Soil Conservation
Soil ConservationChapter 2 Section 46th Grade Team
StandardsS6.6.a Sources of energy and materials differ in amounts, distribution, usefulness, and the time required for their formation. S6.6.b Students know different natural energy and material resource including air, soil, rocks, minerals, petroleum, fresh water, wildlife, and forests, and know how to classify them as renewable for nonrenewable. Anticipatory Set Suppose you are traveling west in a covered wagon. You are passing through grasslands called prairies. They are an amazing sight to see. Grass taller than a person rippled and flowed in the wind like a sea of green. The prairie soils of the US took many thousands of years to develop. Prairie soil was once rich with humus, because it was covered in tall grass.
VocabularySod- the thick mass of tough roots at the surface of the soil- kept the soil in place and held onto moisture. Natural resource- anything in the environment that humans use. Soil- conservation- the management of soil to prevent its destruction. Contour plowing- farmers plow their fields along the curves of slopes. Conservation plowing- farmers disturb the soil and its plant cover as little as possible.
Soil as a ResourceSoil is important to all living things on landSoil is in limited supply because it takes a long time to formFertile soil is in limited supply and takes a long time to form, it is considered a nonrenewable resource.Soil Damage and LossThe soil where cotton had been grown was exhausted. So many farmers left their farms.In the 1900s George Washington Carver developed new crops and farming methods to restore fertility to the land. They raised peanuts. A peanut plant has legumes (small lumps on their roots) and those lumps became an important nutrient for that plant.
Loss of Top SoilSoil can be lost to erosion by water or wind. It erodes faster when it is not covered by plants. In the 1800s farmers were settling in the Great Plains and the soil there was fertile. However, rainfall decreased and the region went into a drought. Plowing removed the grass from the Great Plains and exposed the Soil. The topsoil quickly dried out and turned to dust and blew away. Which eventually would lead to the Dust Bowl in 1930.
Dust BowlBy 1930, most of the land had become farms or ranches. The ground had been turned to dust because of the drought. Strong winds began to blow the dust east in great clouds. It reached Chicago and New York City. Soon farmers began taking better care of their land and adopted new ways of farming. Soil ConservationSoil can be conserved through the following:Contour plowing- farmers plow their fields along the curves of slopes. It helps to slow rainfall runoff and to prevent the soil from being washed away.Conservation plowing- farmers disturb the soil and its plant cover as little as possible. Dead weeds are let in the group to help return nutrients to the groundCrop rotation- a farmer plants different crops in a field each year.
Checking For UnderstandingWhat is soil conservation?What is contour plowing?What is conservation plowing?
Guided PracticeIndependent Practice Guided PracticeNTG page 48-49 # 1-5
Independent PracticeNTG pages 49-50 # 6- 15Bill NyeVarious ArtistsTV Theme SongsiTunes 10.6.3Card SharksVarious ArtistsTV Theme SongsiTunes 10.6.3
