A Toposequence of Soils in the Karst of West-Central Florida, U.S.A

An abundance of information is available regarding soil horizons and their characteristics. Several methods can be used to gather and analyze this information. Through the use of qualitative analysis in the field, and laboratory and statistical analysis, a soil can be compared and analyzed with a great deal of scrutiny. Four soil pits were excavated in Citrus County Florida and samples were collected from each master horizon. Through the use of qualitative and quantitative analysis these samples were compared and analyzed in order to identify unique, as well as homogeneous features. It was determined that the soil profile designated Old Pit was different than other profiles because of landscape position and variations in parent material. Landscape position (ie. slope position) also influenced the genesis and evolution of the soils in the other three profiles(Profile 1, 2 and 3).