Geoderma Regional最新文献

{"title":"A multi-model ensemble for assessing atmospheric methane uptake by soils at local ecosystem scale","authors":"Michael Glagolev ,&nbsp;Dmitry Karelin ,&nbsp;Aleksandr Sabrekov ,&nbsp;Danil Ilyasov ,&nbsp;Olga Sukhoveeva","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01059","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01059","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Consumption of atmospheric methane (CH₄) in upland soils is a valuable sink of this potent greenhouse gas. Since this sink is highly sensitive to climate and land-use changes, several mathematical models have been developed in recent decades to quantify it on different spatial and temporal scales. However, predictions of these models are still scattered, implying the need for further model's improvement. Here, we utilized an ensemble modeling approach using field data for chernozem soils of agricultural and natural ecosystems in southern European Russia to test how seven existing methane consumption models perform on the local scale. We found that any of the tested models predicted CH₄ fluxes worse than the ensemble, which showed satisfactory Theil indexes of inequality (<em>k</em>_<em>T</em> = 0.144–0.284). Comparing different approaches to calculate the ensemble mean, we found that best predictions were obtained using the arithmetic mean (<em>k</em>_<em>T</em> = 0.144) and the half-sum of maximal and minimal values (<em>k</em>_<em>T</em> = 0.166). Our results indicated that using the ensemble of non-calibrated models could be effective on a local spatial scale without cost- and labor-demanding measurements required for model calibration and validation. Therefore, we recommend ensemble approach as a promising tool for calculation of methane budgets in complex landscapes, where different types of upland ecosystems are presented.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01059"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147394373","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Glomalin-related soil protein as an indicator of changes generated by prescribed burning of scrubland in the Central Pyrenees: A ten-year study","authors":"Mohamed Emran ,&nbsp;Andoni Alfaro-Leranoz ,&nbsp;Clara Martí-Dalmau,&nbsp;David Badía-Villas","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01039","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01039","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The removal of shrub cover invading subalpine pastures in the southern Pyrenees is increasingly carried out by prescribed burning (PB). This study assesses the impact of PB on topsoil components utilizing glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP) fractions and associated soil properties as indicators. Three fractions were analyzed: easily extractable (EE-GRSP), moderately extractable (ME-GRSP), and difficultly extractable (DE-GRSP), together with their organic carbon content (C-GRSP). Soil samples were collected at 0–1, 1–2, and 2–3 cm depth across a fire chronosequence: unburned (UB), immediately after PB (B0), and 6- and 10-year post-burn.</div><div>Total C-GRSP declined sharply after PB (8.44 g kg⁻¹ in UB to 5.95 g kg⁻¹ in B0) and continued decreasing at 6 and 10 years (3.54 g kg⁻¹ and 2.24 g kg⁻¹, respectively), reflecting long-term sensitivity to the disturbance that PB represents. EE-GRSP and DE-GRSP followed similar trends, with EE-GRSP showing the strongest reduction, suggesting higher sensitivity to vegetation cover loss and microbial disruption. The EE-GRSP/TGRSP ratio dropped after burning but partially recovered after 10 years, indicating gradual reactivation of glomalin production. Although concentrations decreased with soil depth, differences among the 0–3 cm layers were not significant under fire effects.</div><div>All GRSP fractions were strongly and positively correlated with organic carbon, total nitrogen, microbial biomass, basal respiration, and glucosidase activity. These findings highlight GRSP fractions and ratios as sensitive indicators of soil biochemical responses and recovery following low-severity PB. The results highlight the impact of fire on organic matter of microbial origin and the value of GRSP for monitoring soil resilience over time in ecosystems managed by fire.