Natural Resources - Soil Comic

Glossary

Soil is a naturally occurring resource that forms under a wide range of conditions. Soil types vary based upon the circumstances and location of formation. The parent materials, typically rocks and minerals, also influences the soil type. The type of soil present at a site depends on parent materials, climate, organisms, topography, and time. On Earth, the thin layer of life-sustaining and supports buildings, catches, and stores much of the water that circulates and provides a means to produce food, fiber, and forest products. With the ability to offer very quickly and not easily replaced once destroyed. The formation of soil on Earth occurs over a long period of many climatic and geographic areas.

Soils & Land Soil Comics

Soils And Land

Soil Comics - Bailey AndersonSoil forming factors

- Affect distribution of soil particles and water.- Slope causes water runoff and potential erosion. - Water moves smaller soil particles down the slope.

- Highly variable rate of fomation.- Different types of parent material weather at different rates. - Climate and topography also influence rate of soil formation.

Topography (Hills and Valleys)

Time

- Macro-organizms (living and dead)--> Sources of organic matter.--> Large plants and animals.- Microorganisms --> Microscopic plants and organisms. --> Primary decomposes of organic material.

ORganisms

- Climate and location affect the rater of weathering --> Temperature --> Rainfall - Weathering breaks down rock into smaller fragments and eventually down to fmaller particles.

Climate

-Original mineral from which soil develops.- Influences soil fertility and turutre. - Sources of parent material:- Minerals and Rocks - Deposits - Glaciers, Wind Water, Organic

Parent MAterial

03

04

05

02

01

+ info

+ info

+ info

+ info

+ info

Soils And Land

Soil Comics - Bailey AndersonSoil Development & Erosion

- Soil changes in place by weathering or microorganism conversion.

Transformation

Soil Foming & Development video

- Movement within soil profice

EROSION

Translocation

- Leaching and Erosion

Reduction

- Accumulation/Deposition

Addition

05

03

04

06

02

01

+ info

+ info

+ info

+ info

+ info

+ info

Climate influences the rate of weathering through temperature and precipitation, which determines how quickly rocks break down, how much organic matter accumulates, and how nutrients are leached from the soil. Soil develops faster in warm, moist climates and slowest in cold or arid ones.

Climate

Organisms break down organic matter, creating pore spaces through burrowing and root growth,releasing chemicals that alter soil composition, and facilitating nutrient cyclng.

Organisms

Organisms inclusing plants, animals, and microorganisms, signifcantly affect soil formation.

Parent Material is the starting point for most soil development. It is the geological material that soil forms from can be bedrock, smaller materials carried by wind, rivers, or glaciers, or lacustrine deposits from lakes.

Parent Material

Topography influences the movement of water across a landscape, leading to variations in soil depth, texture, and nutrient content depending on the slope and aspect of the land. Steeper slopes tend to have thinner, more eroded soils due to increased runoff, while lower areas like valleys accumulate richer, deeper soils from sediment deposition from higher elevations.

Topography

This is a crucial factor because it allows for the gradual breakdown of parent material through weathering processes, leading to the development of distinct soil horizons and a more mature soil profile over long periods. Soil is a dynamic process; it develops over long periods.

Time

Reduction, the opposite of oxidation, is a process that occurs in soil when oxygen is removed, and it can impact soil development in several ways: - Mineral Stability - Humification - Plant Processes - Browning - Soil Phytotoxins - Loaming - Weathering

Reduction

Mixes and adds the edaphic materials and on the other seperates and concentrates them.

Translocation

Physically moving soil particles, organic matter, and dissolved minerals within the soil profile, primarily through water movement, which results in the formation of distinct soil horizons and influences the overall soil structure and fertility by redistributing nutrients throughout the layers.

Additions to the soil, such as organic matter, atmospheric dust, and rainfall, contribute to soil development in every way. Materials being deposited on the soil from above as well as materials moving in from below with rising groundwater.

Addition

Transformation is a process that contributes to soil development in several ways including: Weathering, Decomposition, Chemical & Biological Reactions, and Physical Disintegration. Organic compounds decay, some minerals dissolve, and other minerals precipitate.

Transformation

Bedrock - Unweathered hard rock that lies directly beneath the soil layers or beneath superficial geological deposits. Climate - The long-term average weather conditions. Erosion - The group of processes whereby Earth or rock material is worn away, loosened, or dissolved and removed from any part of the Earth's surface. Formation - Any igneous, sedimentary, or metamorphic rock that is represented as a unit in geological mapping. Infiltration - The process by which water on the ground surface enters the soil. Irrigation - The artificial application of water to soil to increase plant production. Land - A natural part of the Earth's surface characterized by any single factor or combination of topography, climate, soil, rocks, vegetation; the natural landscape. Mineral - Inorganic compound that occurs naturally in the Earth and has a distinctive structure. Organic Matter - Matter found in, or produced by, living animals and plants, which contains carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and often nitrogen and sulfur. Organism - Any living individual whether plant or animal. Slope - The change in elevation for a given horizontal distance of the surface of the Earth, often expressed as a percentage. Soil - The mineral and organic surface of the Earth capable of supporting upland plants. Soil Profile - A verticle section of a soil. Soil Structure - The arrangement of primary soil particles into compound particles or aggregates that are separated from adjoining aggregates. Soil Texture - The relative proportion in a soil of the various size groups of individual soil grains. Topography - Slope of the land and the position on the landscape, such as the top of a hill, a hillside, or the foot of a slope. Topsoil - The surface layer of soil, containing relatively high percentages of decomposed and partially decomposed organic matter. Transformation - The chemical weathering of sand and formation of clay minerals, transformation of course OM into decay resistant organic compounds. Translocation - Movement of soil constituents within the profile and/or between horizons. Weathering - Atmospheric action on rock surfaces producing decomposition, disintegration, or alteration of rock.

Erosion

- The opposite of soil formation is erosion, which has a detrimental effect on soil. - Erosion is a natural process. - Erosion can come in 2 forms: --> Water --> Wind - In what circumstances is soil erosion most likely to happen? --> Steep Ground --> Excessive Water Movement --> Little to no Vegetation --> Wind Blowing Across Bare Soil