ABSTRACT
Palynology ƒ The principle of palynological methods is as follows: pollens are extracted from the soil horizons; their species are determined; a pollen diagram is constructed (Fig. 2.1).
According to specialists, the pollens are deposited on the soil surface and then, carried along by water, are stratified in the soil profile. In the present case (Fig. 2.1) there would have been a cold period (pines and birches) giving place gradually to a warmer period (oaks, lime-trees, alders). The method is quite suitable for peats because the organic materials are very well preserved in them. Above all, peats grow upwards. Thus, the newly formed horizons can trap the pollens as and when they are deposited. In other soils, the validity of the method is less clear.
