Reference soil Cuba 12: Ferralsol

CU012

Ferralsols occur in tropical and subtropical regions of the world, mainly on old and stable land surfaces.

Characteristics

Soils having a ferralic horizon (strongly weathered horizon with low-activity clays and very low amounts of weatherable minerals) between 25 and 200 cm from the soil surface. They lack a nitic horizon (a horizon with strongly developed, nut-shaped structure) and do not have a layer which fulfils the requirements of an argic horizon and which has, in the upper 30 cm, 10 percent or more water-dispersible clay.

Distribution of Ferralsols (rough estimation supplied by soilgrids)

Reference soil CU012: Ferralsols

Short field description: Very deep, well drained, strong brown, clay loam. Well structured, with diffuse boundaries, porous ferromanganese concretions. Geology: Jurasic higher, oxfordiano and tithoniano: limestones, marbles. Geomorphology: tectonic-lithological low mountain. The monolith was taken in a small area (40 cm x 40 cm), surrounded by coffee and degraded forest.

Classification

WRB 2006

WRB 1998

Pisoplinthic- Ferralsol (Epidystric Xanthic)

Xanthic- Ferralsol

21-160 cm	ferralic horizon
48-160 cm	pisoplinthic horizon

0-48 cm	ochric horizon
48-160 cm	ferralic horizon

FAO-UNESCO-ISRIC 1988

FAO-UNESCO-ISRIC 1974

Xanthi-Ferralic Cambisol skeletic

Xanthic Ferralsol petric

0-48 cm	ochric A horizon
48-160 cm	cambic B horizon
- cm	cambic B horizon
- cm	ochric A horizon
-	ferralic

0-48 cm	ochric A horizon
48-160 cm	oxic B horizon
-	ferralic
-	weatherable minerals

Local classification:	Ferralitico rojo amarillo lix.

Other classification

USDA-SCS (1975)

Dystropept udic clayey mixed isohyperthermic

Physical characteristics

Particle size distribution

Depth (cm)	Gravel % v/v	very coarse sand % w/w	coarse sand % w/w	medium sand % w/w	fine sand % w/w	very fine sand % w/w	Total sand % w/w	coarse silt % w/w	fine silt % w/w	Total silt % w/w	Clay % w/w
0-21	-	5.4	4.9	3.4	4.5	6.4	24.6	38.3	10.2	48.5	26.9
21-48	-	4.5	4.1	2.9	4.2	6.5	22.2	24.7	23.9	48.6	29.1
48-75	-	4.1	4.0	2.9	4.2	6.3	21.5	25.8	22.6	48.4	30.3
75-90	-	2.5	2.8	2.5	3.7	6.3	17.8	28.4	21.4	49.8	32.3
90-118	-	1.6	2.3	1.9	3.3	6.4	15.5	28.6	23.9	52.5	32.0
118-140	-	1.9	2.6	2.0	3.8	7.0	17.3	32.6	23.8	56.4	26.2
140-160	-	2.4	2.7	2.3	3.7	6.9	18	30.4	26.0	56.4	25.6

Water retention characteristics

Depth (cm)	Bulk density kg/dm³	Spec. Surf. Area m²/g	COLE cm/cm	Water disp. clay %	Clay % w/w
0-21	-	-	-	9.0	26.9
10-15	1.420	-	-	-	-
21-48	-	-	-	8.8	29.1
25-30	1.410	-	-	-	-
48-75	-	-	-	2.0	30.3
40-45	1.270	-	-	-	-
75-90	-	-	-	0.9	32.3
90-118	-	-	-	1.8	32.0
118-140	-	-	-	1.5	26.2
140-160	-	-	-	1.4	25.6

Other physical data

Depth (cm)	Bulk density kg/dm³	pF 0 % v/v	pF 1.0 % v/v	pF 1.5 % v/v	pF 2.0 % v/v	pF 2.3 % v/v	pF 2.7 % v/v	pF 3.4 % v/v	pF 4.2 % v/v
10-15	1.420	43.8	41.9	38.4	31.2	29.6	25.3	21.1	16.0
25-30	1.410	38.8	37.3	33.5	30.1	29.2	27.0	20.4	16.0
40-45	1.270	47.1	43.2	36.8	31.4	30.4	27.3	18.4	14.5

Chemical data

Depth (cm)	pH H2O	pHKCl	EC 1: 2.5 dS/m	CaCO3 % w/w	C % w/w	N %	C / N	Exch. Acid cmol(c)/kg	Exch. Al cmol(c)/kg	Ca cmol(c)/kg	Mg cmol(c)/kg	K cmol(c)/kg	Na cmol(c)/kg	Sum Cations cmol(c)/kg
0-21	4.8	4.4	0.10	-	1.04	0.17	6	0.9	0.7	1.0	0.3	0.3	0.0	1.6
21-48	4.6	4.2	0.08	-	0.76	0.14	5	0.7	0.5	1.2	0.3	0.3	0.0	1.8
48-75	5.1	4.5	0.07	-	0.34	0.10	3	0.2	0	1.0	0.3	0.3	0.1	1.7
75-90	5.2	4.3	0.06	-	0.16	0.09	2	0.1	0	1.4	0.3	0.1	0.0	2.1
90-118	5.0	4.6	0.07	-	0.21	0.07	2	0.2	0	1.4	0.3	0.3	0.1	1.8
118-140	4.3	4.1	0.07	-	0.06	0.08	4	0.5	0.2	0.6	0.0	0.1	0.0	1.7
140-160	4.7	4.1	0.06	-	0.33	0.05	1	0.5	0.2	1.2	0.3	0.2	0.0	0.7