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01039"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145737977","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Is organic carbon stock affected by core ring volume used for bulk density measurement?","authors":"Nicoly Letícia Seghetto Bolino ,&nbsp;Vanessa Silva Romanoski ,&nbsp;Cássio Antonio Tormena ,&nbsp;Jeferson Dieckow ,&nbsp;Karina Maria Vieira Cavalieri-Polizeli","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01057","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01057","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The soil is a carbon reservoir of the terrestrial ecosystem, and its dynamics regulate the atmospheric CO2 balance. Estimating soil organic carbon stocks requires accurate measurement of soil bulk density, typically by using core rings of known volume. Our literature review indicates that the most commonly used core ring size is 0.05 m height, 0.05 m in diameter, and 98 cm³ in volume. However, it is not clearly understood how different cylinder dimensions may affect soil bulk density values and therefore carbon stock estimates. This study evaluated the impact of core ring dimensions on soil bulk density and soil organic carbon stock estimations. The field experiment was conducted in a clayey Ferralsol in Southern Brazil, in a completely randomized design with three replicates. We tested four ring dimensions (height × diameter, in meters): Ring 1 (0.05 × 0.05 m) as a reference, Ring 2 (0.025 × 0.07 m), Ring 3 (0.04 × 0.06 m), and Ring 4 (0.05 × 0.075 m); with respective height: diameter ratios of 1.0, 0.4, 0.7, and 1.5, without using ring holders or a probe sampler. Soil samples were collected in 2023 (<strong><em>n</em></strong> = 120) from five depth layers (0–0.10, 0.10–0.20, 0.20–0.40, 0.40–0.60, and 0.60–1.00 m) across two land-use systems (Secondary Forest and Pasture), which exhibited a wide variation in soil organic carbon content. The analyzed soil attributes included soil organic carbon (SOC), soil bulk density (BD) and organic carbon stock (Cst). Our results demonstrate considerable flexibility in the choice of ring size for the assessment of these soil attributes. The influence of ring size on BD was minimal, with the only exception being a significant difference in the 0.20–0.40 m layer of the Pasture. However, the shape of the ring, specifically the height-to-diameter ratio, was associated with data variability. The ring with the lowest ratio (0.4) showed the greatest data dispersion in the heterogeneous soil of the Secondary Forest. Importantly, these small variations in BD did not result in significant differences in the final carbon stock estimates. For greater data consistency, particularly in heterogeneous soils, we recommend the use of rings with a height-to-diameter ratio greater than 0.7.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01057"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146173041","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of rock fragments on water infiltration and physical properties of volcanic soils in southern Brazil","authors":"Geane Alves de Moura ,&nbsp;Fabrício de Araújo Pedron ,&nbsp;Paulo Ivonir Gubiani ,&nbsp;Ricardo Simão Diniz Dalmolin ,&nbsp;Jean Michel Moura-Bueno ,&nbsp;Luis Eduardo Akiyoshi Sanches Suzuki ,&nbsp;Noeme da Costa Santos ,&nbsp;Raí Ferreira Batista ,&nbsp;Issa Buana Alfane ,&nbsp;Luís Felipe Rech ,&nbsp;Victor Hugo Carvalho Sabóia ,&nbsp;Bruna Trevizan Paese ,&nbsp;Agnes Estela Fontana","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01045","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01045","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The presence of rock fragments (RF) is a common feature in agricultural areas with sloping terrain and poorly developed soils, potentially modifying soil physical attributes and water dynamics. We investigated the relationships among RF content, water infiltration, bulk density, and porosity in volcanic agricultural soils of southern Brazil, using 123 sampling points distributed across different soil classes, RF contents, and slope gradients. Infiltration data showed high variability: cumulative infiltration (I) ranged from 3 to 2275 mm, while the steady-state infiltration rate (i) ranged from 2 to 957 mm h⁻¹, both with large standard deviations. No significant differences in i or I were observed among slope classes. We found greater cumulative infiltration, lower bulk density, and higher fine-earth porosity in poorly developed soils (Leptosols and Regosols) with higher RF content. However, RF content did not significantly influence water infiltration in the evaluated soils. Bulk density and total porosity remained relatively stable despite variations in RF content. Infiltration in these stony agricultural soils exhibited high variability and low correlations with morphological and physical properties, indicating a complex multivariate behavior not easily captured by routine analyses.