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Satumin Borowiec

SATURNIN BOROWIEC

NATURAL CONDITIONS AND ORIGIN OF SOILS DEVELOPED IN THE AREA OF THE FORMER PLEISTOCENE ICE-DAMMED LAKĘ AT PYRZYCE

The origin of soils developed in the area of the former Pleistocene ice-dammed lakę Pyrzyce (near Szczecin) has awaken interest sińce a long time and the views on this problem have been subject to a specific evolution. First of all these soils have been described as chernozems (Hohenstein, Mueckenhausen, Buelow, Stremme),. later on as steppe-like brown forest soils (Hoyningen-Huene, Stremme) and, finally, as black soils (T. Mieczyński, F. Terlikowski i M. Kwinichidze, A. Musierowicz, M. Strzemski).

On a basis of his own observations and field researches as well as an analysis: of literaturę concerning the changes of vegetation and hydrological conditions on the background of climatic changes in the late glacial period and recent times, contemporaneously taking into consideration the influence of man upon them in prehistorie and historie times (archeologie data and historie researches) the author distinguished four types of soils differentiated due to their origin in the area discussed:

a)    the youngest black soils occuring in the lowermost places being clearly influenced by ground waters, developed on Holocene deposits covered by a meadow vegetation;

b)    the older black soils less influenced by ground waters, occuring mainly south-west of the Płonia-valley: their origin is due to a specific forest vegetation dating mainly from the Atlantic and sub-boreal period;

c)    the oldest black soils (chernozems) without any influence of ground waters, occuring mainly north-east of the Płonia-valley: their origin may be related to the influence of a steppe-like vegetation;

d)    brown soils occuring in the highest places mainly in the north-east part of the area, they also are not influenced by the ground waters: their origin is due to a specific forest vegetation.

Translated by Sylwia Gilewska