All About Soil
Classifying soil based on the number of horizons that have developed over time.
What is soil maturity?
This type of rock forms from sediment compacting and cementing together. It usually has layers and/or fossils.
What is sedimentary rock?
This process breaks down rocks into smaller pieces.
What is weathering?
This horizon is made of unweathered solid rock underneath Earth's surface.
What is bedrock?
This form of soil conservation features built in steps of large slopes or hills and allows farmers to grow crops on land that wouldn't naturally support healthy crops.
What are terraces?
This soil texture is smaller than sand and feels like flour.
What is silt?
This type of rock is made when existing rock is exposed to high heat and pressure within the Earth.
What is metamorphic rock?
This process turns magma and lava into igneous rock.
What is cooling?
This horizon contains some nutrients and has very little plant growth. It is typically associated with a reddish color due to the amount of clay found in it.
What is Subsoil?
This form of soil conservation prevents erosion when farmers outline their fields with tall trees or bushes to block heavy winds.
What are windbreaks?
This type of climate is able produce soil the quickest due to the abundant amount of rainfall and plant growth.
What is wet/warm?
or
What is rainforest/tropical?
This type of rock is formed when magma cools slowly beneath the Earth's surface.
What is intrusive igneous rock?
These 2 processes change sediment into sedimentary rock.
What is compaction and cementation?
This horizon contains a lot of nutrients and is usually dark brown or black in color. Lots of plant growth and living organisms can be found here as well.
What is Topsoil?
This form of soil conservation is used to replenish nutrients in soil. Farmers typically change which crop they are growing from year to year so that nutrients are not depleted.
What is crop rotation?
This specific type of soil contains equal parts of all three soil textures.
What is loam?
This type of rock is affected by the rock cycle.
What are ALL types of rocks?
This process must happen to turn any kind of rock into magma.
What is melting?
This horizon has large chunks of rock that have been weathered down some; however, there are no nutrients, plant life, or living organisms found here.
What is Parent Material?
This form of soil conservation allows farmers to leave crop residue in the soil to replenish some nutrients and gives them a break from turning/stirring the soil.
What is no-till farming?
This process allows water to seep into the lower layers of soil so that the soil remains healthy and fertile.
What is leaching?
This type of rock is created when lava cools quickly on the Earth's surface.
This process moves sediment from one location to another location.
What is erosion?
This horizon is made of mostly decaying plants and animals and is not actually soil; instead, it sits on top of the soil.
What is Organic Material?
This form of soil conservation involves planting a crop after harvest to keep the soil in place and add nutrients back into the soil.
What are cover crops?