alkali soil

American  

noun

1. soil that has either a high degree of alkalinity or a high percentage of sodium, or both, so that most crops cannot be grown in it profitably.

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alkali soil British  

noun

1. a soil that gives a pH reaction of 8.5 or above, found esp in dry areas where the soluble salts, esp of sodium, have not been leached away but have accumulated in the B horizon of the soil profile

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Etymology

Origin of alkali soil

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

Farther on, even the green patches disappeared and white alkali soil showed between the gnarled sage bushes.

From The Texan A Story of the Cattle Country by Hendryx, James B. (James Beardsley)

On the other hand, an excess of soluble magnesium salts in the soil produces definite toxic effects upon plants, magnesium compounds being known to be among the most destructive of the "alkali soil" salts.

From The Chemistry of Plant Life by Thatcher, Roscoe Wilfred

He was on the main road now and the dry alkali soil, being unsuitable for any kind of cultivation, opened up in great vistas of space.

From Wang the Ninth The Story of a Chinese Boy by Putnam Weale, B. L. (Bertram Lenox)

The dull-eyed horses stood with drooping heads, too thirsty and too tired to hunt for the straggling spears of grass and salt sage which grew sparsely in the alkali soil.

From 'Me--Smith' by Hoskins, Gayle Porter