Soil subgroup

Paleustol vértico

It has expansive clays: dry cracks or slickensides in the subsoil. When wet it becomes sticky and difficult to work with; when dry it cracks.

What the name says

Soil Taxonomy names are built from parts, and each part says something about the soil. From general to specific:

Taxonomic orderMolisolSoil with a thick, dark surface horizon rich in organic matter (the mollic epipedon), with more than half of its exchange capacity occupied by calcium, magnesium, potassium and sodium. It forms under grassland.
SuborderUstolMolisol from subhumid to semi-arid climate (ustic moisture regime): water is enough in the growing season but there are long dry periods.
Great groupPaleustolWithin the Ustol suborder, it is very old and evolved: very thick clay horizon, or a petrocalcic horizon (calcareous hardpan) indicating a long time of formation.
SubgroupvérticoIt has expansive clays: dry cracks or slickensides in the subsoil. When wet it becomes sticky and difficult to work with; when dry it cracks.

What it means for farming

They are the soils agricultural lands par excellence: the Pampas grassland formed them and most of Argentine agriculture is done on them. They retain water and nutrients; its limitation, when there is one, is below: clay, sodium, calcareous hardpan or drainage.

Most common surface texture
Clay loam
Most common drainage
Imperfect
Typical effective depth
180 cm

Where it is found

According to the 1:500.000 national map, it covers about 37.062 ha, spread over 6 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.

ProvinceArea
Jujuy20.387 ha
Salta16.675 ha

Districts where it is most common

It also appears on the detailed maps of: Salta.

How productive it is

Where it is the main soil of the map unit, the productivity index has a median of 53.5 (average); half of the units fall between 30 and 60.

Land capability

II
III

class II: 80% · class III: 20%

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 Paleustol subgroups

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