Chernozem (from
Russian:
чернозём,
tr. chernozyom,
IPA: [tɕɪrnɐˈzʲɵm]), "
black dirt" or "
black earth", is a black-coloured
soil containing a high percentage of
humus[1] (7% to 15%), and high percentages of
phosphoric acids,
phosphorus and
ammonia.
[citation needed] Chernozem is very fertile and produces a high
agricultural yield.
Distribution
There are two "Chernozem belts" in the world: from eastern
Croatia (
Slavonia), along the
Danube (northern
Serbia, northern
Bulgaria (
Danubian Plain) and southern
Romania (
Wallachian Plain)), to northeast
Ukraine across the
Black Earth Region and southern
Russia into
Siberia, and the other in the
Canadian Prairies. Similar soil types occur in
Texas and
Hungary. Chernozem layer thickness may vary widely, from several inches up to 60 inches (1.5 metres) in
Ukraine.
[2] The terrain can also be found in small quantities elsewhere (for example, on 1% of Polish territory). It also exists in
Northeast China, near
Harbin.
The sale of agricultural land has been illegal in Ukraine since 1992;
despite this, there is a black market for chernozem soil, sold in
trucks, with approximately
$900 million in annual sale.
[3]
Canadian and United Nations soil classification
Chernozemic soils are a
soil type in the
Canadian system of soil classification and the
United Nations' FAO soil classification.
Chernozemic soil type equivalents, in Canadian, FAO, and
USA soil taxonomy
