Chapter 9 - Soil and Agriculature

Question 1

no-till

Answer 1

agriculture that does not involve tilling (plowing, digging, harrowing, or chiseling) the soil. the most intense form of conservation fatique

Question 2

cover crops

Answer 2

a crop that covers and anchors the soil during times between main crops, intended to reduce erosion

Question 3

agriculture

Answer 3

the practice of cultivating soil, producing crops, and raising livestock for human use and consumption

Question 4

cropland

Answer 4

land that people use for raising plants for food and fiber

Question 5

rangland

Answer 5

land used for grazing livestock

Question 6

sustainable agriculture

Answer 6

agriculture that can be practiced in the same way and in the same place far into the future. sustainable agriculture does not deplete soils nor reduce the clean water and genetic diversity essential to long-term crop and livestock production

Question 7

substance agriculture

Answer 7

the oldest form of traditional agriculture in which farming families produce only enough food for themselves

Question 8

industrial agriculture

Answer 8

a form of agriculture that uses large-scale mechanization and fossil fuel combustion, enabling farmers to replace horses and oxen with more powerful means of cultivating, harvesting, transporting, and processing crops. other aspects include irrigation and the use of inorganic fertilizers, the use of chemical herbicides and pesticides reduce competition from weeds and herbivory by insects

Question 9

traditional agriculture

Answer 9

biologically powered agriculture in which human and animal muscle power, along side with hand tools and simple machines, perform the work of cultivating, harvesting, storing, and distributing crops

Question 10

monocultures

Answer 10

the uniform planting of a single crop over a large area

Question 11

polyculture

Answer 11

the planting of multiple crops in a mixed arrangement or in close proximity. an example is some traditional native american farming that mixed maize, beans, squash, and peppers

Question 12

parent material

Answer 12

the base geological material in a particular area

Question 13

bedrock

Answer 13

the continuous mass of solid rock that makes up earth’s crust

Question 14

weathering

Answer 14

the process by which rocks are broken down, turning large particles into smaller particles. weathering may proceed by physical, chemical, or biological means

Question 15

humus

Answer 15

a dark, spongy, crumbly mass of material made up of complex organic compounds, resulting from the partial decomposition of organic matter

Question 16

horizon

Answer 16

a distinct layer of soil

Question 17

soil profile

Answer 17

the cross-section of a soil as a whole, from the surface to the bedrock

Question 18

leaching

Answer 18

the process by which solid materials such as minerals are dissolved in a liquid (usually water) and transported to another location

Question 19

irrigation

Answer 19

the artificial provision of water to support agriculture

Question 20

waterlogging

Answer 20

the saturation of soil by water, in which water table is raised to the point that water bathes plant roots. Waterlogging deprives roots of access to gases, essentially suffocating them and eventually damaging or killing the plants

Question 21

salinization

Answer 21

the buildup of salts in surface soil layers

Question 22

fertilizer

Answer 22

a substance that promotes plant growth by supplying essential nutrients such as nitrogen or phosphorus

Question 23

organic fertilizer

Answer 23

a fertilizer made up of natural materials (largely the remains or wastes of organisms), including animal manure; crop residues, fresh vegetation, and compost

Question 24

compost

Answer 24

a mixture produced when decomposers break down organic matter, such as food and crop waste, in a controlled environment

Question 25

conservation reserve program

Answer 25

U.S. policy in farm bills since 1985 that pays farmers to stop cultivating highly erodible cropland and instead place it in conservation reserves planted with grasses and trees