ABSTRACT
From the beginning of colonization New Zealand was mainly an agricultural country; thus interest in soil resources was quite natural. Soil survey, which had been using soil series as mapping units, soon needed a uniform system for the inventory of soil resources. The latest classification (Hewitt, 1998) is designed for large-and medium-scale soil surveys. The classification has national coverage (Table 28.1). The focus on agricultural lands determined the limits of the scope of the classification. Urban and industrial areas are not included, nor are bare rock or underwater sediments. Soils deeply transformed by agriculture are included in a special order of Anthropic soils.
