Reference soil China 14: Solonchak

CN014

Solonchaks occur where saline groundwater comes near to the surface, or where through evapo(transpi)ration salts from the soil water accumulate in the soil, e.g. in desert regions

Characteristics

Soils having a salic horizon (horizon with accumulation of salts more soluble than gypsum) within 50 cm of the soil surface. They have no diagnostic horizons other than a histic, mollic, ochric, takyric, yermic, calcic, cambic, duric, gypsic or vertic horizon.

Distribution of Solonchaks (rough estimation supplied by soilgrids)

Reference soil CN014: Solonchak

Deep, imperfectly drained, saline brown sandy loam derived from colluvio-alluvial deposits, with a thick, hard, dirty white cristallized salt pan in the topsoil. The subsoil shows few to common white salt spots. Soil reaction is alkaline and the electrical conductivity is high. SURFACE CHARACTERISTICS: thin crust with "fluffy, crispy" crumby structure / VEGETATION: 10-20% covered by salt resistant herb and reed vegetation, consisting mainly of Alhagi and Phragmites.

WRB 2006:

WRB 1998:

Puffic Petrosalic Solonchak(Sodic Sulphatic Takyric)

Epipetrosali- Sodic Solonchak(Aridic Hypersalic)

0-65 cm	salic horizon
0-8 cm	takyric horizon

0-65 cm	salic horizon
0-8 cm	takyric horizon

FAO-UNESCO-ISRIC 1988:

FAO-UNESCO 1974:

Petri-

Sodic Solonchak

phreatic phase

Orthic Solonchak

phreatic phase

0-8 cm	ochric A horizon
	salic properties
	sodic properties

0-8 cm	ochric A horizon
- cm	salic horizon
-	high salinity property

Other classification

Classification (other)

Salipanic brown desert soil; Panic Sali-Orthic Aridosol

Location:

Xinjiang Autonomous Region, Turpan

More images

Physical

Particle size distribution:

Depth (cm)		Gravel (%)	Very Coarse Sand (%)	Coarse Sand (%)	Medium Sand (%)	Fine Sand (%)	Very Fine Sand (%)	Total Sand (%)	Coarse Silt (%)	Fine Silt (%)	Total Silt (%)	Clay (%)
0-8	:	-	0.3	0.3	0.4	1.9	14.8	-	34.6	31.6	66.2	16.2
8-25	:	73	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
25-44	:	-	0.1	0.1	0.1	1.3	13.6	-	42.1	33.9	76.0	8.8
44-65	:	-	0.0	0.1	0.1	1.3	12.4	-	43.6	30.8	74.4	11.8
65-125	:	-	0.0	0.1	0.0	3.3	16.0	-	36.3	29.5	65.8	14.7
0-25	:	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Water retention characteristics

Depth (cm)		Bulk Density (kg/dm³)	pF 0 (% w/v)	pF 1.0 (% w/v)	pF 1.5 (% w/v)	pF 2.0 (% w/v)	pF 2.3 (% w/v)	pF 2.7 (% w/v)	pF 3.4 (% w/v)	pF 4.2 (% w/v)	pF 2.5 (%)
35-40	:	0.985	68.6	63.2	57.1	45.1	30.1	23.1	17.3	15.2	-
40-45	:	1.214	58.4	56.3	49.7	39.2	32.7	27.6	20.1	15.9	-

Other physical data

Depth (cm)		Bulk Density (kg/dm³)	Spec. Surf. Area (m2/g)	COLE (cm/cm)	Water Disp. Clay (%)	Clay (%)
0-8	:	-	-	-	-	16.2
8-25	:	-	-	-	-	-
25-44	:	-	-	-	-	8.8
44-65	:	-	-	-	-	11.8
65-125	:	-	-	-	-	14.7
0-25	:	-	-	-	-	-

Chemical characteristics:

Depth (cm)		pH H2O	pH KCl	EC 1 : 2.5 (mS/cm)	CaCO3 (%)	Org. C (%)	Org. N (%)	C / N	Exch. Acid (cmol/kg)	Exch. Al (cmol/kg)	Ca (cmol/kg)	Mg (cmol/kg)	K (cmol/kg)	Na (cmol/kg)	Sum Cations (cmol/kg)
0-8	:	8.7	8.6	39.00	2.6	1.59	-	-	-	-	101.4	15.2	1.8	6.8	-
8-25	:	8.6	8.4	59.00	1.1	0.38	-	-	-	-	59.5	16.2	0.1	61.4	-
25-44	:	8.5	8.2	14.00	2.9	0.46	-	-	-	-	153.6	19.1	0.8	2.9	-
44-65	:	8.9	8.7	8.90	3.0	0.24	-	-	-	-	169.8	11.6	0.9	2.1	-
65-125	:	8.5	8.2	6.00	3.0	0.28	-	-	-	-	201.5	11.9	0.7	2.8	-
0-25	:	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Depth (cm)		CEC Soil (cmol/kg)	CEC Clay (cmol/kg)	CEC Org (cmol/kg)	ECEC (cmol/kg)	Base sat. (%)	Al sat. (%)	ESP (%)
0-8	:	8.5	-	5.6	-	-	-	80
8-25	:	1.3	-	1.3	-	-	-	100
25-44	:	8.4	-	1.6	-	-	-	35
44-65	:	8.7	-	0.8	-	-	-	24
65-125	:	9.5	-	1.0	-	-	-	29
0-25	:	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Depth (cm)		pH NaF	P Retention (%)	ODOE	Melanic Index	Fe o (wt%)	Al o (wt%)	Si o (wt%)	Fe d (wt%)	Al d (wt%)	Fe p (wt%)	Al p (wt%)	C p (wt%)
0-8	:	-	-	-	-	0.10	0.10	2.00	0.70	0.10	-	-	-
8-25	:	-	-	-	-	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.10	0.00	-	-	-
25-44	:	-	-	-	-	0.10	0.20	0.10	0.50	0.10	-	-	-
44-65	:	-	-	-	-	0.10	0.10	0.10	0.60	0.10	-	-	-
65-125	:	-	-	-	-	0.10	0.10	0.20	0.60	0.10	-	-	-
0-25	:	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Soluble salts:

