Summary & Data Analysis
In the first part of this assignment it is important to make a summary of the kind of soils that are present in this area, the steps of soil development that have given rise to these soils, and some of the factors that have led to the kind of soil formation processes that are evident in this Area of Study [AOS]. The area that is under study is about 1144.5 acres. Historically, this area has had various constructions like homesteads for the Native Americans, who inhabited the land prior to their conquering by the colonial power. The area also has been subject to other human activities like agricultural activities ranging from irrigation to mechanized agriculture. In addition, the area under study has also been subject to other human activities like agro-forestry (DOA 10).These human induced activities have affected the original soil aggregation and structure before the soil was subject to these processes. In addition, key characteristics within this area of study like the pH, soil porosity, soil consistence, and content of organic matter have been affected by these activities.
According to the soil survey results provided by the data entered into the website provided, it is clear that the area produces both spatial and tabular data. One thing that is evident is the fact that the soils with this area present a wide range of characteristics depending on the area where the soil sample is collected. One thing that is would be worthwhile to speculate is the idea that the pH, sodium adsorption capacity, and the salinity are dependent on the activities that have been conducted within the area of study. According to the spatial data, from the US Department of Agriculture in their website Web Soil Survey, these are some of the characteristics that are exhibited in the area of Study. Note that the pH is the higher the pH illustrates that the soil under study is more alkaline. On the contrary, the lower the pH of the soils phases that are examined within this area of study the more acidic these soils are.
Type of sol that was examined with the area of study
Saline Soils
These soils tended to have a pH that was below 8.5. This means that most of these soils tended to be Acidic
Normal soils within the area of study were less saline. The Sodium adsorption ratio in this area was about 25 which means that the saline conditions is about the normal conditions that unaltered soil should exhibit
The proportion of soils that can be considered as being Sodic constituted less than 2.5% of the total land area that was studied. This means that the Sodium Adsorption in this area is about 25 %
Types of plant growth that is expected in each of the type of soil phases that were examined
Tolerant plants are more likely to do well in acidic soils. In addition a portion of the moderately tolerant plants may be in a position to survive in acidic soils.
Most Halophytes, the moderately sensitive and sensitive plant growth would be able to do well in soils whose pH and salinity is about normal (25%) in terms of SAR.
Tolerant plains and the moderately tolerant plants can be able to survive in highly Sodic soils while sensitive and moderately sensitive plants growth would not be in a position to survive under these conditions.
Works Cited
United States department of Agriculture. Soil Survey of Benton-Owens Valley
Area, California, Parts of Inyo and Mono counties. Los Angeles, CA: Bureau
of Land Management, 2005. Print.
US Department of agriculture. Web Soil Survey.12 Jan. 2012. Web. 2 Sept.
2012.
