Rendzina (rędzina) – Soil of the Year 2018 in Poland. Introduction to origin, classification and land use of rendzinas

Abstract

Following the other pedological societies, the Soil Science Society of Poland has launched a programme „Soil of the Year”, and Rędzina (Rendzina) was selected as the soil inaugurating the programme in 2018. Polish term „rędzina” was internationally popularized by Stanisław Miklaszewski in the second/third decade of 20th century and is present in the most soil classification systems as „Rendzina”, „Rendoll”, or „Rendzic” until now. In the Polish tradition, the rendzinas are soils developed from massive rocks rich in calcite, dolomite or gypsum, quite often with admixtures of glacial/periglacial materials, at all development stages. Contemporary classifications of soils in Poland distinguish four main groups (as the types or sub-types): raw rendzina – Calcaric Lithic / Hyperskeletic Leptosols (a minimal thickness of regolith and an initial development of genetic horizons), proper rendzina – Calcaric Leptosols (medium thick profile, but diagnostic horizons are absent), brown rendzina – Calcaric Skeletic Cambisols (have a diagnostic cambic horizon), and chernozemic/humic rendzina – Rendzic Skeletic Phaeozems (have a diagnostic mollic horizon). Rendzina soils are featured by high content of calcium/magnesium, neutral and alkaline reaction, and high base saturation throughout the soil profile, but the individual soil subtypes differ significantly in their usability for agriculture and forestry, depending on the thickness of the soil profile (i.e. a depth to the hard rock or extremely skeletal subsoil), stoniness, texture, and humus content.

Keywords

• rendzina
• Rendoll
• Rendzic
• soil origin
• soil classification
• soil functions