Question

Black soil is well-known for which of the following characteristics, aiding crop sustenance during dry seasons?

• A. Its sandy texture that allows rapid water percolation.
• B. Its high concentration of nitrogen and phosphorus.
• C. Its high moisture-retaining capacity.
• D. Its poor fertility requiring constant manure.

Answer 1

Answer:

C. Its high moisture-retaining capacity.

Black soil

• Black soil is formed by the weathering and erosion of volcanic lavas.

• It is known as 'Regur'.

• It is of black colour and best suited for cultivation of cotton. Therefore, it is also known as 'Black Cotton Soil'.

• It spreads over about 5.46 lakhs km2 area.

• It covers most of the Deccan Plateau, which includes Maharastra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and some parts of Tamil Nadu

• Its black colour is due to the presence of magnetite, iron, compounds of aluminium, aluminium silicate, etc.

• During the dry season, these soils develop wide cracks. Thus, there occurs a kind of 'self-ploughing'

• The black soil has high moisture-retaining capacity for a very long time, which helps the crops, especially the rainfed ones, to sustain even during the dry season.

• Cotton, coarse grains, sunflower, oil seeds, vegetables and citrus fruits are grown in it. It is rich in aluminium, calcium and magnesium, iron, lime and potash but poor in nitrogen, phosphorus and carbon compounds