[1] Frost boils in the Arctic are a manifestation of patterned ground in the form of nonsorted circles. Active frost boils involve convection of water through the soil that can bring basic salts from depth to the surface. As such, active frost boils can mitigate acidification and thereby strongly influence the type of vegetation supported by Arctic soils. The presence or absence of active frost...

To determine the relationship between changes in soil physical properties due to tillage and growth of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) seedlings, we measured soil moisture and penetration resistance for a range of tillage treatments on two Upper Coastal Plain sites in Georgia and correlated these measurements to the growth of individual seedlings. The five tillage treatments were: no-till (NT), ...

Microwave brightness temperature measurements were made over three different bare soils at frequencies of 5 GHz (X = 6 cm) and 1.67 GHz (X = 18 cm) to compare differences in penetration depth according to texture, soil moisture, and wavelength. The soil plots were wetted, and circularly polarized microwave measurements were made during the dry-down cycle. Soil profile temperature and profile mo...

Sorted circles emerge as self-organized patterns from a laterally uniform active layer that becomes laterally sorted as frost heave deforms the interface between a stone layer and an underlying soil layer. In a three-dimensional, cellular model of the active layer, cyclic freezing and thawing drives transport of stone and soil particles by (1) addition of ice particles representing soil expansi...

Soil freezing is a disturbance of the below ground environment, potentially resulting in increased losses of NO3- and surface water acidification. Here, we report the effects of soil freezing on interannual variation in stream chemistry at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, New Hampshire. Data from 1970 to 1997 of soil frost depth, snow cover, precipitation, air temperature, and stream disc...

Soil compaction is an important physical limiting factor for the root growth and plant emergence and is one of the major causes for reduced crop yield worldwide. The objective of this study was to generate 2D/3D soil compaction maps for different depth layers of the soil. To do so, a soil penetrometer was designed, which was mounted on the three-point hitch of an agricultural tractor, consistin...