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Prairie‐Forest Transition Soils of the South Dakota Black Hills
Author(s) -
White E. M.,
Johnson J. R.,
Nichols J. T.
Publication year - 1969
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/sssaj1969.03615995003300060038x
Subject(s) - soil water , silt , grassland , horizon , geology , environmental science , hydrology (agriculture) , soil science , ecology , geomorphology , biology , physics , geotechnical engineering , astronomy
Soils with at least weak development from prairie areas in the Black Hills Ponderosa pine forest have horizon differentiation that is more characteristic of forest than grassland soils. The lower A horizon contains more sand, but less clay and silt, and has more exchangeable hydrogen than is characteristic of prairie soils in western South Dakota. The platy or nearly structureless lower A horizons and the B horizons with reddish‐colored blocky structure are similar to those of the adjacent forested soils and probably developed under forest. Thus, the soils in the grasslands apparently were suitable for forest in the past and probably are not a factor in causing the prairie today.