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How did glaciers affect the rocks and soils of Finland?

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European Plain Rolling expanse of the European Plain in southern Poland.

The relief and composition of Finland were profoundly shaped by Pleistocene glaciation. As the continental glaciers retreated, they left the underlying Precambrian bedrock littered with various deposits, transforming the landscape.1

The glaciers deposited morainic materials, including eskers—winding ridges of stratified sand and gravel—and large formations like the Salpausselkä ridges. Southern Finland was also thickly covered with a variety of materials, such as boulder-studded clay, gravels, and sands.12

Regarding soil development, the postglacial period resulted in extensive marine and lake deposits of clays and silts, which constitute the country’s most fertile soils. Additionally, the weight of the massive ice sheets depressed the Earth’s crust, a phenomenon that continues to influence the region today as the land undergoes isostatic rebound, gradually emerging from the sea.312

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