Soil Profile
Soil Properties
Soil Types
Mechanical or Chemical
100

This layer is composed of minerals & organic matter.

What is top soil?

100

This material gives soil its dark color & increases fertility.

What is humus?

100

What type of soil is made up of small grains of worn down rock that doesn't hold water?

What is sand?

100

A plant root grows through concrete

Mechanical weathering

200

This layer serves as the BASE for creating soil.

What is bedrock?

200

How is soil formed?

Rock erodes and is weathered into tiny pieces and is mixed with organic matter

200

What type of soil holds a lot of water very well and has nutrients?

What is Clay?

200

A marble statue left exposed outdoors weathers away due to acid rain

Chemical

300
What is the layer of soil called that contains decayed animals and plants?

What is Humus?

300

This layer of soil does not have humus and can hold some water

What is Subsoil?

300

This is what happens when weather, water, & living organisms break down rocks and create soil.

What is Weathering

300

A nail rusting in water

Chemical

400

This layer is made of broken rocks of various sizes as well as deep root systems.

What is Subsoil?

400

This characteristic determines how much air & water the soil can contain.

What is soil particle size?

400

This is the movement of soil or rocks by wind or water.

What is erosion?

400

What is a characteristic of clay particles

Water drains slowly, small particles that stick together, cracks when dry, holds water and nutrients.
500

Soil is made up of... (Name 3 things that make up soil)

What are minerals, air, water, and organic material

500

This property causes soil to be acidic or alkaline.

What is PH

500

What layer of the soil is the oldest?

Bedrock

500

What does the soil tell us about the Earth?

Answers may vary