Combining quantitative (palaeo-)pedological, palaeo-environmental studies and modelling: an important step on the way to predict soil reactions to environmental change

A study on a Holocene soil chronosequence in S-Norway is used to test the capability of the model SoilGen to model the development of soils with clay illuviation. SoilGen models soil formation as a function of the soil forming factors. Thus, the latter had to be reconstructed for the time span of soil development. The factors ‘relief’ and ‘parent material’ were obtained by field and laboratory analyses, the factor ‘time’ was derived from existing sea level curves, and the factors climate and organisms were obtained from literature and from a recent palaeo-environmental study. The chronosequence has been established on loamy marine sediments, and shows Albeluvisol development with time. Clay illuviation starts within 1650 years. The characteristic albeluvic tongues start to form after 4600 to 6200 years. They develop preferably along cracks. Albeluvic material falls into the cracks, leading to the development of albeluvic tongues, which become deeper and wider with time. Development of pH, CEC and clay content with time as measured in the investigated pedons is compared with the model results in order to check, to which degree model results agree with observed results