Spatial Variabilities Of Soils And Landforms PDF Download

The objective of this research was to evaluate the spatial variability of soil properties on a relatively small upland landscape, with particular attention to variability among and within landscape positions. A conceptual model is presented of soil as a multivariate system that varies due primarily to topographically mediated water movement as interpreted by soil attributes. Sampling was conducted from a series of interlocking transects designed to capture trends within and across landscape positions, and to provide sample sizes adequate for multivariate statistical analysis. Analyses indicate that the distributions of most measured soil properties do not approximate normality. Non-normal distributions have implications for statistical analysis, and reveal information about variability in pedogenic processes. Sampled pedons are classified by landform, by statistical methods, and by Soil Taxonomy. Nonparametric analyses of variance show that pedons on ridge and shoulder landforms are similar, but differ from backslope pedons in various ways. Cluster analysis reveals groups that are related but not identical to landform groups. Taxonomic classification yields a proliferation of classes that are not closely related to landform, and are not meaningful. Discriminant analysis is used to examine the separability of these classes, and to identify the most important discriminating variables.