Soils

soil

Combination of minerals, water, and air.

Soil Composition

25% air 25% water 45% mineral matter 5% organic matter

Detritus

Fragments of organic matter(plant)

Mineral Particles

Minerals of soil (silt, clay, and sand)

Detritus Food Web

humus, nitrate fixation (organisms)

Texture 

diffrent particle sizes (Sand, Slit, and Clay)

Loam

perfect mixture for plant life

Structures

Platy, Prismatic, Blocky, Spheroidal

Soil Profile

vertical slice of all soil horizons

horizons

horizontal layers of soil

O Horizon

top layer of soil, with dead matter(detritus), and primary source of energy

A Horizon

2nd top soil horizon, has fine roots, dark, and takes centuries to form

E Horizon

pale layer, below A, zone of elevation and leaching due to the downward water movement

B Horizon

below E(subsoil), has a lot of minerals, elements and a & e minerals

C horizons

below B, history of the geological  process that created the landscape, unaffected by chemical processes, unweathered material(under)

Mineral Nutrients

can’t support normal plant growth(detritus provides most  nutrients)

Leaching

Nutrients washed away by water, pollutes water

Nutrient - Holding Capacity

soils capacity to holding nutrients until it’s fully absorbed

fertilizer

nutrients added to replace what was lost

Organic Fertilizer

plant or animals waste

Inorganic fertilizer

chemical formulas of nutrients(prone to leaching and has no organic matter)

Infiltration

water soaks into soil

water holding capacity

soils ability to hold water after it infiltrates

poor holding capacity

water percolates below root level (sandy soil), water evaporation depletes soil

Soil Constrains

characteristics that limit soil productivity(poor drainage/ hydromorphy, lvls of elements, cracking from dry clay, salt, ph, shallowness, erosion)

Soil Community

have nutrients, allow infiltration, resist water loss, allow aeration, near neutral pH, and low salt

mycorrhizae

symbiotic relationship between the roots of pants and certain fungi

Nematodes

small worms that feed on roots 

NO₃

is organic when nitrogen is with oxygen(can be used by plants)