Lesson 4 Flashcards
How is soil formed
- Weathering
- Erosion
- Deposition
Soil creating is a slow, continuous process. What are the three ways soil breaks down?
Physical
Chemical
Biological
What does weathering do to effect soil
- Reducing the size
- Changing the mineral particles for absorption
- Adding organic material
- Creating horizons
What is the chemical weathering process
Reactions
Explain weathering Biological process
Micro-organism
Insects
Animals
Physical weathering
Physical forces
What in a parent material determines the rate of breakdown during weathering
Minerals in parent material
Hardness of parent material
Porosity of parent material
What determines soil mineral composition
The mineral composition of the parent material
Name some minerals/elements 7
Ca, Mg, Fe, Na (sodium) K (potassium), N (nitrogen), S,
What determines rate of soil within climate
Precipitation
Temperature
Elevation
Latitude
What determines climate and levels of what?
Precipitation and temperature
Elevation and latitude
How does a finer grained soil effect weathering?
- Higher surface area
- Faster weather
- Retains water longer
What is residual parent material
Rocks that weather without being moved
Water is main ingredient
Water must penetrate material
What is the important of water
Distribution rates,
Soil formation rate
Kinds of soil
Precipitation and temperature determine
The kind and amount of vegetation which in turns relates to the rare of soil formation
Rainfall intensity impacts
The amount of run-off which effects erosion and soil destruction
Increase in precipitation leads to
Increasing rates of soil formation
Seasonal rainfall distribution during warm weather is
Better for weathering
With organic matter Weathering In cool-humid climates
Organic matter Is more prevalent
In arid/semi arid climates how is weathering effected
Organic matter accumulates more slowly
Soluble salts accumulate rapidly
Weather takes a lot longer
Three types of parent material rock
- Igneous
- Sedimentary
- Metamorphic
What is rocks crystallize from molten lava
Igneous rock
2 types of igneous rocks
Granite and Basalt
Describe Igneous rock that is slow cooled
Light colored
Course grained
Described igneous rock that was cooled rapidly
Dark color
Fine grained
What is Sedimentary Rocks
Rocks formed by sedimentation from water or pressure and compaction
What are examples of Sedimentary Rock
Sandstone
Shale
Limestone
What is Metamorphic rock
Formed by alteration of igneous or sedimentary rocks under conditions of high temperature and pressure
Example of Metamorphic Rocks
Marble
How is soil moved
Water liquid or ice
Wind
Gravity
What is Glacial till
Unstratified material
Material rock deposited is a mixture of sizes
What is glacier deposits
Materials carried by ice
What sizes in unstratified are
glazer deposits
Clay to boulder size
Ice and water outwash is
Formed by Water during Glacial melt
Stratified material
glacial outwash is stratified or unstratified
Stratified material
What is an alluvium
a deposit of clay, silt, sand, and gravel left by flowing streams in a river valley or delta, typically producing fertile soil.
What are 5 water deposits
Alluvium
Old alluvium
Lacustrine
Coastal
Beach deposits
Alluvium Deposits are
Recent
What is old alluvium deposits
comprises a sequence of very weak to weak quartzo-feldspathic sandstones with conglometric and mudstone horizons in which the upper parts have been weathered to form a silty clay and geavelly sand. Not good for agriculture
Lacustrine deposits
relating to, formed in, living in, or growing in lakes
What are Coastal plain deposits
sediments are the deposits of shoreline environments
What are types of wind deposits LA
Loess
Aeolian
What size is Loess wind deposit
Silt size
What is the size of Loess wind deposit
Mostly silt particles with sand and clay
What is an example of Loess and Aeolian wind deposits
Sand dunes
Volcanic ash
What are the water deposits
Alluvium
Old alluvium
Lacustrine
Costal plain
What are three types of weathering
Organic
Biological
Physical
How is mineral composition determined in soil
The rate of brake down
The climate
The structure of the mineral
What are water deposits
Alluvium, old alluvium, lacustrine, costal plain, beach deposits
What role do plants and organisms play in soil formation
The kind of soil and the rate of formation
Minerals that weather at different rates result in what kind if soil?
Different soils
For water interaction, what determines the rate of breakdown
Temperature and precipitation amount
Increase precipitation leads to
Increasing rates of soil formation and deep soil
For weathering which is better for rain or snow melt
Rain
What are beach deposits
Concentrations of mineral formed by the grinding action of natural forces (wind, wave, or frost) and the selective transporting action of tides and winds.
What is Colluvium deposits
Deposits left by gravity on hillsides
