soils vocab Flashcards
(95 cards)
1
Q
organic matter
A
plant and animal residue in the soil in various stages of decompostion.
1
Q
piping
A
formation of subsurface tunnels or pipe-like cavitites by water moving through the soil
1
Q
subsoil
A
Technically, the B horizon; roughly, the part of the solum below plow depth
2
Q
ABC soil
A
A soil having an A B and C horizon
2
Q
Aggregate soil
A
many fine particles held in a single mass or cluster. Natural soil aggregates, such as granules, blocks or prisms, are called peds. Clods are aggregates produced by tillage or logging
2
Q
conservation tillage
A
a tillage system that does no invert the soil and that leaves a protective amount of crop residue on the surface throughout the year
2
Q
corrosion
A
soil-induced electrochemical or chemical action that dissolves or weakens concrete or uncoated steel
2
Q
excess fines
A
excess silt and clay in the soil
2
Q
weathering
A
All physical and chemical changes produced in rocks or other deposits at or near the earth’s surface by atmospheric agents. These changes result in disintegration and decomposition of the material.
4
Q
Bottomland
A
the normal floodplain of a stream, subject to flooding
4
Q
surface layer
A
the soil ordinarily moved in tilage, or its equivalent in uncultivated soil, ranging in depth from 4 to 10 inches. Frequently designated as the plow later of the Ap horizon
6
Q
fast intake
A
the rapid movement of water into the soil
6
Q
gravel
A
Rounded or angular fragments of rock as much as 3 inches in diameter. An individual piece is a pebble
7
Q
root zone
A
the part of the soil that can be penatrated by roots
9
Q
parent material
A
the unconsolidated organic and mineral material in which soil forms
10
Q
reaction soil
A
a measure of acidity or alkalinity of a soil, expressed in pH values
11
Q
crop residue management
A
Returning crop residue to the soil, which helps to maintain soil stucture, orgainic matter content, and fertility and helps to control erosion
12
Q
pH value
A
a numerical designation of acidity and alkalinity in soil
12
Q
runoff
A
the precipitation discharged into stream channels from an area. The water that flows off the surface of the land without sinking into the soil is called surface runoff. Water that enters the soil before reaching surface streams is called groundwater runoff or seepage flow from groundwater
13
Q
contour stripcropping
A
Growing crops in strips that follow the contour. Strips of grass or close-growing crops are alternated with strips of clean-tilled crops or summer fallow
13
Q
topsoil
A
The upper part of soil, which is the most favorable material for plant growth. It is ordinarily rich in organic matter and is used to topdress roadbanks, lawns, and land affected by mining
14
Q
Alluvium
A
material such as sand, silt, or clay, deposited on land by streams
15
Q
leaching
A
the removal of souble material from soil or other material by percolating water
15
Q
subsurface layer
A
Any surface soil horizon below the surface layer
16
clay film
a thin coating of oriented clay on the surface of a soil aggregate or lining pores or root channels. Synonyms clay cloating and clay skin
17
Eluviation
the movement of material in true solution or colloidal suspension from one place to another within the soil. Soil horizons that have lost material through eluviation are eluvial; those that have received material are illuvial
17
geologic Terrace
an old alluvial plain, ordinarily flat or undulating, bordering a river, lake, or sea
17
tilth soil
the physical condition of the soil as related to tillage, seedbed preparation, seedling emergence, and root penetration
18
irrigation
application of water to soils
19
slope
The inclination of the land surface from the horizontal. Percentage of slop is the vertical distance divided by horizontal distance then multipied by 100.
20
fallow
cropland left idle in order to restore productivity through accumulation of moisture. Summer fallow is common inregions of limited rainfall where cereal grain is grown.
