The Löss soil on the Wagram is the ideal basis for our wines, it shapes the minerality and helps us with its storage capacity even in dry years, but what is loess actually?
What is Löss?
Loess is our legacy from the Ice Age. In the dry climate of the Ice Age, frost and glacier movements turned rocks and rocks into fine rock powder. It was transported for miles by the wind and could thus be deposited far away from the point of blowing. In some cases, layers of loess several meters thick were formed, so-called cover layers. Properties of loess Loess is a homogeneous, fine-grained sediment that consists mainly of silt and, to a lesser extent, clay and fine sand. It is yellowish in color and contains carbonate. Loess forms the basis for the development of various nutrient-rich soils. The high silt content of loess ensures very good water storage properties.
Loess soils can store up to 250 liters of water per cubic meter of soil, which is completely available to plants. This is about 100 – 150 liters more water per cubic meter of soil than sandy or clay soils can store. The clay mixed into the loess ensures good nutrient availability.
These properties make loess soils very valuable soils, which are particularly suitable for agriculture.
At the same time, however, loess soils are very sensitive: they have a very high tendency to silting and are very erodible.
This means that these soils are particularly at risk from erosion.