Basics
What is another term for the layers that make up a soil profile?
Horizons
How long does it take for soil to form in cold and dry regions?
Over 1,000 years
What color are soils that contain plenty of organic material?
Dark brown or black
The nutrients that plants need are mostly in the topsoil. How much of the world's topsoil has been lost during the past 150 years?
Half
How many hectares or degraded land does the Great Green Wall initiative hope to restore by 2030?
100 million hectares
What type of soil texture contains about equal parts of sand, silt, and clay?
Loamy Texture
Yearly, how many tons of fertile soils are lost to erosion?
24 billion tons
Upper layer of soil is called...
topsoil
Why is the best farmland made of granular, loamy soilds?
Because they retain water and nutrients well
The Great Green Wall project is being implemented across several African countries. How many countries involved?
22
What is arable land?
Any land that can be used to grow crops
Some peds look like columns. Name three general ped shapes
Balls, blocks, and plates
When agricultural fields replace natural vegetation, topsoil becomes exposed and can lose moisture. What can then happen to the microorganisms and nutrients within this soil?
The diversity and quantity of microorganisms can decline. Nutrients may wash out.
Define Soil Peds
What does UNCCD stand for?
United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
How does a soil scientists define soil?
The surface mineral and/or organic layer of the earth that has experienced some amount of (physical, biological, chemical) weathering
When was the Great Green Wall initiative launched by the African Union?
2007
Explain why soil begins to appear different from its parent material as it grows older.
Soil is dynamic and its components continually change. Some components are added while others are lost. Some components move from one place to another within the soil. Some components are transformed.
Define Soil Fragments/Clods
Artificial structural units, formed at or near the surface by cultivation or frost action, and are not peds.
What is the name of UNCCD's Campaign to increase awareness about the Great Green Wall?
Growing a World Wonder
UNCCD's campaign describes the Great Green Wall as a compelling symbol of hope that addresses four challenges, including resource- driven conflict. What are the other three challenges mentioned?
Climate change, food security, and migration