88
WALLACE H. FULLER
the aridity but also because of salinity, low fertility, and absence of certain
necessary trace elements for plant growth.
K. MONTE-PATAGONIAN
The Monte-Patagonian Deserts are located in Argentina east of the
Andes Mountain range running north and south almost from one end to
the other. Monte is the northern desert composed of mountains, narrow
valleys, and depressions. The Patagonian Desert is a high latitude east-coast
desert of low tablelands dissected by stream valleys. The high Andes
Mountains to the west are responsible for its dryness.
Soils in the Monte Desert valleys are not unlike those found in North
American deserts. They are gray in color, calcareous and composed of
variably textured materials (Dregne, 1967). Calcium carbonate is present
in accumulated amounts in the subsoil. The valley terraces and flood plains
grow fine crops. Local depressions accumulate salts in some places and
sodium affects productivity under irrigation in some depressions of the
flood plains. Sand does not dune as in the Arabian and Sahara. Certain
closed basins, such as the Salinas Grandes, are fine textured and sodic.
Vegetation is practically absent (Papadakis, 1963).
Foothills at the base of mountains belong to the red desert and desert
group (Vessel, 1946). Coarse and medium fine soils are found usually
with calcium carbonate in the subsoil. Grass appears in the low, wettest
soils and trees are absent except in scattered groves along river bottoms.
Much of the area is covered with resinous bushes such as the Zygophyceae (McGinnies, 1967).
The Patagonian Plain soils develop on cemented gravel deposits as remnants of glacial river action. The surface textures of gravelly loams, sandy
loams and silt loams overlay B horizon of finer material which grades
abruptly into lime-cemented gravel. Along the rivers finer alluvial soils
occur. Saline soils appear in low spots. Isohumic Brown soils occur under
more moist conditions of the eastern side of the desert. Indurated calcium
carbonate called "tosca" is present in some of the brown soils just as
"caliche" is found in the Sonoran Desert soils of North America.
The vegetation is primarily widely spaced Exerophytic clumps of grass
and low, cushion-type shrubs. Low, wet spots support luxurious grass most
of the year.
L. ATACAMA-PERUVIAN
The Atacama-Peruvian Desert is extremely arid to arid. Portions of the
Atacama of Chile, particularly, are the harshest in the world (Cameron
et ai, 1965). The Atacama-Peruvian strip of desert begins along the coast
of Central Chile and continues almost to the northern border of Peru. It
WALLACE H. FULLER
the aridity but also because of salinity, low fertility, and absence of certain
necessary trace elements for plant growth.
K. MONTE-PATAGONIAN
The Monte-Patagonian Deserts are located in Argentina east of the
Andes Mountain range running north and south almost from one end to
the other. Monte is the northern desert composed of mountains, narrow
valleys, and depressions. The Patagonian Desert is a high latitude east-coast
desert of low tablelands dissected by stream valleys. The high Andes
Mountains to the west are responsible for its dryness.
Soils in the Monte Desert valleys are not unlike those found in North
American deserts. They are gray in color, calcareous and composed of
variably textured materials (Dregne, 1967). Calcium carbonate is present
in accumulated amounts in the subsoil. The valley terraces and flood plains
grow fine crops. Local depressions accumulate salts in some places and
sodium affects productivity under irrigation in some depressions of the
flood plains. Sand does not dune as in the Arabian and Sahara. Certain
closed basins, such as the Salinas Grandes, are fine textured and sodic.
Vegetation is practically absent (Papadakis, 1963).
Foothills at the base of mountains belong to the red desert and desert
group (Vessel, 1946). Coarse and medium fine soils are found usually
with calcium carbonate in the subsoil. Grass appears in the low, wettest
soils and trees are absent except in scattered groves along river bottoms.
Much of the area is covered with resinous bushes such as the Zygophyceae (McGinnies, 1967).
The Patagonian Plain soils develop on cemented gravel deposits as remnants of glacial river action. The surface textures of gravelly loams, sandy
loams and silt loams overlay B horizon of finer material which grades
abruptly into lime-cemented gravel. Along the rivers finer alluvial soils
occur. Saline soils appear in low spots. Isohumic Brown soils occur under
more moist conditions of the eastern side of the desert. Indurated calcium
carbonate called "tosca" is present in some of the brown soils just as
"caliche" is found in the Sonoran Desert soils of North America.
The vegetation is primarily widely spaced Exerophytic clumps of grass
and low, cushion-type shrubs. Low, wet spots support luxurious grass most
of the year.
L. ATACAMA-PERUVIAN
The Atacama-Peruvian Desert is extremely arid to arid. Portions of the
Atacama of Chile, particularly, are the harshest in the world (Cameron
et ai, 1965). The Atacama-Peruvian strip of desert begins along the coast
of Central Chile and continues almost to the northern border of Peru. It