Depth (cm)	Base sat. %	CEC soil cmol(c)/kg	CEC clay cmol(c)/kg	CEC org cmol(c)/kg	ECEC cmol(c)/kg	Al sat. %	ESP %
0-21	28	5.7	8	3.6	-	12	0
21-48	34	5.3	9	2.7	-	9	0
48-75	53	3.2	7	1.2	-	0	3
75-90	54	3.4	10	0.6	-	0	3
90-118	53	3.9	9	0.7	-	0	0
118-140	49	2.8	9	0.2	-	6	0
140-160	25	3.5	10	1.2	-	7	0

Clay mineralogy

Depth (cm)	Chlorite	Feldspar	Gibbsite	Goethite	Halloysite	Hematite	Kaolinite	Mica / illite	Mixed-layer	Quartz	Smec	Vermiculite
0-21	-	weak	-	medium to strong	-	-	weak	weak	medium to strong	-	-	-
21-48	-	weak	-	medium to strong	-	-	weak	weak	medium to strong	-	-	-
48-75	-	weak	-	medium to strong	-	-	weak	weak	medium to strong	-	-	-
75-90	-	weak	-	medium to strong	-	-	medium to strong	weak	medium to strong	-	-	-
90-118	-	weak	-	medium to strong	-	-	medium to strong	weak	medium to strong	-	-	-
118-140	-	weak	-	medium to strong	-	-	weak	weak	medium to strong	-	-	-
140-160	-	weak	-	medium to strong	-	-	medium to strong	weak	medium to strong	-	-	-

Profile description

Ap 0-21 cm	strong brown (7.5YR 4/6, moist)clay loam,strong very fine granular and strong medium subangular blocky,firm slightly sticky slightly plastic,no cutans,common very fine pores moderately porous (40-60 vol%),few small spherical soft manganiferous concretions,no fragments,few worm channels,gradual smooth boundary to,
21-48 cm	strong brown (7.5YR 4/6, moist)clay loam,moderate fine subangular blocky,firm sticky slightly plastic,no cutans,few medium pores and common pores moderately porous (40-60 vol%),frequent small spherical soft manganiferous concretions,no fragments,few channels and worm channels,gradual smooth boundary to,
Bto 48-75 cm	strong brown (7.5YR 5/8, moist)clay,moderate medium subangular blocky to weak to moderate fine angular blocky,firm sticky plastic,patchy thin clay and sesquioxide throughout cutans,few medium pores and common pores moderately porous (40-60 vol%),frequent small spherical soft manganiferous nodules,no fragments,few channels,gradual smooth boundary to,
Btc1 75-118 cm	strong brown (7.5YR 5/8, moist)clay,moderate fine and medium angular blocky and moderate medium subangular blocky,very firm sticky plastic,broken moderately thick clay throughout cutans,few very fine pores moderately porous (40-60 vol%),frequent medium spherical soft manganiferous nodules,no fragments,few channels,gradual smooth boundary to,
Btc2 118-160 cm	yellowish brown (10YR 5/8, moist)clay loam,weak to moderate medium angular blocky and weak to moderate medium subangular blocky,firm slightly sticky slightly plastic,patchy thin clay throughout cutans,few very fine pores moderately porous (40-60 vol%),very frequent medium spherical soft manganiferous nodules,no fragments,few channels,

Kind 1 (parent material) ; Parker (eds), 1984	limestone
Mode of accumulation or deposition of parent material	residual material
Remarks on Parent Materials	Upper Jurassic (Oxfordio and Tithoniano) limestone and marble
Soil Depth	150cm
Texture of parent material	clayey

Intensity of the soil erosion type	slight
Soil erosion type	sheet
Slope stability	stable

Major crops	sugar cane
Main type of irrigation; Guidelines for soil description - Fourth edition (FAO, Rome, 2006)	no irrigation
Land use or vegetation in the immediate vicinity of the site	high level arable farming
Status of vegetation; Guidelines for soil description - Fourth edition (FAO, Rome, 2006)	cut over
Major vegetation type; Guidelines for soil description - Fourth edition (FAO, Rome, 2006)	evergreen woodland

Altitude	1140m
Physiographic Unit	mountainous
Physiographic position of the site	lower slope
Regional landform; McDonald, R.C., Isbell, R.F. et all, 1984; Australian soil and land survey Field Handbook, Inkata Press, Melbourne.	intermontane basin
Slope	4%
Form of the slope surrounding the site	undulating
Topography; Guidelines for soil description - Fourth edition (FAO, Rome, 2006)	mountainous

Drainage class ; FAO (2006) - Guidelines for soil description	well
Flooding frequency (FAO, 1986)	never
Depth to groundwater table	400cm
Kind of ground water table (USDA, 1979)	groundwater table observed
Moist From - To	0-160cm
Estimated permeability (class) of least permeable part of the profile	slow
Estimated run off (class)	medium

Evidence of alkali ; Soil Survey Manual USDA, 1951	non-alkaline
Evidence of salt; Soil Survey Manual USDA, 1951	non-saline

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Reference soil Cuba 12: Ferralsol

Characteristics

Reference soil CU012: Ferralsols

Classification