Chapter 3 Soils

Chapter-3
SOILS OF INDIA: Chapter at a glance
IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS:
1. SOIL FERTILITY: It refers to the strength of the soil to support plant growth. E.g.
fertile soil must consist of organic matter and should be rich in nutrients like nitrogen,
phosphorus and potash.
2. In- Situ Soil / Residual / Sedentary: The soil formed and found at the place of its
origin by the breaking down of parent rocks. E.g. Black soil, Red soil and Laterite
soil.
3. Ex- Situ Soil / Transported soil: The soil formed by the transportation of silt and
sediments by the various agents of gradation such as wind and water. E.g. Alluvial
Soil.
4. Pedogenesis: The process of soil formation is called Pedogenesis.
5. Humus / Organic matter: The decay of dead plants and animal remains is called
humus. It increases the fertility of the soil and enhances the moisture retention
capacity of the soil.
6. Leaching: The process in which minerals get percolated deep inside or get washed
away due to heavy and torrential rainfall. E.g. Laterite soil is formed due to leaching.
7. Soil Erosion: The removal or detachment of the top soil by agents of erosion like
wind and water and various human activities such as deforestation and overgrazing is
called soil erosion.
8. Soil Conservation: The protection of the top soil from erosion by wind and water and
thus maintaining the fertility of the soil is called soil conservation.
Questions and Answers:

1. How is alluvial soil formed?
Alluvial soil is formed by the deposition of silt and sediment brought down and
deposited by the rivers. Hence, also called as riverine soil.
2. Mention three characteristics of alluvial soil.

a. It varies in texture from coarse to fine. (Texture) sandy loam to clayey.
b. It is rich in lime, potash but deficient in nitrogen and phosphorous.
c. It is light and porous and easily tillable.
d. Its colour varies from light yellow to grey in the deltaic region.
3. Name the two types of alluvial soil.
a. Khadar soil
b. Bhangar soil.
4. Why Khadar soil is considered more fertile than Bhangar soil?

Ans- Khadar soil is more fertile than Bhangar soil because:
Khadar Soil Bhangar Soil

1. Newer alluvium. Older alluvium.
2. It is found in the flood plains and It is found on the river terraces
in the deltas of the rivers. 30 metres above sea level.
3. It is fine, clayey in texture and It consists of calcareous concretions

has high moisture retention called kankar (lime nodules), highly
capacity. porous and cannot retain moisture.
4. It is replenished by flood Infertile for agriculture.
annually and thus is highly fertile
for agriculture.
5. Alluvial soil is suitable for growing large varieties of both Rabi and Kharif crops.
Rice, Wheat, Cotton, Sugarcane, Jute, Pulses, Tobacco etc.
6. How is coastal alluvium different from inland alluvium?

Coastal Alluvium:
a. It is confined to the eastern coast in the deltas of rivers Mahanadi, Godavari,
Krishna and Cauvery.
b. It is darker in colour because when the rivers such as Godavari, Krishna etc. flow
through the Deccan Trap region they carry black silt and thus mixing with the
black silt imparts dark colour to the soil.
c. It is clayey and has high moisture retention capacity.
Inland Alluvium:
a. It is found over the Gangetic Plains in India and is formed by the deposition of silt
and sediment brought down by the Ganga and its tributaries, Brahmaputra and its
tributaries and the tributaries of river Indus.
b. It is light, yellow in colour, porous and thus easily tillable.
c. It varies in texture from coarse to fine and thus in the lower Ganga plains it is of
finer texture and has more moisture retaining capacity.
7. Differentiate between Sheet Erosion and Gully Erosion.
SHEET EROSION GULLY EROSION
In the mountainous areas such as During heavy downpour and water run-
the NE parts of India and the off deep gullies are formed on the bare
Nilgiri Hills, due to torrential soils. The nutrients of the top soil thus
downpour of rainfall thin sheets of get eroded away, leaving the soil
soil is washed away over extensive infertile.
areas, This happens where there is Deep gullies are called ravines, which
absence of vegetative cover. are responsible for the formation of
badland topography.
E.g.- The Chambal valley is known for
its badland topography.
8. Causes of soil erosion:

