The Soils of the Hills and Mountains

Abstract

Soils of the hills and mountains are defined to be those found in areas with altitude above 300 m above sea level and slope of 18 % and above. They were developed from various rocks mostly shale and sandstone, basalt and andesite, and limestone. Major land uses in these soils include forest, grasses, and shrubs. In areas where springs abound, soils are cultivated for upland crops such as rice, corn, sugarcane, fruit trees, and vegetables. The uncultivated areas are either covered with grasses or second growth forest with some primary forest. In general, soils in this group are acidic and are low in fertility, they have steep slope, and are prone to erosion. The soils of the hills and mountains are similarly grouped as in the upland soils. As these soils occur mostly in high elevation and slopes, these soils can also be found in the lower elevations and gentler slopes. But these are considered as hill and mountain soils on the basis of how they were first described and mapped. The soils are grouped according to their parent materials—igneous, sedimentary, or metamorphic. As in the upland soils, although tuff is considered igneous, we have separated the tuff-derived soils because of research interest on these soils. Owing to their high elevation and the natural downward movement of water, the soils are mostly well-drained. There are also fairly drained and poorly drained soils that exhibit redoximorphic features.