Soil Science: Terms and Definitions, Quizzes of Geography

Download Soil Science: Terms and Definitions and more Quizzes Geography in PDF only on Docsity! TERM 1 Soils DEFINITION 1 fine material covering the Earths surface composed of both mineral & organic material; dirt TERM 2 Soil Profile DEFINITION 2 the array of soil layers; their sequence from top (surface) to bottom (bedrock) TERM 3 Soil Horizon DEFINITION 3 a distinct layer of soil within the soil profile TERM 4 Soil Properties DEFINITION 4 ColorTexture (clay, sand, silt)structureconsistence (cohesion)porositymoisture TERM 5 Soil Formation DEFINITION 5 an ongoing process of a renewable resource, but not an inexhaustible resource TERM 6 Minerals DEFINITION 6 elements or compounds with a crystalline structure; the building blocks of rocks; found in all soils TERM 7 Organic Matter DEFINITION 7 that part originally from living matter; decaying matter of plants, animals and their waste products TERM 8 Water DEFINITION 8 fills spaces in the soil or forms a thin film around particles TERM 9 Air DEFINITION 9 also fills pore spaces TERM 10 Parent Material DEFINITION 10 the type of rock & minerals the soil was formed fromfactor involved in formation TERM 21 O horizon DEFINITION 21 organic horizon, consisting entirely of organic material; the top most layer where it exist; by addition TERM 22 A horizon DEFINITION 22 uppermost layer developed from parent material; colored dark by organic material from above; by transformation TERM 23 E horizon DEFINITION 23 lighter colored layer just below the A horizon created by depletion downward of certain soil particles TERM 24 B horizon DEFINITION 24 created by translocation of particles from the A & E horizons above; this layer takes the most time to develop TERM 25 C horizon DEFINITION 25 where the parent material is transformed by weathering into soil particles to become future soil; by transformation TERM 26 R horizon DEFINITION 26 where solid rock (bedrock) is first affected by weather; a mixture of large pieces of rock & future soil TERM 27 Solum / Sol DEFINITION 27 the A, E & B horizons; those layers in which plant roots are most active TERM 28 Pedon / Ped DEFINITION 28 column of soil extending from the O horizon into the C horizon TERM 29 Soil Textures DEFINITION 29 size of the particles in the soilan indication of the soils compactness & amount of pore space TERM 30 Loam DEFINITION 30 a term used to describe a soil, similar to a clay or sand, but based on the percent of sand, silt & clay and not on particle size TERM 31 field capacity DEFINITION 31 ability of a soil to hold water against the downward pull of gravity TERM 32 sand field capacity DEFINITION 32 low field capacity TERM 33 clay field capacity DEFINITION 33 high field capacity TERM 34 soil structure DEFINITION 34 the type of arrangement of a soils peds; also plays a role in determining a soils field capacity TERM 35 4 Basic Soil Structures DEFINITION 35 platy, prismatic, blocky/angular, spherodial/granular TERM 46 Andisols DEFINITION 46 developed from volcanic ash TERM 47 Histosols DEFINITION 47 well saturated organic soils TERM 48 Aridisols DEFINITION 48 dry soils found in most desert areas, salinization common TERM 49 Mollisols DEFINITION 49 grassland soils of high agricultural value, such as under the great plains (US) ; thick O horizon TERM 50 Alfisols DEFINITION 50 moderately weathered deciduous forest soils; moist, highly mineral rich soils TERM 51 Spodosas DEFINITION 51 soils of conferious (needle leaf, evergreen pine) forests; highly acidic soils TERM 52 Utisols DEFINITION 52 warm, wet climate soils with a high clay content in the b horizon as found in the se us TERM 53 Oxisols DEFINITION 53 tropical areas with high rainfall ; rain forests, rich in fe al oxides, subject to laterization TERM 54 Gelisols DEFINITION 54 cold & frozen soils subject to cyrtoturbation (frost churning) found at high latitudes & elevations