Definition of "greensand"

The numerous beds of coarse Oolites, which in England in general occur below the lyas and greensand, are entirely wanting in Ireland: But this is the case also in the neighbourhood of Lime-Regis in Dorsetshire, which place affords an exact counterpart of the Irish series here described.

1817 November, “Art. IV. Transactions of the Geological Society, Established November 1807. Vol. III. 4to. pp. 444. W. Phillips, London, 1816. [book review]”, in The Edinburgh Review, or Critical Journal, volume XXIX, number LVII, Edinburgh: Printed by David Willison, for Archibald Constable and Company, Edinburgh; London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, published 1818, page 77

The Sassafras soils occur on the Atlantic coastal plain from the mouth of Chesapeake Bay to Long Island. They are developed from coastal-plain materials consisting of sand and clay, free from lime carbonates or greensand.

1927, L[inwood] L[awrence] Lee, J. E. Tine, “Collington Loam”, in Soil Survey of the Freehold Area, New Jersey (United States Department of Agriculture Series 1927; no. 33), [Washington, D.C.]: Bureau of Chemistry and Soils [United States Department of Agriculture] in cooperation with the Department of Conservation and Development of New Jersey and the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, page 15

Glauconite occurs as granules which may be mixed in all proportions with ordinary sand. Some greensands contain over fifty percent glauconite. The glauconite may be concentrated in certain laminations or scattered throughout the sand. If abundant enough, it imparts a speckled appearance to the rock.

1972, F[rancis] J[ohn] Pettijohn, Paul Edwin Potter, Raymond Siever, Sand and Sandstone, Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag; republished Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 1984 (5th printing), page 228

Some filtering materials are used for special purposes rather than general use. One such material is greensand, sometimes referred to as "manganese greensand." […] [M]anganese greensand is produced when greensand (the mineral glauconite, a natural zeolite) is treated with manganous sulfate followed by potassium permanganate. This process forms a manganese-coated greensand, which can remove soluble iron and manganese. When the removal capacity of the manganese greensand is exhausted, it can be restored by soaking the filter bed in potassium permanganate. In many water treatment plants, potassium permanganate is continuously fed into the influent water, so the manganese greensand can be continuously regenerated.

2002, Gary S. Logsdon, Alan F. Hess, Michael J. Chipps, Anthony J. Rachwal, “The Regulatory Environment”, in Filter Maintenance and Operations Guidance Manual, [Denver, Colo.]: Awwa Research Foundation and American Water Works Association, page 11-3

A useful product called greensand (glauconite) is mined from petrified seaweed deposits. In addition to potassium, greensand contains a whole range of trace elements, also called micronutrients, which are minor minerals like iron, sulfur, zinc, copper, and boron. We call them minor because they are only needed in small amounts by plants, but they are nonetheless vital to plant health and vigor.

2013 February, Barbara Damrosch, Eliot Coleman, “The Soil”, in The Four Season Farm Gardener’s Cookbook: From the Garden to the Table in 120 Recipes, New York, N.Y.: Workman Publishing Company, part 1 (The Garden), page 26