Reference soil Germany 09: Cambisol

DE009

Cambisols occur mainly in the temperate and boreal regions of the world, where the soil’s parent material is still young or where low temperatures slow down the processes of soil formation.

Characteristics

Soils having either a cambic horizon (a horizon showing evidence of alteration with respect to the underlying material), or a mollic horizon overlying a subsoil, which has a base saturation of less than 50 percent in some part within 100 cm from the soil surface, or one of the following diagnostic horizons within the specified depth: an andic, vertic, or vitric horizon starting between 25 and 100 cm; a (petro-)plinthic or salic horizon starting between 50 and 100 cm, in absence of loamy sand or coarser textures above these horizons.

Distribution of Cambisols (rough estimation supplied by soilgrids)

Reference soil DE009: Cambisol

A porous and sandy soil with slight biological activity and low nutrient status, derived from solifluction material of Weichsel glaciation (cherty sand, 110 cm), overlying more clayey glacial sediments, possibly groundmoraine. The surface is covered with an O-layer of coniferous litter, transitional to finely divided organic matter with many roots. Only 25 % of the ground is covered (mosses, Deschampsia flexuosa). There are bleached sand grains in all 3 A horizons. In AB and Bw some large decayed roots appear. (additional climatic data: insolation (hrs))

Classification

WRB 2014
Cambisol

Local classification:	Rosterde

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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
0-5	-	-	-	-	-	-	73.2	15.8	7.1	22.9	4
5-15	-	-	-	-	-	-	72.2	15.6	8.5	24.1	3.7
15-25	-	-	-	-	-	-	71.2	16.3	8.5	24.8	3.7
40-50	-	-	-	-	-	-	70.1	17.8	7.6	25.4	4.5
60-70	-	-	-	-	-	-	77.6	13.1	5.5	18.6	3.4
80-90	-	-	-	-	-	-	83.7	6.7	9.3	16	0.3
110-120	-	-	-	-	-	-	58.3	9.3	10.8	20.1	21.6

Water retention characteristics

Depth (cm)	Bulk density kg/dm³	Spec. Surf. Area m²/g	COLE cm/cm	Water disp. clay %	Clay % w/w
0-5	-	-	-	-	4
5-15	-	-	-	-	3.7
15-25	-	-	-	-	3.7
40-50	-	-	-	-	4.5
60-70	-	-	-	-	3.4
80-90	-	-	-	-	0.3
110-120	-	-	-	-	21.6

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
0-5	3.2	2.7	-	-	6.07	0.23	26	4	1.3	0.0	0.3	0.1	0.0	0.4
5-15	3.3	2.9	-	-	3.76	0.12	31	4.1	1.8	0.0	0.2	0	0.0	0.2
15-25	3.5	3.2	-	-	2.69	0.09	30	2.5	1.3	0.0	0.1	0	0.0	0.1
40-50	4.3	4.2	-	-	1.19	0.05	24	1.3	1.1	0.0	0.7	0	0.0	0.7
60-70	4.4	4.4	-	-	0.23	0.01	23	0.8	0.7	0.4	0.0	0	0.0	0.4
80-90	4.4	4.4	-	-	0.18	0.02	9	0.9	0.7	0.4	0.0	0	0.0	0.4
110-120	4.8	3.5	-	-	0.15	0.02	8	3.1	2.4	4.9	1.6	0.2	0.0	6.7

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 %
0-5	3	15.4	385	21.2	-	8	-
5-15	2	11.2	303	13.2	-	16	-
15-25	1	13.4	362	9.4	-	10	-
40-50	9	7.9	176	4.2	-	14	-
60-70	9	4.6	135	0.8	-	15	-
80-90	11	3.7	-	0.6	-	19	-
110-120	44	15.1	70	0.5	-	16	-

Depth (cm)	pH NaF	P Retention %	ODOE	Al o % w/w	Si o % w/w	Fe d % w/w	Al d % w/w	Fe p % w/w	Al p % w/w	C p % w/w	Fe o % w/w
0-5	-	-	-	-	-	0.3	0.1	-	-	-	-
5-15	-	-	-	-	-	0.4	0.1	-	-	-	-
15-25	-	-	-	-	-	0.6	0.1	-	-	-	-
40-50	-	-	-	-	-	0.5	0.3	-	-	-	-
60-70	-	-	-	-	-	0.3	0.2	-	-	-	-
80-90	-	-	-	-	-	0.3	0.2	-	-	-	-
110-120	-	-	-	-	-	0.8	0.1	-	-	-	-

Clay mineralogy

Depth (cm)	Chlorite	Feldspar	Gibbsite	Goethite	Halloysite	Hematite	Kaolinite	Mica / illite	Mixed-layer	Quartz	Smec	Vermiculite
0-5	weak to medium	very weak to weak	-	-	-	-	weak to medium	-	-	weak to medium	very weak to weak	weak to medium
15-25	weak to medium	very weak to weak	-	-	-	-	weak to medium	-	-	weak to medium	weak	weak to medium
40-50	-	very weak to weak	-	-	-	-	weak to medium	very weak to weak	-	weak to medium	-	-
110-120	-	very weak to weak	-	-	-	-	medium to strong	medium to strong	-	weak	very strong	weak

Profile description

Ah1 0-5 cm	(5YR 2/2, moist)Description sand,single grain,very friable,clear wavy boundary to,
Ah2 5-15 cm	dark reddish grey (5YR 4/2, moist)Description sand gravelly,single grain,loose,clear irregular boundary to,
15-25 cm	(dark) brown (7.5YR 4/4, moist)Description sand gravelly,single grain,loose,clear irregular boundary to,
Bw 25-50 cm	yellowish brown (10YR 5/6, moist)Description sand gravelly,single grain,loose,clear irregular boundary to,
50-85 cm	light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4, moist)Description sand gravelly,single grain,loose,gradual wavy boundary to,
C 85-110 cm	pale brown (10YR 6/3, moist)Description sand gravelly,single grain,loose,abrupt wavy boundary to,
2B 110- cm	(dark) brown (7.5YR 4/4, moist)sandy clay loam,moderate medium subangular blocky,firm,common medium distinct mottles (10 YR 6/3),clay on pedfaces cutans,

Mode of accumulation or deposition of parent material	unconsolidated, unspecified
Remarks on Parent Materials	solifluction

Remarks on Land Use / Vegetation	Coniferous forest (picea abies)
Major vegetation type; Guidelines for soil description - Fourth edition (FAO, Rome, 2006)	evergreen forest

Physiographic Unit	glacio-fluviatile landscape
Physiographic position of the site	flat
Regional landform; McDonald, R.C., Isbell, R.F. et all, 1984; Australian soil and land survey Field Handbook, Inkata Press, Melbourne.	hill
Slope	0%
Topography; Guidelines for soil description - Fourth edition (FAO, Rome, 2006)	flat or almost flat

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Reference soil Germany 09: Cambisol

Characteristics

Reference soil DE009: Cambisol

Classification