Chapter 8 Vocabulary Flashcards
Compostings
The process of letting organic wastes decompose in the presence of air
Compaction
Packed down; packing and pressing out air spaces present in the soil; reduces soil aeration and infiltration and thus diminishes the capacity of the soil to support plants
Contour strip cropping
The practice of growing crops in strips alternating with grass (hay) at right angles to prevailing winds or slopes on order to reduce erosion
Desertification
The formation and expansion of degraded areas of soil and vegetation cover in arid, semiarid, and seasonally dry areas, caused by climatic variations and human activities
Erosion
The process of soil particles being carried away by wind or water; moves the smaller particles first and hence degrades the soil to a coarser, sandier, stomper texture
Horizons
The layers in soil (I think)
Humus
A darn brown or black, soft, spongy residue of organic matter that remains after the bulk of dead leaves, wood, or other organic matter has decomposed; humus does oxidize, but relatively slowly; it is extremely valuable in enhancing the physical and chemicals properties of soil
Inorganic fertilizer
Fertilizer, also called chemical fertilizer, that is a mixture of one or more necessary nutrients in inorganic chemical form
Irrigation
Any method of artificially adding water to crops
Leaching
The process in which materials in or on the soil gradually dissolve and are carried by water seeping through the soil; may eventually remove valuable nutrients from the soil, or it may carry buried wastes into groundwater, thereby contaminating it
Loam
A soil texture consisting of a mixture of about 40% sand, 40% silt! and 20% clay; usually good soil
No-till agriculture
The farming practice in which weeds are killed with chemicals (or other means) and seeds are planted and grown without resorting to plowing or cultivation; the practice is highly effective in reducing soil erosion
Organic fertilizer
Fertilizer that is natural organic material, such as manure, that releases nutrients as it breaks down
Overcultivation
The practice of repeated cultivation and growing of crops more rapidly than the soil can regenerate, leading to a decline in soil quality and productivity
Overgrazing
The phenomenon of animals grazing in greater numbers than the land can support in the long term
Salinization
The process whereby soil becomes saltier and saltier until, finally the slat prevents the growth of plants; caused by irrigation. Because salts brought in with the water remain in the soil as the water evaporates
Shelterbelts
Rows of trees around cultivated fields for the purpose of reducing win erosion
Soil classes
Taxonomically arranged major groupings of soil that define the properties of the soils of different regions
Mineralization
The process of gradual oxidation of the organic matter (humus) present in soil that leaves just the gritty mineral component of the soil
Soil profile
A description of the different naturally formed layers, called horizons, within a soil
Transpiration
The loss of water vapor from plants; water evaporates from cells within the leaves and exits through the stomata
Soil texture
The relative size of the mineral particles that make up the soil; generally defined in terms of the soil’s sand, silt, and clay content
Castings
Earthworm excrements
