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Soils (week 2)
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| 5 interdependent soil forming factors | 1. parent material 2. climate 3. Biota 4. topography 5. time |
| Parent material | affects the grain size chemical composition affects chemical weathering |
| Lacustrine | deposited in lakes |
| Alluvial (fluvial) | deposited by streams |
| Marine | deposited in oceans |
| Colluvial | uses gravity |
| Till, moraine | deposited by ice |
| Outwash, lacustrine, alluvial, marine | deposited by water |
| Eolian | deposited by wind |
| Biota | - organic matter accumulation - cation cycling - reduction in erosion |
| Biota (cations) | - species differences and plant spacing affects soil nutrient levels - often will go into a patchwork so the clump is able to survive in nutrient poor soils |
| Biota (animals) | earthworms will create a mix within soil layers |
| 4 basic processes of soil formation | 1. transformations 2. translocations 3. additions 4. losses |
| Transformations | constituents altered/destroyed (physically or chemically) |
| Translocations | movement of organic or inorganic materials laterally or vertically (earthworms moving soil) |
| Additions | - input of organic material from above - input of dust - movement of materials upward (ex. salt movement up into the soil profile) |
| losses | - materials lost from the soil profile - leaching removes salts and silica - erosion from the soil surface |
| Horizon L | organic, slightly decomposed - easily tell what is what |
| Horizon F | organic, moderately decomposed - some structures still present |
| Horizon H | organic, highly decomposed - cannot see original structures |
| Horizon A | mineral mixed with humus dark colour if organics pile up zone of eluviation or leaching |
| Horizon Ae | Horizon with max eluviation of silicate clays, Fe, Al, etc |
| Horizon B | most clearly expressed portion of B horizon zone of accumulation |
| Horizon Bc | transition to C, more like B than C |
| Horizon C | zone of least weathering, least affected by soil-forming processes - can collect calcium, Mg, and salts |
| Horizon R | bedrock - to hard to break with your hands |
| Horizon W | layer of water associated with gleyic, organic, and cryosolic soils |
| small particles | when they are smaller, they have more surface area ex. moving from sand to slit |
| Sand characteristics | large, gritty feeling (sand is about the size of fingerprints so you can feel it) |
| Silt characteristics | smooth, flour like (roll into ball and throw up to see if it breaks apart) |
| Clay characteristics | sticky, coats your hands, high surface area |
| Why can clay, silt, and sand become arranged to form aggregates | due to freeze thaw, wet/dry cycles, shrink-swell, plant roots, animals, and machinery |
| Speroidal | often a characteristic of A horizons - subject to rapid changes ex. granule (porous) or crumb (very porous) |
| Plate-like | common in E horizons (often inherited from parent material from compaction) |
| Block-like | common in B horizons (humid regions) ex. can be angular or subangular |
| Prism-like | common in b horizon - likes arid/semi-arid regions ex. columnar - rounded tops ex. prismatic - flat/angular tops |
| Flocculation | aggregates form together from the minerals binding together |
| Soil aggregates volume changes | - clay shrinking - repeated wetting and drying results in network cracks - plants removing water - freeze thaw |
| Soil aggregates biological processes | - burrowing/molding of animals - roots and fungi - production of organic glue (earthworms, etc) |
| Soil aggregates biological processes - Mycorrhizae | glomalin glue molecules together which improve the quality of soil |
| Soil aggregates organic matter | - provides energy to microorganisms (carbon) - polymers help create bridges |
| Tilth | physical condition of the soil in relation to plant growth |
| friability | clods that are not sticky or hard - if you can break the clod it has poor friability |
| How do aggregates form | - organic matter - biota (earth worms, roots, etc) - water (shrinking/swelling) |
| first slide from 2c |
Created by:
Alyssa22122
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