SOIL TYPE

ORIGIN CHARACTERISTICS AREAS CROPS GROWN

Alluvial soil

Formed from silt,clay and sand brought down and deposited by the rivers.

Most widespread; best for agriculture and rich in minerals; old alluvium is called bangar and new alluvium is called khaddar.

Ganga plains, coastal plains,and deltas of rivers in peninsular India.

A large variety of Rabi and Kharif crops.

Black Soils

Formed due to weathering of volcanic rocks

Black in colour due to presence of iron. Fine-grained and clayey and can hold moisture for a long time; very fertile; also called regur soils.

North-western part of Deccan Plateau,parts of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh.

Cotton, sugarcane, wheat and jowar.

Red Soils Formed due to weathering of old, crystal- line igneous rocks.

Red in colour due to presence of iron oxides, less fertile but crops can be grown with the help of fertilisers and irrigation.

Southern and eastern parts of peninsular India, particularly in the drier areas.

Wheat, rice, millets and pulses.

Lateric Soils

Formed due to weathering of lateritic rocks.

Red in colour, also called bleached soil because their nutrients get dissolved in rain water and are washed away from away from fertile and unsuitable for agriculture.

Western Ghats, Chhotanagpur plateau and the north-eastern states.

Only scrubs and some grass can grow.

Mountain Soil

Formed due to weathering of sedimentary and metamorphic rocks in the Himalayas.

Varies according to altitude, occurs in meadows, forests and hill soils.

Himalayan region.

Tea, maize and fruits.

Desert Soil

Formed due to weathering of rocks and deposit of wind borne loess.

Dry, coarse and sandy, lacking in humus, high salt content due to high rate of evaporation.

Dry regions in western Rajasthan, northern Gujarat and southern Punjab.

Wheat, millets, pulses and oilseeds with irrigation.

SOILS OF INDIA