Late in the 19th century, scientists Hilgard in the United States and the Russian Dukuchaev both suggested independently that pedogenesis was principally controlled by climate and vegetation. This idea was based on the observation that comparable soils developed in spatially separate areas when their climate and vegetation were similar. In the 1940s, Hans Jenny extended these ideas based on the observations of many subsequent studies examining the processes involved in the formation of soils.
Climate plays a very important role in the genesis of a soil.
At regional and local scales, climate becomes less important in soil formation. Instead, pedogenesis is more influenced by factors like parent material, topography, vegetation, and time. The two most important climatic variables influencing soil formation are temperature and moisture. Temperature has a direct influence on the weathering of bedrock to produce mineral particles. Rates of bedrock weathering generally increase with higher temperatures.