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ScotlandGeographyQuick questions
Physical Environments
Quick questions on Biosphere: soils and soil profiles - SQA Higher Geography
5short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is podzol?Show answer
Found in the cool, wet uplands under coniferous forest and heather, for example the Cairngorms. Heavy rainfall causes strong leaching, washing iron, aluminium and humus from the upper soil and leaving an ash-grey leached layer in the A horizon. These minerals accumulate lower down, often forming a hard iron pan that blocks drainage and waterlogs the surface.
What is brown earth?Show answer
Found under deciduous woodland in warmer, lowland Britain such as central Scotland and the Borders. Leaf litter decays quickly into a mild, nutrient-rich mull humus, and abundant earthworms and soil organisms mix the horizons so the boundaries are blurred. The soil is well drained, slightly acidic, deep and fertile, which is why much of it has long been cleared for farmland.
What is gley?Show answer
Found on flat, poorly drained ground where water cannot escape. Waterlogging removes oxygen, so the soil is anaerobic; iron is chemically reduced and turns the soil a blue-grey colour, with orange mottling where some air reaches it. Gleys are wet, cold and difficult to farm without artificial drainage.
What is q1?Show answer
Describe and explain the main features of a podzol soil profile. [4 marks]
What is q2?Show answer
Explain why a gley soil is poorly suited to farming. [3 marks]
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