SOILS

Objectives:
1.To discuss the factors affecting
the formation of soil and
2.To classify the soil profile based
from its components.

Weathering and Soil

Page 1

Soil
Unconsolidated surface layer of mineral and
organic matter produced when weathering and
biological activity gradually alter the uppermost
layer of regolith.

Highland soil in Ecuador.

Weathering and Soil

Image courtesy of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Page 2

There are
thousands of
different soils
throughout the
world.
Five important
factors influence
the specific soil
that develops.

1. PARENT MATERIAL - This refers to the minerals and

organic materials present during the soils formation.
Materials from volcanoes, sediment transported by wind,
water, or glaciers are some examples.
2. CLIMATE - The climate of a particular region can have a
major influence on the rate of soil formation. Weathering
processes like the cycles of freezing and thawing, along
with wetting and drying vary with each region.
3. LIVING ORGANISMS- Both plants and animals help
create soil. As they die, organic matter incorporates with
weathered parent material and becomes part of the soil.
The actions of moles, earthworms, bacteria, fungi, and
round worms mix and enrich the soil.
4

4. TOPOGRAPHY - The slope or hilliness of a region can

have a major influence on the moisture and erosion of
soils. In many regions, moist, poorly drained soils are
located in low areas. Drier, well drained soils are often
found in sloping hillsides. Erosion is often a problem here
and can lead to lose of topsoil.
5. TIME - It takes hundreds of years to form one inch of soil
from parent material. Only the top few centimeters are
productive in the sense of being able to sustain plant
growth. This is why soil conservation is so important.

Weathering and Soil

Page 5

Soil Profile

Vertical sequence of soil layers

(horizons):
O (ORGANIC LAYER)Leaf litter and
humus.
A (TOPSOIL) - most productive layer;
conservation efforts are focused
here; usually loose and crumbly
A1 Mineral grains and humus.
A2Intensely leached sand or silt.
B (SUBSOIL)Iron and aluminum
oxides, clay, calcium minerals. ;
lighter in color, dense, and low in
organic matter
C (TRANSITION)Weathered parent
material; almost completely void of
organic matter
Weathering and Soil

O-horizon
A1-horizon
A2-horizon
B-horizon

C-horizon

Image copyright Bruce Molnia, Terra Photographics, courtesy of

Earth Science World Image Bank.

Page 6

Bedrock
Below the C
horizon the
unweathered
bedrock will be
found.

Leaching
Dissolution and removal of
organic and mineral matter.
Caused by percolating
rainwater.
Leached material moves
from the surface zone (Zone
of Leaching) to a lower zone
(Zone of Accumulation).

Weathering and Soil

Zone of Leaching
Zone of Accumulation

Zone of Weathering

Image copyright Bruce Molnia, Terra Photographics, courtesy of

Earth Science World Image Bank.

Page 8

Pedalfer
Type of soil that forms in
humid, temperate
environments.
Organic-rich, with welldefined horizons.

O-horizon
A-horizons

B-horizon

C-horizon

Weathering and Soil

Image courtesy of U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Page 9

Pedocal
Forms in arid or semiarid
areas.
Relatively thin, with little
organic matter.

No O-horizon

A-horizons

B-horizon

C-horizon

Weathering and Soil

Image courtesy of U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Page 10

Caliche
Solid mass of calcite-cemented regolith.
Precipitates from near-surface water.

Caliche cap rock, Mojave National

Preserve, California.

Weathering and Soil

Caliche layers with vertical solution

pipes, Robben Island, South Africa.

Left-hand image courtesy of U.S. Geological Survey.

Right-hand image courtesy of David Reid, University of
Cape Town.

Page 11

Laterite
Formed in moist tropical
areas.
Residuum of insoluble iron
and aluminum oxides, and
often quartz.
May harden to stone when
exposed to air and sunlight.

O-horizon

A-horizons

No B-horizon
C-horizon

Profile of a lateritic soil from

Kerala State, India.
Weathering and Soil

Image courtesy of U.S. Agency for International Development.

Page 12

Durability of Laterite

Angkor Wat, Cambodia, first half of 12th century.

Weathering and Soil

Image copyright Andy Brouwer.

Page 13