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01045"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145839920","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Transformation of the qualitative composition of soil organic matter in podzolic chernozem under the application of composts","authors":"Yevhen Skrylnyk,&nbsp;Maxim Popirny,&nbsp;Аngela Kutova,&nbsp;Svitlana Krylach","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01043","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01043","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Given the important role of soil organic matter (SOM) in the global carbon cycle and its potential feedbacks under fertilizer application, understanding how organic matter composition and molecular structure of humic substances responds to prolonged organic fertilization is of great scientific interest. The aim of this study was to investigate the transformation of humic composition in chernozem organic matter using Tyurin fractionation, alongside structural characterization of isolated humic acids by size-exclusion chromatograph and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SEC-PAGE) techniques, following a five-year application of organic fertilizers based on composted chicken manure. We found that the intensive formation of “young,” labile humic substances as first stage of humification occurred after the first year of manure compost application, accompanied by an increase in soil organic carbon. After five years of organic manure application, the organic matter fractions became more stabilized, as evidenced by an increase in mature humic fractions but accompanied by a decrease in the proportion of labile fractions. The increasing molecular complexity of chernozem humic acids after five years of manure compost application may be attributed to a higher content of stable low-molecular-weight molecules in compost, such as aromatic non-polar structures that strong absorb in ultraviolet. The most complex humic molecular structures were found from chernozem subjected to application of composted manure and husk, which contained a high abundance of condensed aromatic already formed humic structures. This molecular complexity may result from active hydrophobic humification, accompanied by the self-assembly of amphiphilic condensed aromatic structures into stable and complex hydrophobic humic supramolecular aggregates. These aggregates bind with calcium and subsequently with mineral clays, leading to the formation of mature humic fractions promote organic matter stabilization effect. We demonstrate the applicability of size-exclusion chromatograph and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis fractionation techniques for evaluating the molecular complexity of humic structural organization in agricultural soil under organic fertilization by identifying low-molecular-weight humic fractions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01043"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145790670","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Spatiotemporal patterns and evolution of soil salinization in a semi-arid irrigated plain","authors":"Geng Cui ,&nbsp;Zirui Gao ,&nbsp;Lei Wang ,&nbsp;Huan Huang ,&nbsp;Xin Liu ,&nbsp;Jiayu Meng ,&nbsp;Weiyu Huang","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01053","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01053","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Soil salinization, a major environmental and socioeconomic challenge worldwide, is jointly influenced by human activity and climatic conditions. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the spatiotemporal dynamics of soil salinization in the semi-arid irrigated region of the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River, specifically the Yinchuan Plain (YP), from 2005 to 2022. Using Landsat-5 and Sentinel-2 satellite data and extensive surface soil salinity measurements, soil salinity inversion models were established for 2005, 2009, 2017, and 2022 (Validation set: Landsat-5, <em>R</em> = 0.81, RMSE = 24.2 g/kg, MAE- 13.68 g/kg; Sentinel-2, <em>R</em> = 0.86, RMSE-1.94 g/kg, MAE = 1.34 g/kg). The results showed that the low salinization level was dominant, and that the non-salinized area increased from 1385.3 km² in 2005 to 2743.6 km² in 2022. Most of the changes occurred among non-salinized, low-salinized, and medium-salinized areas, with the proportion of the non-salinized area increasing from 22.31% to 42.81% and the total salt-affected area decreasing from 45.15% to 33.26%. Cropland was the main land cover type and the most affected by salinization, with low salinization being dominant. Notably, spatial variability in prediction uncertainty was observed (e.g., high uncertainty in the northwestern corner in 2005 and southern region in 2009), which is acknowledged to ensure robust interpretation of the findings. In this study, a long-term measured salinity dataset was integrated with machine learning inversion techniques