- Deforestation in order to obtain land for cultivation, construction of roads and railways etc.
- Uncontrolled grazing by domestic cattle / overgrazing of land by cattle.
- Heavy rainfall during monsoons.
- Nature of land: In the hilly regions due to steep slopes, during heavy rainfall soil is washed
away by running water,
- Improper farming techniques- absence of terracing, crop rotation etc. cause serious problem
of soil erosion.
9. Methods of Soil Conservation:
- Terraced farming on the hilly slopes.
- Contour ploughing and contour bunding.
- Planting shelterbelts of trees perpendicular to the direction of winds.
- Plugging of gullies and ravines.
- Prevention of overgrazing by limiting the time of cattle to graze in a particular area.
- By checking indiscriminate felling of trees and afforestation on the barren land.
- Practicing strip cropping, crop rotation, multiple cropping etc.
BLACK SOIL: (IN – SITU SOIL / RESIDUAL SOIL) IT IS ALSO KNOWN AS

REGUR SOIL.
-It is formed due to the disintegration of volcanic rocks / lava rocks / basalt.
- Extensively found in the Deccan Trap Region of the Peninsular Plateau.
- Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and
Karnataka.
- CHARACTERISTICS:
- Fine texture and clayey hence has high moisture retention capacity.
- Sticky when wet and when dries and hardens develop deep cracks.
- Thus deep cracks allow air to circulate and hence makes it self -ploughing in
nature.
- It is rich in lime, iron and magnesium but poor in nitrogen, phosphorous and
humus.
- Food crops- wheat and jowar and cash crops- cotton and sugarcane are well
grown in black soil.
RED SOIL: (IN-SITU SOIL / SEDENTRY OR RESIDUAL)
Red soil is formed by the weathering and disintegration of metamorphic and

crystalline rocks.
- Important states- Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh,

Jharkhand and in the NE states of Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland and Mizoram.
- CHARACTERISTICS OF RED SOIL:
- It appears reddish in colour due to high content of iron-oxide.
- It is loose and porous, hence cannot retain moisture.
- Its porous nature and presence of sub-soil moisture helps in dry farming.
- It responds well to irrigation and fertilizer.
- It is rich in potash but poor in lime, nitrogen, organic matter.
- Rice, wheat, millets, sugarcane, groundnut and pulses can be well grown here.
LATERITE SOIL:
- Laterite soil is formed by the leaching or desilication of lateritic rocks under high
temperature and heavy rainfall due to alternate wet and dry spell.
- It is extensively found on the western slopes of the Western Ghats namely in the
parts of Kerala and Karnataka.
CHARACTERISTICS OF LATERITE SOIL:
- It appears reddish in colour due to the presence of iron- oxide which is formed due
to leaching.
- Porous, coarse, soft and friable and cannot retain moisture.
- Poor in nitrogen, lime and magnesium but rich in iron, alumina.
- Highly acidic in nature.
- Crops: Tapioca, Cashew are the important crops but rubber, rice, tea and
coffee are grown with the use of fertilizers.

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Chapter-3

SOILS OF INDIA: Chapter at a glance

4. Pedogenesis: The process of soil formation is called Pedogenesis.

Questions and Answers:

2. Mention three characteristics of alluvial soil.

4. Why Khadar soil is considered more fertile than Bhangar soil?

Khadar Soil Bhangar Soil

3. It is fine, clayey in texture and It consists of calcareous concretions

6. How is coastal alluvium different from inland alluvium?

8. Causes of soil erosion:

BLACK SOIL: (IN – SITU SOIL / RESIDUAL SOIL) IT IS ALSO KNOWN AS

RED SOIL: (IN-SITU SOIL / SEDENTRY OR RESIDUAL)

Red soil is formed by the weathering and disintegration of metamorphic and

- Important states- Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh,

- CHARACTERISTICS OF RED SOIL:

- It appears reddish in colour due to high content of iron-oxide.

- It is loose and porous, hence cannot retain moisture.

- It responds well to irrigation and fertilizer.

- It is rich in potash but poor in lime, nitrogen, organic matter.

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