Pedogeographic characteristics of the karst poljes in Notranjska (Slovenia)

Abstract

In the poljes of the Notranjska valley one can observe a close connection between the relief forms, the parent material, the hydrological environments and the characteristic of the soils. Accordingly we distinguish at least three types of poljes: 1) poljes without gleysols, 2) poljes with gleysols and eutric cambisols, 3) poljes gleysols only. In the smaller poljes streams flows only periodically and on their floors fine grained sediments without ground water are to be found. Therefore there are no gleyic soils. On the floors of those poljes middle deep or deep chromic cambisol is prevailing. The Babno polje and the Rakovsko-Unsko polje can be classified under the first type. The marger poljes are marked by small streams. The waters deposited mostly fine particles of loam clay. The surface streams deposited also bigger fluvial gravel. On the wet loam and clay, gleysols can develop and on the dry gravel, eutric cambisols evolve. The Loško, the Cerkniško polje and the Logaško polje can be classified under the second type. The exception is the Planinsko polje where all the surface waters, feed from karst springs, depositedy only loam-clayey sediments. As the parent material contains the ground water, the result is development of gleysols. For this reason the Planinsko polje can be classified under the third type of poljes.