An in Situ Experimental Study of Forest Soil Functioning using the Mineral Bag Technique

Use of the test-mineral technique to distinguish simple acidolysis from acido-complexolysis in a Podzol profile

“…Hydroxy-interlayering alone should not be used as criterion to conclude the absence of podzolization or acidocomplexolysis. Previous studies also mentioned the presence of hydroxyinterlayered vermiculites in Podzolic soils (Righi et al, 1987;Ranger et al, 1987), but from these profiles, no soil solution data were available. Therefore, it was concluded that podzolization/ acido-complexolysis in those soils was no longer active.…”

“…Ranger et al (1987Ranger et al ( , 1990Ranger et al ( , 1991Ranger et al ( , 1992, using vermiculite as a test-mineral, concluded that simple acidolysis was the main active weathering process in acid brown soils and that acido-complexolysis characterized the (top)horizons of the Podzolic soils. Hatton et al (1987) came to a similar conclusion after incubation of a mixed-layer test-mineral.…”