Learn: Types of Indian Soil,different types of indian soils,Red Soils,Laterite Soils,Black Soils,Alluvial Soils,Sandy or Desert Soils,

TYPES OF INDIAN SOILS

From an agricultural point of view, the Indian soils may be classified into the following categories.

1. Red Soils.

  • Red soils are light textured porous and friable soils.
  • These soils are the residual soils left at the surface as a result of the decay of the underlying parent rocks.
  • They conceal the parent rocks under themselves.
  • Most red soils are sandy loam or sandy clay in texture.
  • They are red in color and contain very low lime content.
  • These soils are usually deficient in nutritional matters like nitrogen, phosphorus, lime, and organic matter.
  • But they are very responsive to green manure, chemical fertilizer, animal dung manure, and irrigation.
  • Such soils are found in the southern and central parts of India.
  • They are found in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, South-east Maharashtra, Central Andhra Pradesh, Western Orissa, and Southern Madhya Pradesh.

2. Laterite Soils.

  • These soils are also residual soils, often open and porous.
  • They also lack nutrition elements like nitrogen, phosphorus, lime, and potassium.
  • They are also red in color.
  • These soils may be cut and used as building stones.
  • These soils are found in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Assam, Kerala, and Southern Maharashtra.

3. Black Soils.

  • These soils are mostly clays.
  • They develop deep cracks during drying.
  • They are black in color.
  • They are sometimes called black cotton soils as they are considered very good soils for growing cotton.
  • They are quite fertile if adequate rainfall is available.
  • These soils respond very well to the application of chemical fertilizers, green manure, and animal dung manure.
  • These soils are located in Maharashtra, M.P., Karnatak, A.P., and Tamil Nadu.
  • It is very difficult to build, building a foundation in them.

4. Alluvial Soils.

  • These are very productive soils. They are formed by deposition underwater.
  • These soils are found in Indo-Gangetic Plains.
  • They also respond to phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizers.
  • They absorb a fair amount of rainwater and as such act very good sources for groundwater reservoirs.
  • These soil are suitable for any crop.

5. Sandy or Desert Soils.

  • This soil occurs usually in low rainfall areas.
  • It is almost pure sand and is found in Gujarat, Punjab, and Rajasthan.
  • The soil is free draining.
  • It has a high pH value and low organic content.
  • This soil is quite productive if irrigation facilities are available.
  • This soils is easily blown by strong winds and dust storms.
  • This soil is very good for melon, barley, wheat, bajra, til, etc.

Different types of soil present in india

6. Clayey Soils.

  • Such soils are also known as heavy soils.
  • They are not easily drainable, otherwise, they are rich with nutrition.
  • These soils are found in the U.P., Punjab, and parts of Haryana. They are very fertile soils.

7. Saline or Alkaline Soils.

  • These soils can be used for growing crops only when they are adequately drained.
  • Otherwise, salts go on accumulating and reach such a concentration that no crops can be grown in them.
  • Such soils are located in semi-arid zones of Bihar, U.P., Gujarat, and Punjab.

8. Peat and Mashy Soil.

  • This soil is found in low lying areas along the sea coast.
  • This soil is formed by partly decayed plants and other organic matter.
  • This soil may produce very good crops of rice when properly drained and fertilized.
  • It contains organic matter varying from 25 percent to as such as 90 percent.
  • The organic matter is mostly in the form of decayed vegetation of marshy areas.

9. Humus or Forest Soil.

  • This soil is mostly found in areas having thick forests.
  • This soil consists of organic matter and forest dead vegetation.
  • This soil is very fertile.
  • The soils may also be classified as follows depending upon their composition:
  1. Matiar soil.
  2. Matiar Domat.
  3. Domat.
  4. Baluar Domat.
  5. Baluar soil.
  6. Humus soil.
  7. Usar soil.
  • Matiar soil and Matiar Domat both come under the category of heavy soil.
  • Matiar soil consists of a larger content of clay than Matiar Domat.
  • The clay content in both these soils varies from 20 percent to 40 percent.
  • Both these soils do not readily absorb water but once they absorb, they do not allow it to be drained off.
  • These soils can be improved by adding phosphatic and other fertilizers.
  • The addition of fertilizers improves the drainability and ventilation of the soil.
  • Crops that require moisture continuously like sugarcane and rice, are considered best for such soils.
  • Since these soils do not allow absorbed water to be easily drained, they maintain a continuous supply of moisture to the crops.
  • Clay content, in domat soil, is never more than 20 percent.
  • This soil has good drainage and ventilation capacity.
  • This soil is good for any crop. Wheat, barley, sugarcane, maize, peas, and potato are grown very successfully in it. Baluar Domat has a relatively larger percentage of sand.
  • Clay content is about 10 percent.
  • Good irrigation and adequate fertilizers are essential for growing good crops in such soils.
  • Groundnut, cereals, mustard, spiked millet, and fodder crops are the usual crops grown in it.
  • Baluar soils contain about 5 percent clay and the remaining part is all sand.
  • This soil cannot retain water and thus dries out very soon.
  • The productivity of this soil can be improved by adding green manure and clay.
  • Melon, groundnut, spiked millet are suitable crops for such soils.
  • Humus soils are found in forests that contain a lot of decaying organic matter and vegetation.
  • These soils are good for crops. Such soils are found in hilly tracts having thick forests.