The Alpine Soils
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Much of the Alpine Subregion has no soil, the amount of weathered material being too thin to qualify as a soil. Soils in general are weakly developed
Regosolics and Brunisolics.
Regosols are young, undeveloped soils. They occur in all climatic areas, and are composed of a wide variety of textures. They create a loose blanket of material on top of the earth, and that's exactly how they got their name: the Greek word "rhegos" means "blanket".
A few Podzolics have developed under heath communities, especially where a thick layer of
Aeolian material, including volcanic ash, has accumulated.
Podzolic soils are mostly associated with coniferous vegetation like Spruce and Pine trees. The top layer is
generally a pale gray colour, and the lower layers are a darker colour. They form under aerobic conditions where water has the chance to flow freely.
You can find Podzols in a variety of different conditions, including the
Rocky Mountain Natural Region, but they are most common in the Canadian Shield region.
Gleysolics occur in wet sites. Cryosolics
also occur but their extent is poorly known.