Palynological Reconstruction of the Effects of Holocene Climatic Oscillations and Agricultural Historyon Soils and Landforms in Luxembourg

Holocene deposits in valleys and mardels contain valuable pollen records for the reconstruction of the Holocene Landscape evolution, driven by
climatic oscillations, forest development and agriculture. Before the
Subatlantic, denudation and fluvial discharge were in balance. The Late
Holocene displacement of the Quercetum mixtum into a
Fageto-Quercetum and the introduction of sedentary agriculture at the
expense of forests since the Celtic/RomanTime, stimulated soil erosion.
Accelerated soil erosion in the Subatlantic caused deposition of colluvial
covers on foot slopes and alluvial beds in primary catchments. In addition,
the colluvial deposits in mardels on the Gutland plateau are the result of
Subatlantic soil erosion. The pollen records of the deposits on valley floors
and in mardels show correlations of Subatlantic climatic oscillations with
denudation rate and agricultural management. In particular the Little Ice
Age stands out as a period with increased denudation and temporally
extension of arable land.