Theory question 105
Nigeria: Physical Setting(a) Draw an outline map of Nigeria. On the map, locate and name: (i) three major soil zones (ii) an important crop associated with each zone; (iii) an important town in any two of the zones (b) Describe the characteristic features of any two of the soil zones shown in 5(a)(i) above.
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(a) Map with: northern zone of sandy soils (groundnuts, millet; Kano, Sokoto); middle belt zone of laterite / savanna soils (yams, guinea corn; Jos, Makurdi, Ilorin); southern zone of forest soils, ferrallitic/loamy (cocoa, oil palm, rubber; Ibadan, Benin, Enugu); also coastal swamp/alluvial soils (rice; Port Harcourt).
(b) Sandy soils: loose, light, well drained, low in humus, formed under dry conditions, easily eroded by wind.
Laterite soils: reddish, rich in iron and aluminium oxides, often form hard crust when exposed, low fertility, leached.
Forest soils: dark, rich in humus, loamy, fertile on top but leached by heavy rain, deep.
Alluvial/swamp soils: fine silt and clay, waterlogged, fertile.
Pair each zone with its crop on the map.