Tag: abiotic resources: land, soil and water

This type of soil is typical of the Deccan trap (Basalt) region spread over northwest Deccan plateau and is made up of lava flows. 

Khadar has more fine particles and is more fertile than the Bangar.

Alluvial soil is the most widely spread and important soil. In fact, the entire northern plains are made of alluvial soil. These have been deposited by three important Himalayan river systems– the Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra.

Thorny bushes are found in dry areas of the country. The leaves are in the form of spines to reduce the loss of water. Cactus, khair, babool, keekar are important thorny bushes. They are found in the states of Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Eastern slopes of Western Ghats and Gujarat.

Mountain soil is mainly found on the hill slopes. These soils are formed due to mechanical withering caused by snow, rain, temperature variation, etc. These mountain soils are found in hilly regions of Jammu and Kashmir, Sikkim, Assam, and Arunachal Pradesh. These soils occupy about 8% of the total land area of India.

In Maharashtra black cotton soil is mainly found in Amravati, Akola, Buldhana, Washim, Parbhani, Dhule, Jalgaon, Hingoli, Osmanabad, Ahmadnagar districts. 

This is the most widely spread and important soil. In fact, the entire northern plains are made of alluvial soil. 

Peat soils are also called marshy soils. They are a result of waterlogging and anaerobic conditions (which leads to partial decomposition of organic matter). They are found in the areas of heavy rainfall and high humidity, where there is a good growth of vegetation. It occurs widely in the northern part of Bihar, the southern part of Uttaranchal and the coastal areas of West Bengal, Orissa, and Tamil Nadu. These soils are normally heavy and black in color.

Black soils are derivatives of trapped lava. These are found mostly across Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Madhya Pradesh on the Deccan plateau and the Malwa Plateau, where there is both moderate rainfall and underlying basaltic rock. This soil is best suitable for growing cotton.

The Kashmir Himalayas are also famous for Karewa formations, which are useful for the cultivation of Zafran, a local variety of saffron. Karewas are the thick deposits of glacial clay and other materials embedded with moraines.