The objective of the present study is to reveal the composition and characteristics of organo-mineral complexes in red soils (red soil, lateritic red soil and latosol) of south China in terms of chemical dissolution and fractional peptization methods. In the combined humus, most of the extractable humus could dissolve in 0.1 M NaOH extractant and belonged to active humus (H1), and there was only a small amount of humus which could be further dissolved in 0.1 M Na4P2O7 extractant at pH 13 and was stably combined humus (H2). The H1/ H2 ratio ranged from 3.3 to 33.8 in red soils, and the proportions of both H, and total extractable organic carbon (H1+H2) in total soil organic carbon and the ratios of H1 to H2 and H1 to (H1 +H2) were all higher in lateritic red soil and latosol than in red soil. The. differences of combined humus composition in various red soils were directly related to the content of Fe and Al oxides. In organo-mineral complexes, the ratio of Na-dispersed fraction (G1) to Na-ground-dispers The objective of the present study is to reveal the composition and characteristics of organo-mineral complexes in red soils (red soil, lateritic red soil and latosol) of south China in terms of chemical dissolution and fractional peptization methods. In the combined humus, most of the extractable humus could dissolve in 0.1 M NaOH extractant and belonged to active humus (H1), and there was only a small amount of humus which could be further dissolved in 0.1 M Na4P2O7 extractant at pH 13 and was stably combined humus (H2) . The H1 / H2 ratio ranged from 3.3 to 33.8 in red soils, and the proportions of both H, and total extractable organic carbon (H1 + H2) in total soil organic carbon and the ratios of H1 to H2 and H1 to (H1 + H2) were all higher in lateritic red soil and latosol than in red soil. The differences of combined humus composition in various red soils were directly related to the content of Fe and Al oxides. In organo-mineral complexes, the ratio of Na- dispersed fraction (G1) to Na-ground-dispers