A MINERALOGICAL AND CHEMICAL STUDY OF THE DIKELAND SOILS OF NOVA SCOTIA

Abstract

Six profiles taken from the dikeland areas of Nova Scotia were examined chemically and mineralogically. The mineralogy of the various layers was similar within and between profiles, except that the reddish layers contained goethite while the grey layers did not. The latter were very strongly acidic and had an unusually high organic matter content due to burial of undecomposed vegetation by tidal sediments. While they contained no goethite, they had a significant amount of "free iron". It is proposed that where sufficient organic matter was available the grey layers were produced by anaerobic bacterial reduction of the reddish iron oxides.Quartz was the predominant non-clay mineral associated with mica, feldspar and chlorite. The clay fraction consisted of illite with characteristics of muscovite, chlorite similar to "swelling" chlorite, kaolinite and montmorillonite.