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Soils of a Grassland‐Forest Ecotone in Eastern Nebraska
Author(s) -
AlBarrak Saad,
Lewis David T.
Publication year - 1978
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/sssaj1978.03615995004200020027x
Subject(s) - soil water , gleysol , geology , mollisol , deciduous , udic moisture regime , grassland , ecotone , horizon , weathering , soil science , environmental science , hydrology (agriculture) , geomorphology , ecology , shrub , biology , physics , geotechnical engineering , astronomy , loam
In Otoe County, in eastern Nebraska, loessal soils on very steep slopes along the bluffs of the valley of the Missouri River exhibit weakly developed characteristics that are often associated with soils formed under deciduous forests. While these soils are Mollisols and show the dominant effects of the prairie, they have superimposed on the Mollisol characteristics what appear to be effects of having existed under forests for some time. In spite of the fact that these soils are on very steep slopes, they appear to be more highly weathered than adjacent soils on the divides. Evidence of this weathering includes a weakly developed A2 horizon and an argillic horizon, discontinuous cutans in the argillic horizon, gray coatings on ped surfaces to a depth of over 120 cm, and a much deeper solum than nearby soils within the Marshall and Monona Soil Series that show none of the above characteristics. Data suggest that the soils on the bluffs accumulate more moisture than those on the divides. The additional moisture, plus the effects of the forest may be the factors that are related to the differences in morphology.