Clay-illuvial soils in the Polish and international soil classifications

Abstract

Soil with a clay-illuvial subsurface horizon are the most widespread soil type in Poland and significantly differ in morphology and properties developed under variable environmental conditions. Despite the long history of investigations, the rules of classification and cartography of clay-illuvial soils have been permanently discussed and modified. The distinction of clay-illuvial soils into three soil types, introduced to the Polish soil classification in 2011, has been criticized as excessively extended, non-coherent with the other parts and rules of the classification, hard to introduce in soil cartography and poorly correlated with the international soil classifications. One type of clay-illuvial soils (“gleby płowe”) was justified and recommended to reintroduce in soil classification in Poland, as well as 10 soil subtypes listed in a hierarchical order. The subtypes may be combined if the soil has diagnostic features of more than one soil subtypes. Clear rules of soil name generalization (reduction of subtype number for one soil) were suggested for soil cartography on various scales. One of the most important among the distinguished soil sub-types are the “eroded” or “truncated” clay-illuvial soils.

Keywords

• soils systematics
• soil classification
• soil cartography
• clay-illuvial soils
• argic