat manzanita, California red fir, western white pine, and mountain hemlock.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: The soils are inextensive and are mapped in MLRA: 22B, Southern Cascade Mountains.

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/A/ACROPH.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#acroph

A representative soil profile of Sinbul soil (loamy-skeletal, Typic Haplumbrept) from the MPRC (Multi-Purpose Range Complex) in South Korea.

MPRC also known as Rodriguez Range at Yeongpyeong-ri, north of Pocheon, South Korea supports units of the 2nd Infantry Division for helicopter, Bradley Fighting Vehicle, M1 Abrams tank, artillery, mortor, and close air support training. The image is illustration 3.25 from the Planning Level Survey, 8th US Army Korea (1998). The primary purpose of planning level surveys are to ensure Army activities and natural resources conservation measures on mission land are integrated and consistent with federal stewardship requirements and host nation agreements.

Sinbul soils are in valleys on stream and river terraces. Elevation ranges from about 0 to 100 meters. The native vegetation consists of mixed deciduous hardwoods. The soils formed in old alluvial from mixed igneous and metamorphic rocks.

Soils classified as Typic Haplumbrepts have been revised to Humic Dystrudepts with the latest revision of Soil Taxonomy. These soils have an umbric or mollic epipedon that is less than 50 cm thick. They are otherwise like the soils of the Typic subgroup. Humic Dystrudepts are moderately extensive in the United States. They are widely distributed but are concentrated in the mountains of the Eastern and Northwestern States. The native vegetation consists mostly of mixed forest. Most of these soils are used as forest. Many of the less sloping soils have been cleared and are used as cropland or pasture.

For more information about Korea soil series, visit:

soil.rda.go.kr/eng/series/series.jsp

A representative soil profile of Chemehuevi soil in an area of Chemehuevi-Carrizo-Riverbend complex, 2 to

30 percent slopes. series. (Interim Report for the Soil Survey of Chemehuevi Wash Off-Highway Vehicle Area, California; by Leon Lato, Carrie-Ann Houdeshell, and Heath McAllister, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

The Chemehuevi series consists of very deep, well drained soils. Chemehuevi soils are on fan remnants. Slopes range from 2 to 8 percent. These soils formed in alluvium from granite, gneiss, and schist. Elevations range from approximately 145 to 540 meters (about 475 to 1,800 feet). The climate is arid with hot, dry summers and warm, dry winters. The mean annual precipitation is about 100 millimeters (about 4 inches) and the mean annual temperature is about 23 degrees C (about 73 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, hyperthermic Typic Haplocalcids

Soil moisture control section: usually dry throughout, rarely moist in some part during summer or winter. The soils have a typic-aridic soil moisture regime.

Soil temperature: 25 to 28 degrees C (about 77 to 83 degrees F).

Depth to calcic horizon: 3 to 25 centimeters.

Organic matter: 0 to 0.5 percent.

Control section -

Rock fragments: averages 35 to 60 percent, mainly fine and medium gravel.

Clay content: averages 8 to 12 percent, ranges from 6 to 12 percent in the upper part and 2 to 8 percent in the lower part.

USE AND VEGETATION: Chemehuevi soils are used for recreation and wildlife habitat. Overland flow for Chemehuevi soils ultimately drains into Lake Havasu. The present vegetation is mainly creosote bush, plantain, spiny turkshead, and burrobush.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Lower Colorado Desert of southeastern California, U.S.A.;MLRA 31. These soils are of small extent. The name is derived from Chemehuevi Wash located in the eastern portion of the Mojave Desert, west of the Chemehuevi Indian Reservation and Colorado River.

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/california/CA6...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/C/CHEMEHUEVI.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#chemehuevi

Soil profile: A representative soil profile of the Tifton series. (Soil Survey of Webster County, Georgia; by Scott Moore, Alfred Green, and Jerry Pilkinton, Natural Resources Conservation Service)

Landscape: Peanuts in an area of Tifton sandy loam. Most areas of Tifton soils are under cultivation with cotton, corn, peanuts, vegetable crops, and small grains.

The Tifton series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in loamy marine sediments. Tifton soils are on interfluves. Slopes range from 0 to 8 percent. Mean annual temperature is about 18 degrees C (64 degrees F), and the mean annual precipitation is about 1360 millimeters (53 inches).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-loamy, kaolinitic, thermic Plinthic Kandiudults

Plinthite: Depth to horizons with 5 percent or more plinthite is dominantly 76 to 127 centimeters (30 to 50 inches), but in some pedons it is 63 centimeters (25 inches).

Silt content is less than 20 percent.

Depth to Redox features: Predominantly greater than 102 centimeters (40 inches), but some pedons have iron depletions below a depth of 76 centimeters (30 inches).

USE AND VEGETATION:

Most areas of Tifton soils are under cultivation with cotton, corn, peanuts, vegetable crops, and small grains. Some areas are in pasture and forestland. The forested areas consist largely of longleaf pine, loblolly pine, slash pine with some scattered hardwoods on cutover areas.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:

Major Land Resource Area (MLRA): The series occurs primarily in the Southern Coastal Plain (MLRA 133A), but it also occurs to a lesser extent in the Atlantic Coast Flatwoods (MLRA 153A).

Extent: large extent

For additional information about the survey area, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/georgia/GA087/...

