Deck 1 Flashcards
What are some ecosystem services soils do?
Soul filters our water, provides essential nutrients to the forests and crops, and regulates the Earth’s temperature.
What is Land Capability Classification?
a system of grouping soils primarily on the basis of their capability to produce common cultivated crops and pasture plants without deteriorating over a long period of time
How many classes are there in capability classification?
8 classes and 4 subclasses
Class 1
soils have slight limitations that restrict their use
Class 2
soils have moderate limitations that reduce the choice of plants or require moderate conservation practices
Class 3
soils have sever limitations that reduce the choice of plants or require special conservation practices, or both
Class 4
soils have very severe limitations that restrict the choice of plants or require very careful management, or both
Class 5
soils have little or no hazard of erosion but have other limitations, impractical to remove, that limit their use mainly to pasture, range, forestland, or wildlife food and cover
Class 6
soils have severe limitations that make them generally unsuited to cultivation and that limit their use mainly to pasture, range, forestland or wildlife, food and cover
Class 7
soils have very severe limitations that make them unsuited to cultivation and that restrict their use mainly to grazing, forestland, or wildlife.
Class 8
soils and miscellaneous areas have limitations that preclude their use for commercial plant production and limit their use to recreation, wildlife, or water supply or for aesthetic purposes
Subclass e
made up of soils for which the susceptibility to erosion is the dominant problem or hazard affecting their use
Subclass w
made up of soils for which excess water is the dominant hazard or limitation affecting their use
Subclass s
made up of soils that have soil limitations within the rooting zone
Subclass c
made up of soils for which the climate is the major hazard or limitation affecting their use.
What does the subclass represent
the dominant limitation that determines the capability class
What category class are subclasses not assigned to
class 1
Subclass e is not assigned to have class
class 5
What is integrated pest management (IPM)
an effective and environmentally sensitive approach to pest management that relies on a combination of common sense practices
What are the four steps to IPM
- Set action thresholds. 2. Monitor and Identify Pests. 3. Prevention. 4. Control
What are the horizons of the soil.
OAEBCR
What is the O horizon
Mostly organic matter such as decomposing leaves. The O horizon is thin in some soils, thick in others, and not present at all in others.
What is the A horizon
(topsoil) Mostly minerals from parent material with organic matter incorporated. A good material for plants and other organisms to live.
What is the E horizon
(eluviated) Leached of clay, minerals, and organic matter, leaving a concentration of sand and silt particles of quartz or other resistant materials – missing in some soils but often found in older soils and forest soils.
What is the B horizon
(subsoil) Rich in minerals that leached (moved down) from the A or E horizons and accumulated here.
What is the C horizon
(parent material) The deposit at Earth’s surface from which the soil developed.
What is the R horizon
(bedrock) A mass of rock such as granite, basalt, quartzite, limestone or sandstone that forms the parent material for some soils – if the bedrock is close enough to the surface to weather. This is not soil and is located under the C horizon.
What is soil?
Soil is a complex, self-renewing, living system. It is a vital natural resource. It is the resource that most terrestrial life depends on directly or indirectly for survival. It is a
composite of inorganic minerals, organic humus, living organisms, moisture, and air. Soils are the product of interactions between abiotic and biotic processes and take thousands of years to form.
What is a wetland
areas where water covers the soil, or is present either at or near the surface of the soil all year or for varying periods of time during the year, including during the growing season.
What is the difference between tidal wetlands and nontidal wetlands
Tidal wetlands connect with the ocean while nontidal wetlands do not.
