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Andosols—Soils of Volcanic Regions

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The Soils of Iceland

Part of the book series: World Soils Book Series ((WSBS))

Abstract

Almost all soils of Iceland are Andosols and therefore the general properties of Andosols are discussed in this chapter. Andosols form in volcanic regions of the Earth, and cover about 1 % of the Earth’s surface. Andosols, including soils of Iceland, exhibit unique soil properties such as unusual carbon accumulation, deep soil profiles, lack of cohesion, high water holding capacity , rapid hydraulic conductivity , low bulk density, and high phosphorus retention . These properties are largely attributed to the colloidal components of Andosols, which rarely occur in abundance in other soils. These include allophane, imogolite, ferrihydrite, metal–humus complexes, which are all important in soils of Iceland. Emphasis is given to the three major axes of Andosols: allophanic, alu-andic (metal-humus complexes), and vitric , as these are important in separation of soils of Iceland. Vitric materials are poorly weathered volcanic ejecta, of varying compositions, which dominate a large fraction of Icelandic soil materials. Many of the general physical and chemical properties of Andosols are discussed, but the subsequent chapters will cover classification and properties of the soils in more detail.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Sciences, Agricultural University of Iceland, Borgarnes, Iceland

    Olafur Arnalds

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  1. Olafur Arnalds
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Correspondence to Olafur Arnalds .

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Arnalds, O. (2015). Andosols—Soils of Volcanic Regions. In: The Soils of Iceland. World Soils Book Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9621-7_5

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