Hydric Soils Talking Points
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Hydric Soils have water permanently or seasonally. They
also have anaerobic conditions (or absence of Oxygen)
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Classifying Soil:
 Structure: how soil clumps together
 Texture: sand, salt, clay presence
 Color: influenced by organic material in soil
and also types of minerals (Munsell color)
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Iron is the most common mineral that can affect soil color
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Redox: When the Iron (Fe) in the soil encounters Oxygen
(O), it oxidizes (or rusts)
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If soil has Fe present and becomes saturated for too long, it
becomes depleted of O, and Fe minerals become reduced,
which turns the soil a greenish/gray color. These are called
“gleyed” soils.
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Gleyed soils are hydric soils and are usually found in
wetland basins
“Topsoil”
Notes: