Question

Which type of soil develops deep cracks during hot weather?
1. Yellow soil
2. Laterite soil
3. Alluvial soil
4. Black soil

Answer 1

Correct Answer - Option 4 : Black soil

The Correct Answer is Black Soil.

 

Black Soil

• The colour of the black soils varies from deep black to light black.
•  Black soils have the high water-retaining capacity.
• They are extremely compact and tenacious when wet, and develop wide cracks when dry.
• In other words, they swell greatly and become sticky when wet in the rainy season.
• When the soil is wet, it becomes difficult to plough the field as the plough gets stuck in the mud.
• In the dry season, the moisture evaporates, the soil shrinks and develops wide cracks, often 10- 15 cm deep.
• The soils are well suited for the cultivation of cotton, pulses, millets, linseed, castor, tobacco, sugarcane, vegetables, and citrus fruits.

 

Alluvial soil

• These soils are mainly derived from the debris brought down from the Himalayas or from the silt left out by the retreating sea.
• Alluvial soils are divided into 
  •  Khadar soil:
    • The khadar soils are low-lying, frequently inundated by floods during the rainy season.
    • Thus, the khadar occupies the flood plains of the rivers and is enriched by fresh silt deposits every year. The khadar tracts are generally rich in
      concretions, and nodules of impure calcium carbonate or Kankar.
  • Bhangar soil :
    • It is generally well-drained but contains concretion (kankars) of impure calcium carbonate.
    • The soil texture varies from loamy soil to clay-loam.

Laterite soil

• These are the typical soils of the monsoon climate which is characterised by seasonal rainfall.
• The alternating wet and dry seasons lead to the leaching away of the siliceous matter of the rocks leading to the formation of such soils.
• The red colour of the soils is due to the presence of iron-oxide.

Yellow Soil

• The red soil looks yellow when it occurs in a hydrated form.
• Often, their upper layer is red and the lower layer is yellow.