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A soil layer is a zone in the soil, approximately parallel to the soil surface, with properties different from layers above and/or below it. If at least one of these properties is the result of soil-forming processes, the layer is called a soil horizon. In the following, the term layer is used to indicate the possibility that soil-forming ...
These horizons are distinguishable from adjacent layers by their changes in morphological properties as the soil naturally forms. The same soil horizons may be named and labeled differently in various soil classification systems around the world, though most systems contain the following: Diagram of soil horizons
Soil structure describes the arrangement of the solid parts of the soil and of the pore spaces located between them (Marshall & Holmes, 1979). [1] Aggregation is the result of the interaction of soil particles through rearrangement, flocculation and cementation.
Subsoil layer. Subsoil is the layer of soil under the topsoil on the surface of the ground. Like topsoil, it is composed of a variable mixture of small particles such as sand, silt and clay, but with a much lower percentage of organic matter and humus. The subsoil is labeled the B Horizon in most soil mapping systems.
A catena in soil science is a series of distinct but co-evolving soils arrayed down a slope. [1] Each soil type or "facet" differs somewhat from its neighbours, but all occur in the same climate and on the same underlying parent material. A mature catena is in equilibrium as the processes of deposition and erosion are in balance.
[8] [9] Soil horizons are layers parallel to the soil surface whose physical, chemical and biological characteristics differ from the layers above and beneath. The depth of the topsoil layer is measured as the depth of the surface to the first densely packed soil layer, known as subsoil .
The process of soil formation is dominated by chemical weathering of silicate minerals, aided by acidic products of pioneering plants and organisms as well as carbonic acid inputs from the atmosphere. Carbonic acid is produced in the atmosphere and soil layers through the carbonation reaction. [4]
The type and amount of precipitation influence soil formation by affecting the movement of ions and particles through the soil, and aid in the development of different soil profiles. Soil profiles are more distinct in wet and cool climates, where organic materials may accumulate, than in wet and warm climates, where organic materials are ...