to quantify salinization transitions across a 17-year period in the YP. The findings provide insights for the evaluation of soil salinization in irrigated semi-arid regions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01053"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147394363","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mineral and pedogenic controls on metal(loid) retention in contaminated agricultural topsoils","authors":"Petr Drahota,&nbsp;Martin Mihaljevič,&nbsp;Vojtěch Ettler","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01067","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01067","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Arsenic concentrations reached up to 2000 mg/kg, while soils impacted by historical mining were enriched in Sb (≤ 540 mg/kg), Cu (≤ 1600 mg/kg), Pb (≤ 4460 mg/kg), and Zn (≤ 3630 mg/kg). These contaminants accumulated in the &lt;10 μm fraction, posing increased health risk from wind transport and inhalation. Iron (oxyhydr)oxides in soil aggregates were dominant hosts of As, Cu, Pb, and Zn, with minor contribution from Mn (oxyhydr)oxides. In contrast, Sb was primarily associated with clay-rich aggregates, indicating stronger affinity for clays. Among discrete minerals, arsenates and (hydroxy)sulfates were the most common metal(loid)-bearing minerals. Ammonium sulfate extractions revealed a moderate potential mobility of As, Sb, Cu, and Zn (0.6–1.0%), while Pb was much less extractable (&lt;0.05%). The patterns of potential mobility followed soil pH, increasing for As, Sb, and Cu at higher pH and for Zn and Pb at lower pH, reflecting their distinct adsorption behavior in soils. Our results highlight the key role of mineralogical associations in controlling the potential mobility of metal(loid)s in contaminated agricultural soils, with Sb showing notably different behavior from As.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01067"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147394372","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Developing a pedotransfer function for the prediction of nitrogen mineralization in the agricultural soils of Quebec","authors":"Chedzer-Clark Clement ,&nbsp;R. Deragon ,&nbsp;B. Heung ,&nbsp;J. Dessureault-Rompré ,&nbsp;M.O. Gasser ,&nbsp;J.-B. Mathieu ,&nbsp;D.L. Burton","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01048","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01048","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Effective nitrogen (N) management is crucial for maximizing crop yields while minimizing environmental impacts. In the agricultural systems of Quebec, soil organic matter mineralization supplies a significant portion of crop N demand, but direct quantification is challenging and costly. This study utilized zero-N trial data to evaluate a two-pool zero-plus first-order kinetic model for predicting growing season N mineralization (GSNM) based on total N (TN) and potentially mineralizable N (PMN). Additionally, machine learning-based pedotransfer functions (PTFs) were developed to predict TN, PMN, and GSNM from easily measurable soil properties using a large soil health dataset (<em>n</em> = 3117). The kinetic model showed strong agreement between predicted and observed soil N supply, especially with the inclusion of deeper soil layers and early-season mineralization estimates. Recursive feature elimination identified total carbon (TC) and clay as the best predictors for TN, yielding a Lin's concordance correlation coefficient (CCC) of 0.93 and a coefficient of determination (<em>R</em>^<em>2</em>) of 0.86, while soil respiration (SR) and pH best predicted PMN (CCC = 0.89, <em>R</em>^<em>2</em> = 0.80). For GSNM, SR, TC, and pH were the top predictors (CCC = 0.91, <em>R</em>^<em>2</em> = 0.83). The developed PTFs provide a practical framework for estimating soil N-pools where direct data is unavailable, ultimately improving site-specific N management decisions. These tools support more efficient fertilizer use and minimize environmental losses. Future research should focus on integrating soil management practices into the development of PTFs and considering spatial and landscape variability through digital soil mapping.