histosol

histosol
/his"teuh sawl', -sol'/, n.
a worldwide soil type rich in organic matter, as peat, esp. prevalent in wet, poorly drained areas.
[1970-75; HISTO- + -SOL]

* * *

▪ FAO soil group
 one of the 30 soil groups in the classification system of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) (soil). Histosols are low-density, acidic soils with a high proportion of organic material. Formed mainly in cold climates and under waterlogged conditions, they are the most common soil in northern Finland, in western Scotland, in central Canada, and east of the Urals in Russia. They also occur in the bogs (bog) and swamps (swamp) of Ireland, Angola, Bangladesh, and Guyana. Histosols are estimated to cover just over 2.5 percent of the continental land area on Earth, 80 percent of this in cold or boreal climatic zones. Their agricultural use is limited by cold climate, waterlogging, and low fertility.

      Histosols are technically characterized by organic materials whose cumulative thickness makes up at least half of the upper 80 cm (about 2 feet) of the soil profile. They are identified as fibric if the organic materials show little or no decomposition and as terric if the organic materials are highly decomposed, dark in colour, and not conducive to drainage. They are similar in all respects to the Histosol order of the U.S. Soil Taxonomy.

soil
 one of the 12 soil orders in the U.S. Soil Taxonomy (soil). Histosols are formed under waterlogged conditions typical of peat bogs (bog), moors (moor), and swamps (swamp). Under such conditions, the accumulated tissues of dead plants and animals and their decomposition products are preserved, resulting in soils of high organic content. After drainage for agricultural use (particularly vegetable crops and cranberries), the organic material is prone to oxidation, leading to fire hazards as well as subsidence. Sphagnum and other types of fibrous material are extracted from Histosols for use in horticulture and as fuel. Larger areas of these soils have been managed for flood control, water purification, and wildlife preservation. Histosols occupy less than 2 percent of the nonpolar continental land area on Earth, mostly in Canada, Russia, and Scandinavia. They are characterized by at least 12 to 18 percent organic carbon by mass (depending on the clay content) if occasionally waterlogged or by at least 20 percent organic carbon by mass if never waterlogged.

      Horizons (horizon) (layers) similar to those in other orders of the U.S. Soil Taxonomy are not usually observed. Layers are identified as fibrous (or peat) if they contain mostly fibre, hemic (or mucky peat) if they contain mostly decomposing fibre, or sapric (or muck) if they contain little or no undecomposed fibre.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Histosol — Als Histosol bezeichnet man gemäß der USDA Bodenklassifikation stark kohlenstoffhaltige Böden wie zum Beispiel Torf. Sie kommen hauptsächlich auf der Nordhalbkugel der Erde vor und finden sich vor allem in Regionen mit kaltnassem Klima in… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Histosol — Histosol. Histos=tejido Histosol es un tipo de suelo según la clasificación de la WRB (Word Reference Base for Soil Resources, de FAO), caracterizado por ser fuertemente orgánico, incluso turboso. Posee una elevada fertilidad, con el único… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Histosol — In both the FAO soil classification and the USA soil taxonomy, a histosol is a soil comprised primarily of organic materials. They are defined as containing at least 20 percent organic material to a depth of 40 centimetres. Typically, histosols… …   Wikipedia

  • histosol — noun A soil comprised primarily of organic materials. Syn: organosol …   Wiktionary

  • Histosol — His|to|sol der; [s] <zu ↑histo... u. lat. solum »Boden«> mit organischen Stoffen stark angereicherter Boden …   Das große Fremdwörterbuch

  • histosol — /his teuh sawl , sol /, n. a worldwide soil type rich in organic matter, as peat, esp. prevalent in wet, poorly drained areas. [1970 75; HISTO + SOL] …   Useful english dictionary

  • Referentiel pedologique francais — Référentiel pédologique français Le référentiel pédologique français est un ouvrage réalisé par l Association Française pour l Étude du Sol et l INRA. Sommaire : Haut A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Référentiel pédologique français — Le référentiel pédologique français est un ouvrage réalisé par l Association française pour l étude du sol et l INRA. Sommaire : Haut A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z A …   Wikipédia en Français

  • World Reference Base — Die World Reference Base for Soil Resources (Abkürzung WRB) ist eine Bodenklassifikation, die als internationales Kommunikationsmittel für den Fachbereich Boden geschaffen wurde. Sie ist mehr oder weniger weltweit gültig, um Informationen über… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Clasificación de suelos — Colores de suelos. La clasificación de suelos es una categorización sistemática de suelos basado en características distintivas y en criterios de uso. Una clasificación de suelos es muy dinámica, en si mismo de la estructura del sistema, a las… …   Wikipedia Español

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”