Plant and soil ecological consultancy
Examples of our services:
Conservation management of species-rich meadows
Restoring species-rich grasslands
Globally unique soils formed on gyprock ('hard gypsum') within gypsum karst landscapes in the north-west Russia are named 'Sulpho rendzinas'.
The typical Sulpho-rendzina has a raw-humus organic horizon and pure gypsum mineral part. The soil cover dominated by these gypsum soils supports species-rich oligotrophic taiga communities - 'open woodlands' - with rare and endangered plants (Gypsophila uralensis etc.).
The high solubility of gypsum means that Sulpho-rendzinas are highly susceptible to the effects of climate change. Soil loss through gypsum dissolution can cause damage to the vegetation cover, and consequently, trigger soil erosion. However, the major threats to gypsum soils and associated gypsum karst ecosystems come from commercial gypsum mining.
Please have a look at
Sulphorendzinas
on
the study sites and
in the laboratory, consider our
findings and
read about the world-wide diversity of soils on gypsum rocks.
Please feel free to
contact
us for discussion!
Open woodland in the gypsum karst landscape.