Origin, properties and agricultural value of alluvial soils in the Vistula and Pasłęka deltas, north Poland

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the sorptive and air-water properties of alluvial soils of the Vistula and Pasłęka deltas, typologically differentiated in terms of habitat conditions, and to determine their agricultural values. Typical ordinary alluvial soils, humic ordinary alluvial soils, and typical brown alluvial soils were developed from loam, sandy loam and silty clay loam and were located in the oldest part of Żuławy, i.e. 'high' Żuławy (from + 2.5 to + 10.0 m a.s.l.). Typical chernozemic alluvial soils and gleyic chernozemic alluvial soils were formed mainly from silt clay, silt loam and clay loam. They were located mainly in the area of 'transitional' Żuławy (from 0.0 to + 2.5 m a.s.l.), 'low' Żuławy (less than 0.0 m a.s.l.) and in the Pasłęka delta. Chernozemic alluvial soils had greater cation exchange capacity, including base cations, than brown and ordinary alluvial soils. The least favorable air-water relationships were found in ordinary alluvial soils. The volume of macropores in arable horizons of these soils ranged from 3.1% to 4.5%. The ratio of macro-to meso-and micropores was wide: 1: 4.0-5.5: 3.6-5.4, while in chernozemic alluvial soils it was 1: 1.8-2.9: 2.5-3.8. The most favorable air-water relationships were found in arable horizons of typical brown alluvial soils, in which the macro-to meso-and micropores ratio was 1.0: 1.9: 0.7. Ordinary and brown alluvial soils were of 'high' Żuławy were properly or periodically excessively moist, and they are mainly classifi ed as good and medium good arable soils, class RIIIa and RIIIb, of the good wheat soil-agricultural complex. The chernozemic alluvial soils of 'depressive' Żuławy were periodically excessively moist, periodically wet, or permanently wet in the depressive parts of the land. These soils are mainly classifi ed as arable soils medium good, class RIIIb and medium value arable soils, classes RIVa and RIVb, of good wheat soil-agricultural complex and strong forage soilagricultural complex. The alluvial soils particularly rich in fi ne silt and clay fractions (over 60%) in depressive areas should be used as permanent grasslands. The conducted research has shown that the soil conditions in the delta areas of the Vistula and Pasłęka river mouths are closely related to the origin and land hypsometry, which differentiates the water conditions, the grain size of soil formations, their type and thickness.

The Influence of Human Agricultural Activities on the Quality of Selected Fluvisols from the Vistula River Valley, Poland—Preliminary Research

“…The flat, low-lying riparian areas are affected by flooding at more or less regular intervals, which affects their fertility and use [17,18]. At the same time, riverine areas are used for human activities: agriculture, mining, industry, services (including tourism), and for development [18].…”