For a detailed soil description, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/georgia/webste...

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#tifton

The soils in the foreground are dominantly in the Winona series. The Winona series consists of very shallow and shallow, well drained soils that formed in eolian deposits over alluvium from limestone and calcareous sandstone. Winona soils are on plateaus and hills and have slopes of 0 to 70 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 11 inches and the mean annual air temperature is about 52 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, carbonatic, mesic Lithic Ustic Haplocalcids

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. Vegetation is blue grama, black grama, needleandthread, galleta, sand and spike dropseed, hairy grama, muttongrass, bottlebrush, squirreltail, alkali sacaton, winterfat, bigelow sage, fourwing saltbush, cliffrose, juniper and pinyon pine.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Arizona and west central New Mexico.

For a detailed soil description, visit:

soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/W/WINONA.html

For acreage and geographic distribution, visit:

casoilresource.lawr.ucdavis.edu/see/#winona

Soils in the mid-ground are typically Lithic Ustic Torriorthents. Lithic Ustic Torriorthents have more available moisture than Lithic Torriorthents during summer or, if located in the Tropics, during the rainy seasons. They are moist in some or all parts of the moisture control section for more than one-fourth of the time (cumulative) when the soil temperature at a depth of 50 cm exceeds 5 oC. They have a shallow or very shallow lithic contact, which limits the moisture-storage capacity. Consequently, the soils commonly are associated with the Ustalfs and Ustolls on more stable surfaces. Lithic Ustic Torriorthents are of moderate extent in the United States. They are used mostly for winter or spring grazing.

Torriorthents are the dry Orthents of cool to hot, arid regions. They have an aridic (or torric) moisture regime and a temperature regime warmer than cryic. Generally, they are neutral or calcareous and are on moderate to very steep slopes. A few are on gentle slopes. Many of the gently sloping soils are on rock pediments, are very shallow, have a sandy-skeletal particle-size class, or are salty. Others are on fans where sediments are recent but have little organic carbon. The vegetation on Torriorthents commonly is sparse and consists mostly of xerophytic shrubs and ephemeral grasses and forbs. They are extensive in the Western United States.

For additional information about soil classification using Soil Taxonomy, visit:

sites.google.com/site/dinpuithai/Home

For more information about describing soils using the USDA-Field Book for Describing and Sampling Soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_052523...

In the background is Humphreys Peak, the highest point in Arizona at 12,633 feet and one of the most scenic viewpoints in the San Francisco Peaks. On clear days hikers can see the Grand Canyon from the summit. The alpine forest trail is located just north of Flagstaff. This is a strenuous rocky trail with over 3,000 feet elevation gain. Humphreys Trail is open year round but snow can make the hike difficult during the winter months. Humphrey's Peak is a 9.2 mile moderately trafficked out and back trail located near Flagstaff, Arizona that features beautiful wild flowers and is only recommended for very experienced adventurers. The trail offers a number of activity options and is accessible year-round.

A Salidic Petrogypsid from the interior of the UAE.

Salidic Petrogypsids are the Petrogypsids that have an ECe of more than 8 to less than 30 dS m −1 in a layer 10 cm or more thick, within 100 cm of the soil surface (UAE Keys to Soil Taxonomy). The "salidic" subgroup in Petrogypsids is not currently recognized in Soil Taxonomy.

Petrogypsids are the Gypsids that have a petrogypsic horizon that has its upper boundary within 100 cm of the soil surface. These soils occur in very arid areas of the world where the parent material is high in content of gypsum. When the petrogypsic horizon is close to the surface, crusting forms pseudohexagonal patterns on the soil surface. Petrogypsids occupy old surfaces. In Syria and Iraq, they are on the highest terraces along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. These soils are not extensive in the United States but are extensive in other countries.

The petrogypsic horizon is a horizon in which visible secondary gypsum has accumulated or has been transformed. The horizon is cemented (i.e., extremely weakly cemented through indurated cementation classes), and the cementation is both laterally continuous and root limiting, even when the soil is moist. The horizon typically occurs as a subsurface horizon, but it may occur at the surface in some soils (foreground).

Gypsids are the Aridisols that have a gypsic or petrogypsic horizon within 100 cm of the soil surface. Accumulation of gypsum takes place initially as crystal aggregates in the voids of the soils. These aggregates grow by accretion, displacing the enclosing soil material. When the gypsic horizon occurs as a cemented impermeable layer, it is recognized as the petrogypsic horizon. Each of these forms of gypsum accumulation implies processes in the soils, and each presents a constraint to soil use. One of the largest constraints is dissolution of the gypsum, which plays havoc with structures, roads, and irrigation delivery systems. The presence of one or more of these horizons, with or without other diagnostic horizons, defines the great groups of the Gypsids. Gypsids occur in Iraq, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Somalia, West Asia, and some of the most arid areas of the western part of the United States. Gypsids are on many segments of the landscape. Some of them have calcic or related horizons that overlie the gypsic horizon.

For more information about describing soils, visit:

www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs142p2_052523...

For additional information about soil classification using Soil Taxonomy, visit:

sites.google.com/site/dinpuithai/Home

For more information about soil classification using the UAE Keys to Soil Taxonomy, visit:

agrifs.ir/sites/default/files/United%20Arab%20Emirates%20...