Which soil orders are typically characterized by low base saturation, meaning a low concentration of exchangeable cations like calcium and magnesium?

✅Explanation:
Soil orders characterized by low base saturation generally have a low concentration of exchangeable base cations like calcium (Ca2+), magnesium (Mg2+), potassium (K+), and sodium (Na+) compared to acidic cations such as hydrogen (H+) and aluminum (Al3+). These soils tend to form in regions with high weathering intensity and leaching, which depletes base cations over time.

• Ultisols:
-Highly weathered soils with low base saturation.
-Found in humid temperate and tropical regions.
-Typically, acidic with significant leaching of base cations.

• Oxisols:
-Extremely weathered soils found in tropical and subtropical regions.
-Rich in iron and aluminum oxides, with very low base saturation due to intense leaching.

🔑Key Points:
-Oxisols are highly weathered and old soil with the subsurface horizon being highly oxidized. Key processes include leaching and weathering.
-Vertisols are clayey soil with little to no organic matter. They develop cracks in them which help them with proper aeration. They are highly basic in nature and ideal for growing cotton.
-Histosols are very rich in organic matter (20-30%) and are 40 cm thick.
-Entisols lack any other layer except for the A horizon. They are unaltered from their parent rock.