Soil — it’s what is beneath our feet. Although it is quite literally the ground we walk on, most pay very little attention to the dirt. However, what if we were to take an in-depth look at Pine View’s very own microcosm?
In 1991, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) released a soil survey of Sarasota – a thick, off-white booklet that now belongs to Jason Miller, Pine View’s AP Environmental Science (APES) and marine science teacher.
According to the map in the book, Pine View’s soil is referred to as “depressional Holopaw fine sand.” The USDA states that this type of soil is poorly drained and “formed in sandy and loamy marine sediments.”
Miller, who does investigations into soil types with his APES class, agreed with this assessment.
“Pine View doesn’t really have soil, it’s mostly just sand,” he said. “Any soil that’s around here is probably here because of… landscaping and bringing in bags of soil so they can grow stuff.”
The pH of Pine View’s native sandy soil is on the slightly basic side, according to a soil pH tester. Holopaw sand “ranges from strongly acidic to neutral in the surface layers and from strongly acidic to moderately alkaline in the other layers,” the USDA asserts.
The USDA claims Holopaw is naturally found in flats and depressions in southern Florida. The soil is relatively dark and dry, with very poor drainage. As evidenced by Pine View’s proximity to the coast, Holopaw is formed from sandy marine sediments.
Florida’s reputation for cattle and orange groves can be at least partially attributed to this type of soil. Assuming crops receive the proper amount of water given Holopaw’s lack of moisture and the warm climate, “these [Holopaw] soils are used for citrus, truck crops, and tame pasture,” as stated by the USDA.
Plants native to Holopaw fine sand soil include two types of pine, cabbage palm, and saw palmettos.
“Florida has … a super complicated set of different types of soils,” Miller said.
Among the vast world of Floridan dirt, Pine View has its own exceptional variety.