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Interspersed Salt‐Affected and Unaffected Dryland Soils of the Lower Rio Grande Valley: II. Occurrence of Salinity in Relation to Infiltration Rates and Profile Characteristics
Author(s) -
Wiegand C. L.,
Lyles Leon,
Carter D. L.
Publication year - 1966
Publication title -
soil science society of america journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.836
H-Index - 168
eISSN - 1435-0661
pISSN - 0361-5995
DOI - 10.2136/sssaj1966.03615995003000010035x
Subject(s) - salinity , infiltration (hvac) , surface runoff , soil water , soil salinity , hydrology (agriculture) , dryland salinity , soil science , water table , soil horizon , saturation (graph theory) , geology , environmental science , groundwater , geotechnical engineering , soil fertility , ecology , oceanography , physics , mathematics , combinatorics , soil biodiversity , biology , thermodynamics
Thirteen variables including chemical and physical characteristics, topographical features, and water table depth measurements were statistically analyzed for differences between seven saline and adjacent nonsaline soil profiles of Lower Rio Grande Valley salt‐affected dryland soils. Cumulative intake and final intake rate, electrical conductivity of soil saturation extract, exchangeable sodium percentage, clay percentage, relative elevation, sand percentage, soil surface slope, and cation‐exchange capacity were the variables most consistently different between saline and nonsaline soils. Profile salinity and water intake were both significantly correlated with profile sand and clay content and with soil surface elevation, In addition water infiltration was a function of profile salinity. Consideration of the effects of clay content, ground surface elevation, and soil slope on the processes of runoff and infiltration lead to the conclusion that the observed salinity pattern is due to differential infiltration of rainfall which results in differences in leaching between saline and nonsaline areas.