Soil subgroup
Natracualf álbico
It has a clear, washed horizon (albic) above the subsoil.
What the name says
Soil Taxonomy names are built from parts, and each part says something about the soil. From general to specific:
| Taxonomic order | Alfisol | Soil with a clay accumulation horizon (argillic or natric) and good base saturation, but without the thick, dark surface of a Molisol. |
|---|---|---|
| Suborder | Acualf | Alfisol with excess water: saturated near the surface part of the year, with redox depletions. |
| Great group | Natracualf | Within the Acualf suborder, it has a natric horizon: accumulation of clay with a lot of exchangeable sodium, which disperses the clay and blocks the passage of water and roots. |
| Subgroup | álbico | It has a clear, washed horizon (albic) above the subsoil. |
What it means for farming
Acceptable fertility, but the surface layer is thinner and poor in organic matter. In the Pampas region many Alfisoles are sodic or floodable (Natracualfes) and are left for livestock.
The sodic soil of the low-lying areas of the Pampa Deprimida and the plains of Salado: it floods in winter, hardens in summer, and sodium limits almost everything that is not natural grass.
- Most common surface texture
- Silt loam
- Most common drainage
- Poor
- Typical effective depth
- 25 cm
Where it is found
According to the 1:500.000 national map, it covers about 1.742.875 ha, spread over 19 districts.
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National map units that list it. The scale is 1:500.000: good for seeing the region, not a single property.
| Province | Area |
|---|---|
| Formosa | 1.172.700 ha |
| Chaco | 267.367 ha |
| Santa Fe | 232.380 ha |
| Buenos Aires | 65.934 ha |
| Corrientes | 3.077 ha |
| Salta | 1.418 ha |
Districts where it is most common
- Pirané · Formosa
- General Güemes · Chaco
- Vera · Santa Fe
- Formosa · Formosa
- Ramón Lista · Formosa
- Mayor Luis J. Fontana · Chaco
- Patiño · Formosa
- Pilagás · Formosa
- Tapenagá · Chaco
- Bermejo · Formosa
- General Alvear · Buenos Aires
- General Obligado · Santa Fe
- General Donovan · Chaco
- Presidencia de la Plaza · Chaco
- 25 de Mayo · Chaco
- Laishi · Formosa
- Las Flores · Buenos Aires
- Esquina · Corrientes
- Rivadavia · Salta
It also appears on the detailed maps of: Entre Ríos.
How productive it is
Where it is the main soil of the map unit, the productivity index has a median of 10 (very low); half of the units fall between 4 and 28.
Taken from the maps that include this data. A map unit with several soils has a single index, and it is only attributed to the dominant soil.
Other Natracualf subgroups
Soil series
Series are the specific soils, named after places, that detailed maps describe under this name. Two properties with the same series have the same soil.
Entre Ríos
Las Flores · El Estribo
Soils it shares map units with
Several soils share each map unit. These are the ones most often found alongside this one: on a property, you will likely find them in the nearby low ground or on the next rise.
The definitions are a plain-language summary of the USDA Keys to Soil Taxonomy. The formal definition includes thickness, color and percentage thresholds that are left out here.
Sources
- Soil Survey Staff. (2014). Claves para la Taxonomía de Suelos, 12.ª edición. USDA - Natural Resources Conservation Service. · Dominio público (USDA)
- INTA · Dominio público (carta 1:500.000)