SOILS

•Great civilizations began because of farming ... good soil and fresh water is needed for farming•Ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian societies are great examples

Egyptian civilization grew up around the fertile Nile River and its Delta

The Sahara Desert, which has poor sandy soil, doesn’t have very many people living there because the people can’t grow things in the soil.

90% of Egypt’s population lives with 20 km of the Nile River or its delta.

•Toronto is Canada's economic, political and cultural powerhouse, it started as a farming centre•51% of Canada's good farmland can be seen from the top of the CN tower; most of it is paved or built on

Where is soil? What is soil made of?

Soil Profile

HUMUS Decaying leaves, needles, grasses, animals, lots of nutrients

SUB SOIL Hard layer, more rocks and clay, fewer spaces for air and water, difficult for plant roots to grow

PARENT MATERIAL

Broken rocks and gravel

TOPSOIL Spongy, rotted plants and animals,

bacteria, earthworms

Soil is made up of four (4) main parts: MOMA!

1. MINERALS:

•come from broken up rock, which is called parent material

•minerals provide nutrients to plants

2. ORGANIC MATERIAL:

•partly decomposed plants and animal material

•forms humus, which provides nutrients

3. AIR

•need air around roots of plants

•air holes are created by worms, insects, small animals

4. MOISTURE

•water dissolves nutrients (makes them like a liquid) so they can be taken up by plants

•helps to break down rock and decay organic material

http://schoolmediainteractive.com/view/object/clip/39AF264E18CC8C8B9159B48583E95449

1.Click on ‘Interactives’2.Select ‘Making Soil Application’3.Complete the activity

Activity #1

http://www.classzone.com/books/ml_science_share/vis_sim/esm05_pg113_soil/esm05_pg113_soil.html

Activity #2

C horizon – parent material – broken pieces of rock and/or solid rock

SOIL PROFILE:

A cross section of soil from the surface to the bedrock.

O – organic material – dying material (plants and animals) – things in the process of breaking down

A horizon – topsoil – rich in organic materials; takes hundreds of years to produce; thin layer

B horizon – sub-soil; mainly inorganic material (broken up rock) with some organic material

What does Humus look like?

O Horizon: Organic Material

What does Topsoil look like?

A Horizon

What does Subsoil look like?

B Horizon

What does the Parent Material look like?

C Horizon

Soil Horizons Quiz!

Question: Soil from rock or from organic material will form in layers that lie ____ to the surface of earth.

Soil Horizons for 1

Answer: parallel

Soil Horizons for 1

Question: The uppermost layer of soil is called the ____ horizon.

Soil Horizons for 2

Answer: 0

Soil Horizons for 2

Question: The “A” horizon is generally _____ than the horizons below and may be from a few inches to several feet thick.

Soil Horizons for 3

Answer: darker

Soil Horizons for 3

Question: The bedrock upon which the other soil horizons rest is called the __ horizon.

Soil Horizons for 4

Answer: “R”

Soil Horizons for 4

Question: This layer is the material from which soil originated.

Soil Horizons for 5

Answer: “C” Horizon

Soil Horizons for 5

LEACHING

•where there is a lot of precipitation

•downward movement of water through soil

•dissolves nutrients and carries downward

•In extreme cases so much is deposited that the soil becomes poisonous to plants

CALCIFICATION

•in drier climates

•water drawn to surface by capillary action

•water evaporates

•Nutrients dissolved in soil water are carried to surface and deposited there as the water evaporates

•can lead to rich topsoil – full of nutrients

Soils in Canada

Soils in Ontario

Soil in P.E.I.