Irish Soil Information System National Soils Map

SIS SOIL:The new Irish Soil Information System concludes a 5 year programme, supported by the Irish Environmental Protection Agency (STRIVE Research Programme 2007-2013) and Teagasc, to develop a new 1:250,000 scale national soil map (http://soils.teagasc.ie). The Irish Soil Information System adopted a unique methodology combining digital soil mapping techniques with traditional soil survey application. Developing earlier work conducted by An Foras Talúntais, the project generated soil-landscape models for previously surveyed counties. These soil-landscape (‘soilscape’) models formed the basis for training statistical ‘inference engines’ for predicting soil mapping units, checked during field survey. 213 soil series are identified, each with differing characteristics, having contrasting environmental and agronomic responses. Properties were recorded in a database able to satisfy national and EU policy requirements. The Irish soil map and related soil property data will also serve public interest, providing the means to learn online about Irish soil resources. Use the Symbology layer file 'SOIL_SISNationalSoil.lyr' based on Value Field 'Association_Unit'. SIS SOIL DRAINAGE:In Ireland, soil drainage category is considered to have a predominant influence on soil processes (Schulte et al., 2012). The maritime climate of Ireland drives wet soil conditions, such that excess soil moisture in combination with heavy textured soils is considered a key constraint in relation to achieving productivity and environmental targets. Both soil moisture content and the rate at which water drains from the soil are critical indicators of soil physical quality and the overall functional capacity of soil. Therefore, a natural extension to the Irish Soil Information System included the development of an indicative soil drainage map for Ireland. The soil subgroup map was used to develop the indicative drainage map, based on diagnostic criteria relating to the subgroup categorization. Use the Symbology layer file 'SOIL_SISSoilDrainage.lyr' based on Value Field 'Drainage'. SIS SOIL DEPTH: Soil depth is a measure of the thickness of the soil cover and reflects the relationship between parent material and length of soil forming processes. Soil depth determines the potential rooting depth of plants and any restrictions within the soil that may hinder rooting depth. Plants derive nearly 80 per cent of their water needs from the upper part of the soil solum, i.e. where the root system is denser. The rooting depths depend on plant physiology, type of soil and water availability. Generally, vegetables (beans, tomatoes, potatoes, parsnip, carrots, leek, broccoli, etc.) are shallow rooted, about 50–60 cm; fruit trees and some other plants have medium rooting depths, 70–120 cm and other crops such as barley, wheat, oats, and maize may have deeper roots. Furthermore, rooting depths vary according to the age of the plants. The exact soil depth is difficult to define accurately due to its high variability across the landscape. The effective soil depth can be reduced by the presence of bedrock or impermeable layers. Use the Symbology layer file 'SOIL_SISSoilDepth.lyr' based on Valued Field 'Depth'. SIS SOIL TEXTURE:Soil texture is an important soil characteristic that influences processes such as water infiltration rates, rootability, gas exchanges, leaching, chemical activity, susceptibility to erosion and water holding capacity. The soil textural class is determined by the percentage of sand, silt, and clay. Soil texture also influences how much water is available to the plant; clay soils have a greater water holding capacity than sandy soils. Use the Symbology layer file 'SOIL_SISSoilTexture.lyr' based on Value Field 'Texture'. SIS SOIL SOC:In the previous national soil survey conducted by An Foras Taluntais, 14 counties were described in detail with soil profile descriptions provided for the representative soil series found within a county. Soil samples were taken at each soil horizon to a depth of 1 meter and analyses performed for a range of measurements, including soil organic carbon, texture, cation exchange capacity, pH; however in most cases no bulk density measurements were taken. This meant that while soil organic carbon concentrations were available this could not be related to a stock for a given soil series. In 2012/2013, 246 profile pits were sampled and analysed as part of the Irish Soil Information System project to fill in gaps in the description of representative profile data for Ireland. Use the Symbology layer file 'SOIL_SISSoilSOC.lyr' based on Value Field 'SOC'.