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01048"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145925803","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Five-year decomposition effects on nutrient stocks of woody species in Mediterranean ecosystems","authors":"Giuliano Bonanomi ,&nbsp;Anna De Marco ,&nbsp;Giuseppina Iacomino ,&nbsp;Mohamed Idbella","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01055","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2026.e01055","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Long-term data on nutrient dynamics during woody debris (WD) decomposition in Mediterranean ecosystems are not sufficiently explored. This study aims to characterize the stocks of key nutrients (P, K, Ca, Na, and Mn) through a five-year litterbag experiment using ten types of WD, incubated in shrubland and woodland environments in Southern Italy under a Mediterranean climate. To explore relationships between nutrient dynamics and WD traits, thirty anatomical, chemical, and functional traits of undecomposed WD were assessed, including nutrient contents, cellulose and lignin contents, and organic chemical composition via ¹³C NMR analysis. After five years of incubation, the concentration and content of P, K, Ca, Na, and Mn in the WD were quantified. Mass loss after 5 years was higher in woodland (47.6%) than in shrubland (29.6%). Among the species, <em>S. junceum</em>, <em>P. lentiscus</em> and <em>F. carica</em> showed the highest mass losses while <em>C. monspelliensis</em> and <em>E. arboreea</em> recorded the lowest. Regarding nutrient dynamics, we observed net mineralization in 90 experimental cases, while nutrient immobilization occurred in only ten instances, i.e. five were for Mn, three for P, and two for Ca. Nutrient mineralization was significantly influenced by the type of WD and strongly correlated with the initial concentration of each nutrient. Different WD traits showed varying correlations with nutrient mineralization. For example, P release was negatively correlated with lignin concentration, K and Na release were positively associated with decay rates, Ca release was linked to labile C and the initial concentration of Mg, Mn, and Ca, while Mn mineralization was regulated by the availability of the carboxylic C fraction. This study provides the first long-term dataset on nutrient stocks during WD decomposition in Mediterranean ecosystems, highlighting the distinct roles of mineralization and immobilization based on nutrient type and WD traits. These findings have critical implications for modelling wood tissue decomposition processes in Mediterranean ecosystems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01055"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146077845","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Soil formation conditions, processes and classification on the Baltic Sea coast of Latvia","authors":"Baiba Dirnēna ,&nbsp;Oļģerts Nikodemus ,&nbsp;Karīna Bagāta ,&nbsp;Guntis Brūmelis ,&nbsp;Raimonds Kasparinskis ,&nbsp;Māris Krievāns ,&nbsp;Imants Kukuļs","doi":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01044","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.geodrs.2025.e01044","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the complex and dynamic soil formation processes on the Baltic Sea coast, where the parent material consists of sandy sediments derived from the Baltic Ice Lake. It focuses on morphological and physicochemical transformations driven by recurrent disturbances, including forest fires, wind erosion, potential slash-and-burn agriculture, marine aerosol deposition, and the aeolian transport of beach sand into the forest ecosystem. Pedogenesis initially progressed through podzolization but was subsequently replaced by alkalinization and depodzolization, as indicated by an increase in soil pH and a relatively low Fe_d/Fe_t ratio in the B horizon. This suggested a relatively short podzolization phase, which was further reinforced by the neutralisation of soil acidity and the low organic matter content in the upper horizons. Eolian activity caused the erosion, transport and subsequent burial of the initial soil, preserving morphological characteristics typical of a podzol. However, the chemical properties of the B horizon did not fulfil the criteria for a spodic horizon. Mean pH values in the upper horizons were 7.3 (H₂O) and 6.0 (BaCl₂), whereas pH in the B horizon consistently exceeded 5.9. Elevated concentrations of Ca, Mg and K in the upper soil horizons, along with higher pH, indicated a strong marine aerosol influence. According to WRB 2022, the soils are classified as Eutric Brunic Aeolic Arenosols (Amphiclaric, Novic, Ochric) or Eutric Brunic Aeolic Arenosols (Epiclaric, Novic, Ochric). These findings enhance our understanding of coastal soil pedogenesis, clarify the impact of various disturbances in soil development and highlight the classification challenges posed by coastal aeolian environment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":56001,"journal":{"name":"Geoderma Regional","volume":"44 ","pages":"Article e01044"},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2026-03-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145790671","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}