udic
9.9
Soil that has enough water for plants most of the year
- adjective
- Specialized
:
údico
- The udic soils in the region support a wide variety of crops due to their consistent moisture availability.
Examples
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In climates with a udic moisture regime, plants thrive as they receive enough water for growth all year long.
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Farmers prefer to plant in udic areas because they provide sufficient water throughout the growing season.
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These soils are on upland interfluves, valley side slopes, or old stream terraces, and all are Udults or Udalfs, which indicates a udic moisture regime.
Academic text (1994)
How Wet
Surface Forms
udic positive
Morphology
udic = ud (opaque) = ud + ic
The combining form 'ud' is not a recognizable standalone English base for most learners, so the adjective is not transparently derived from a familiar word despite the productive suffix '-ic'.
Etymology
Udic comes from the Latin word udus, meaning 'wet' or 'moist'. So, udic soil is a name for soil that stays 'wet' enough to give plants water for most of the year.