Fill 2 tubes with 25ml of different soil samples…get third sample from another group…

Fill with water to 100ml mark…mix soil and water per instruction handout

Return to seat wait 30 minutes while we take notes

Finish experiment

Soil is the lose covering of rock particles and decaying organic matter(humus)

Results from both physical and chemical weathering

Parent material is the source of the mineral matter in soils

Parent material is important because: It affects the rate

of weathering Chemical

makeup affects the soils fertility

Time-The longer a soil has been forming the thicker it is.

As a soil gets older other characteristics affect the soil more than the parent material

Climate has the greatest affect on soil formation

Variations in temperature and precipitation affect the rate, depth and type of weathering

Plants are the main source of organic matter

Plants release nutrients when they decay. Adds to the soils fertility

Steep slopes have higher erosion. Little water can soak in. Soils are thin on steep slopes

Soils are composed of particles that can be sand, silt or clay sized.

Based on the soils % composition of each type of particle that determines the soils texture

A soil profile is the vertical sequence of soil layers

Soil horizons are the distinct layers in a profile The upper layers

contain more organic material, the bottom layers contain more parent material