Depth (cm)		Ca (mmol (c) / kg soil)	Mg (mmol (c) / kg soil)	K (mmol (c) / kg soil)	Na (mmol (c) / kg soil)	Sum Cations (mmol (c) / kg soil)	CO3 (mmol (c) / kg soil)	HCO3 (mmol (c) / kg soil)	Cl (mmol (c) / kg soil)	SO4 (mmol (c) / kg soil)	NO3 (mmol (c) / kg soil)	Sum anions (mmol (c) / kg soil)
0-8	:	2.88	18.8	2.2	153.1	-	-	1.4	97.6	70.8	1.00	-
8-25	:	0.29	176.9	0.8	173.3	-	-	2.7	29.6	284.7	1.00	-
25-44	:	1.54	33.8	0.3	51.2	-	-	0.7	7.4	80.7	0.00	-
44-65	:	1.21	5.9	0.2	29.0	-	-	0.2	8.0	30	0.00	-
65-125	:	1.34	1.9	0.1	13.9	-	-	0.1	5.4	11.9	0.00	-
0-25	:	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Soluble salts:

Depth (cm)		Sodium Ads. Ratio	pH e	EC e (mS/cm)	EC 1 : 5 (mS/cm)
0-8	:	224	8.1	40.00	-
8-25	:	84	7.4	28.60	-
25-44	:	52	8.0	28.60	-
44-65	:	75	8.4	22.80	-
65-125	:	19	7.8	15.90	-
0-25	:	-	-	-	-

Profile description:

Ah 0-8 cm	pale brown (10YR 6/3, moist), sandy loam, crumb, soft very friable, many very fine medium pores, abrupt wavy boundary to,
Azm 8-25 cm	extremely hard, salt pan pans, abrupt smooth boundary to,
Cz1 25-44 cm	brown (10YR 5/3, moist), sandy loam, weakly coherent porous massive, very friable slightly sticky slightly plastic, few very fine fine pores, clear smooth boundary to,
Cz2 44-65 cm	brown (10YR 5/3, moist), sandy loam, weakly coherent porous massive, friable slightly sticky slightly plastic, few very fine fine pores, diffuse smooth boundary to,
Cz3 65-125 cm	brown (10YR 5/3, moist), sandy loam, weakly coherent porous massive, friable slightly sticky slightly plastic, few very fine fine pores,

The main parent rock/ material over which the soil has been formed (1st entry)	sediment, unconsolidated
Mode of Accumulation or deposition of parent material (1st entry)	colluvial
Texture of parent material (1st entry)	loamy
Remarks on Parent Materials	alluvium

Current land use at the site	semi-natural grassland, grazed
Main type of irrigation	no irrigation
Vegetation Type;The natural vegetation at the site	grassland
Remarks on Land Use / Vegetation	Vegetation: 10-20% covered by salt-resistant herb and reed vegetation, consisting mainly of Alhagi and Phragmites Land use: Occasionally grazed by camels

The altitude of the soil profile relative to mean sea level, specified in meters	-80 m asl
Regional landform	intermontane basin
Topography of the surrounding country	flat or almost flat
Physiographic Unit in the immediate surrounding of the site	Turpan depression
The slope refers to the inclination of the land immediately surrounding the site. The measured or estimated slope angle is specified to the nearest per cent	1 %

Depth of groundwater table	200 cm
Kind of groundwater table	groundwater table observed
Runoff	slow
Flooding frequency	never
Estimated permeablity (class) of least permeable part of the profile	high
Drainage Class	imperfect

Rockiness	none
Stoniness	none
Cracks	no cracks observed
Slaking of aggregates by tillage, rainfall or frost	surface capped, crust on drying
Evidence of salt	strongly saline
Evidence of alkali	strongly alkaline

Soil erosion type (1st entry)
Occurrence of soil aggradation
Slope Stability

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Reference soil China 14: Solonchak

Characteristics

Reference soil CN014: Solonchak