Kastanozem (also known as "chestnut soil") is one of the 32 Reference Soil Groups of the

World Reference Base for Soil Resources The World Reference Base for Soil Resources (WRB) is an international soil classification system for naming soils and creating legends for soil maps. The currently valid version is the fourth edition 2022. It is edited by a working group of the Inte ...

(WRB). These soils are brighter than

Chernozems Chernozem (from rus, чернозём, p=tɕɪrnɐˈzʲɵm, r=chernozyom; "black ground"), also called black soil, is a black-colored soil containing a high percentage of humus (4% to 16%) and high percentages of phosphorus and ammonia compound ...

, and are related to the

Mollisols Mollisol is a soil type which has deep, high organic matter, nutrient-enriched surface soil (a horizon), typically between 60 and 80 cm in depth. This fertile surface horizon, called a mollic epipedon, is the defining diagnostic feature of M ...

in the

USDA soil taxonomy USDA soil taxonomy (ST) developed by the United States Department of Agriculture and the National Cooperative Soil Survey provides an elaborate classification of soil types according to several parameters (most commonly their properties) and in sev ...

. They are rich in humus, and originally covered with early maturing native grasslands vegetation, which produces a characteristic brown surface layer in the first meter in depth. They have a relative high level of available calcium ions bound to soil particles and can have a petrocalcic horizon between 25 and 100 cm thick. Kastanozems are found in relatively dry zones with 200 to 450 mm of rainfall a year. The name is derived from the Russian term 'каштановые почвы', where 'каштановые' is a shade of

brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model used ...

derived from the word "каштан" (''kashtan''), "

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

" and refers to the color of its

husk Husk (or hull) in botany is the outer shell or coating of a seed. In the United States, the term husk often refers to the leafy outer covering of an ear of maize (corn) as it grows on the plant. Literally, a husk or hull includes the protective ...

References

* IUSS Working Group WRB: World Reference Base for Soil Resources, fourth edition. International Union of Soil Sciences, Vienna 2022.

. *Encyclopædia Britannica, 2012. Kastanozems.

External links

profile photos (with classification)
WRB homepage
profile photos (with classification)
IUSS World of Soils {{Soil type Types of soil

References

Further reading

External links