Handbook of Soil Genesis and Classification

Description

Soil is the upper weathered layer of the earth’s crust. It is a dynamic entity which is always undergoing physical, chemical and biological changes. Soils develop from parent material by various weathering processes. Organic matter accumulation, decomposition, and humification are as critically important to soil formation as weathering. Key soil forming processes especially important to macro-scale patterns of soil formation are: Laterization, Podsolization, Calcification, Salinization, Gleization. This book is an unparalleled resource on soil formation and classification. This text contains multiple soil profiles and includes information on new classification systems and emerging technologies and databases. This classic textbook explains the function and use of soils, soil formation and categorization, and details how this dynamic natural entity evolves from natural factors and processes and interfaces with ecosystems and human endeavors. This comprehensive work covers the diverse needs of soil science instructors, majors, minors, and graduate students, and serves as an outstanding reference for soil scientists, agricultural and natural resources engineers and economists, and others in related fields such as ecology, natural resources, and land use and planning. This text will be a must have reference for all those in soil science and related fields.