caliche

A noun referring to a hardened layer of subsoil encrusted with calcium carbonate, found in arid regions, or a nitrate-bearing rock or gravel from sodium nitrate deposits in Chile and Peru.

• 🌐اسم يشير إلى طبقة متصلبة من التربة السفلية مغطاة بقشرة من كربونات الكالسيوم توجد في المناطق القاحلة، أو إلى صخر أو حصى يحمل نترات الصوديوم في شيلي وبيرو.

1. Hard subsoil crust C1 formal

   A hardened layer of soil found in dry regions, often containing calcium carbonate.

   • Farmers in the desert struggled to break through the caliche layer.
   • The caliche made it difficult for plant roots to penetrate the ground.
   • Construction crews had to use special equipment to dig through the caliche.

   🌐كلسية

   المرادفات: hardpan

2. Nitrate-bearing deposit C2 formal

   A mineral deposit containing sodium nitrate, found in the deserts of Chile and Peru.

   • The caliche deposits in the Atacama Desert were a major source of nitrates.
   • Miners extracted caliche for use in fertilizers and explosives.
   • The region's economy once relied heavily on caliche mining.

   🌐كاليتشي

• caliches plural form
• caliches' possessive plural form
• caliche's possessive singular form