1. Unit C Basic Principles of Agricultural/Horticultural Science.

2. Problem Area 1. Using Basic Soil Science Principles

3. Understanding Soil Formation Lesson 2

4. Interest Approach n Ask two students to sit or stand in front of the class. n Ask the class if the students are exactly the same. n Responses should be a resounding No! n Ask the class what makes the students different from each other.

5. Learning Objectives n Identify five factors involved in soil formation. n Describe different types of parent material. n Explain topography and how it affects soil formation. n Explain how organisms affect soil development. n Describe how time and weathering affect properties of soil. n Explain how climate affects the development of soil.

6. Important Terms n Alluvium n Bedrock n Chemical weathering n Climate n Glacial till n Loess n Native vegetation n Organic matter n Outwash n Parent material n Physical weathering n Prairie soils n Timber soils n Topography

7. Identify five factors involved in soil formation. n There are five primary factors that affect the process of soil formation and development. –Parent material –Climate –Living organisms –Topography –Time or weathering

8. Parent material n Type of rock material the soil is formed from.

9. Climate n Temperature and moisture characteristics of the area in which the soil was formed.

10. Living organisms n The organisms, including plant material, that live within the soil.

11. Topography n Slope characteristics of the soil.

12. Time or weathering n Age of the soil and its climate.

13. What are some different types of parent material that affect soils? n Parent materials are formed by the disintegration and decomposition of rock. n They are classified according to the way they were moved and scattered.

14. What are some different types of parent material that affect soils? n Most soils in Illinois have been formed from material originally moved by glaciers. n Two major glaciers, the Illinoisan and the Wisconsinan, had the greatest influence on present day soils in Illinois. –Later, the Wisconsinan glacier covered slightly more than the northeastern third of Illinois.

15. What are some different types of parent material that affect soils? n The Illinoisan glacier occurred thousands of years before the Wisconsinan glacier and covered nearly the entire state. n Soils in southern Illinois are much older and less productive than those in northern Illinois.

17. Soils of glacial origin are classified as follows: n Loess: About 64% of the soil in Illinois has been formed from loess. n It has developed some of the best soil in the state. n Loess occurred from the blowing of the soil after the glaciers melted and dried.

18. Soils of glacial origin are classified as follows: n Loess is the most desirable single soil parent material. n This is due to its well-balanced mineral content, medium texture, and excellent water-holding capacity.

19. Soils of glacial origin are classified as follows: n Outwash: About 16% of the soil in Illinois has been formed from outwash. n It is most extensive in northern Illinois. n Outwash soils occurred when the glaciers melted.

20. Soils of glacial origin are classified as follows: n The melt waters carried the gravelly materials away to be deposited below the glacial ridges. n Sandy outwash was carried further downstream and the finer materials, silt and clay, were deposited in lakebeds or slow moving water along streams.

21. Soils of glacial origin are classified as follows: n Glacial till about 11% of the soil in Illinois is from glacial till. n It is found primarily in northeastern Illinois. n It often contains a variety of sizes of soil particles.

22. Soils of glacial origin are classified as follows: n These soil particles have not been layered from the effects of wind or water as the other two types of glacial soils. n Pebbles and various sizes of boulders are common in till.

23. Soils of glacial origin are classified as follows: n About 7% of the soil in Illinois is a result of recent sediments deposited by streams as they flood. n It is referred to as alluvium. n Alluvium is generally a water-borne material deposited on bottomlands.

24. Bedrock n Bedrock most of the shale, sandstone, or limestone bedrock in Illinois is buried by loess, glacial till, outwash, or alluvium. n However, in the unglaciated areas of north-western and extreme southern Illinois, weathered bedrock has provided soil parent material.

25. Bedrock n About 2% of the soils in Illinois can be accounted from bedrock or thinly covered bedrock.

26. Organic Matter n Organic matter: less than 1% of the soils in Illinois are classified as organic. –Organic soils occur where formerly shallow ponds supported swamp vegetation. –The wet conditions slowed decay of the dead plants so that organic matter could accumulate. –The two types of organic soils are referred to as peat and muck. –Muck is more decomposed than peat.

28. What is topography and how does it affect the development of soil? n Topography refers to the slope characteristics of a soil. n It includes the degree or steepness, length, shape, and direction of a slope.

29. What is topography and how does it affect the development of soil? n These factors influence the amount of rainwater runoff, or the amount that enters the soil or collects in small depressions on the soil surface. n Soils on steep slopes have higher amounts of runoff and erosion than those on level topography.

30. How do living organisms affect the development of soil? n Organisms that live in soil like plants, insects, and microbes actively affect soil formation. n The greatest affect on the development of soil is from plants that once grew in it. n This is referred to as native vegetation. n It determines the kind and amount of organic matter in the soil.

31. How do living organisms affect the development of soil? n In Illinois, there are two primary types of native vegetation, –tall prairie grass --- prairie soils –deciduous-hardwood forests--timber soils.

33. How do living organisms affect the development of soil? n Prairie soils have a dark and deep surface layer. n This is because roots from the prairie grass filled the top of the soil to a depth of 1 to 2 feet or more. n Partial decay of these roots over a long period of time gave these soils a high organic matter content.

34. How do living organisms affect the development of soil? n Timber soils tend to have a thin, moderately dark layer. n This is due to organic matter accumulating on the surface where decay occurs more rapidly. –When tilled, this dark material is mixed with the soil below to produce a lighter color.

35. How do living organisms affect the development of soil? n Other living matter that influences the development of soil includes various kinds of animal life. n Earthworms, crawfish, ground squirrels and other burrowing animals, and various insects which incorporate organic matter into the soil are examples.

36. What is weathering? How does weathering and time affect soil? n There are two types of weathering: –1. Physical weathering –2. Chemical weathering

37. How does weathering and time affect soil? n Physical weathering the effects of climatic factors such as temperature, water, and wind. n Freezing and thawing is a major contributor to physical weathering.

38. How does weathering and time affect soil? n Chemical weathering changes the chemical makeup of rock and breaks it down. n Rainwater is mildly acidic, and can slowly dissolve many soil minerals. –Some minerals react with oxygen in the atmosphere. –Oxidation further acts to decompose rock.

39. How does weathering and time affect soil? n Weathering causes soil to: –Develop rapidly, plant nutrients are released, and organic matter accumulates. n Soils will develop faster in humid regions than in arid regions.

40. How does weathering and time affect soil? –Mature soil is at peak productivity with a high amount of organic matter. n Water begins leaching away nutrients and plant growth starts to decline. n This results in less organic matter. –Minerals continue to break down and clay is leached into the subsoil. n The soil becomes lighter in color from less organic matter.

41. How does climate affect soil development? n Climate refers to rainfall, freezing, thawing, wind, and sunlight. –These factors are either directly or indirectly responsible for the breakdown of rocks and minerals, the release of plant nutrients, and many other processes affecting the development of soils.

42. How does climate affect soil development? –The climate in Illinois is said to be of the continental type.

43. How does climate affect soil development? –It is characterized by hot summers and cold winters. n This climate enhances the weathering process through freezing and thawing. n Rainfall during the growing the season is similar across the state, however, southern Illinois receives more rainfall during the winter and early spring. n Soils in humid regions are subject to more leaching than soils in dry regions.

44. Review and Summary n Identify five factors involved in soil formation. n Describe different types of parent material. n Explain topography and how it affects soil formation. n Explain how organisms affect soil development. n Describe how time and weathering affect properties of soil. n Explain how climate affects the development of soil.