20
gully
a miniature valley with steep sides cut by running water and through which water ordinarly runs after rainfall. The distinction between a gully and a rill one of depth. A gully is a obstavcle to farm machinery and is too deep to be obliterated by ordinary tillage; a rill is of lesser depth and can be smoothed over by ordinary tillage
21
fine textured soil
sandy clay, silty clay, or clay
22
Bedding planes
fine strata less than 5 millimeters think, in unconsolidated alluvial, colian, lacustrine, or marine sediment
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loam
soil material that is 7-27% clay particles, 28% -50% silt particles, and less than 52% sand particles
25
silt
As a soil separate, individial mineral particles that range in diameter from the upper limit of clay to the lower limit of very fine sand. As a soil textural class, soil that is 80% or more silt and less than 12% clay.
26
solum
the upper part of a soil profile, above the C horizon, in which the processes of soil formation are active. Th solum in soil consists of the A, E and B horizons.
28
Terrace
An embankment, or ridge, constructed across sloping soils on the contour or at a slight angle to the contour. The terrace intercepts surface runoff so that water soaks into the soil or flows slowly to a prepared outlet. Generally built for farming.
30
ponding
Standing water on soils in closed depressions. Unless the soils are artificially drained, the water can be removed only by percolation or evapotranspiration
31
high-reside crops
Such crops as small grain and corn used for grain. These crops return large amounts of organic matter to the soil
31
Residuum
(residual soil material) unconsolidated, weathered or partly weathered mineral material that accumulated as consolidated rock disintegrated in place
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Aquic conditions
Current soil wetness characterized by saturation, reduction, and redoximorphic features
34
grassed waterway
a natural or constucted waterway, typically broad and shallow, seeded to grass as protection against erosion
35
diversion
(or diversion terrace) A ridge of earth, generally a terrace, built to protect downslope areas by diverting runoff from its natural course
37
sodic (alkail soil)
a soil having so high a degree of alkalinity (pH 8.5 or higher) or so high a percentage of exchangeable sodium (15% or more of the total exchangeable bases), or both, that plant growth is restricted
38
Erosion
the wearing away of the land surface by water, wind, ice, or other geologic agents and by such processes as gravitational creep
39
sand
as a soil separate, individual rock or mineral fragments from .05-2.0 ,illimeters in diameter. Most sand grains consist of quartz. As a soil textural class. A soil that is 85% or more sand and not more than 10% clay
40
Episaturation
a type of saturations indicating a perched water table in a soil in which saturated layers are underlain by one or more unsaturated layers within 2 meters of the surface
40
Intermittent stream
A steam that carries water only part of the time, generally in response to periods of heavy runoff either from snowmelt or storms
42
complex soil
a map unit of two or more kinds of soil in so small an area that it is not practical to map them seperately at the selected scale of mapping. The pattern and proportion of the soils or miscellaneous areas are somewhat similar in all areas
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horizon soil
a layer of soil
44
morphology soil
the physical makeup of the soil, including the texture, stucture, porosity, consistence, color, and other physical, mineral, and biological properties of the various horizons, and the thinkness and arrangement of those horizons in the soil profile
45
Bedrock
the soild rock that underlies the soil and other unconsolidated material or that is exposed at the surface
45
endosaturation
a type of saturation of the soil in which all horizons between the upper boundary of saturation and a depth of 2 meters are saturated
47
conservation cropping system
Growing crops in combination with needed agricultural and management practices
48
soil
a natural three dimensional body at the earth's surface.
49
geologic erosion
erosions caused by geologic processes acting over long geologic periods and resulting in the wearing away of mountains and the building up of such landscape features as floodplains and coastal plains. Also called natural erosion
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groundwater
Water Filling the unblocked pores of the material below the water table
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fluvial
of or pertaining to rivers; produced by river action, as a fluvial plain
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drainage surface
runoff or surface flow of water from an area
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substratum
the part of the soil below the solum
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control section
the part of the soil on which classification is based. The thickness varies among different kinds of soil, but for many it is that part of the soil profile between depths of 10 inches and 40 or 80 inches.
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texture soil
the relative proportions of sand, silt, and clay particles in a mass of soil.
57
permability
the quality of the soil that enables water or air to move downward through the profile. The rate at which a saturated soil transmits water is accepted as a measure of this quality
58
clay
mineral soil particles less than .002 millimeter in diameter. As a soil textural classification, soil material is 40% or more clay, less than 45% sand, and less than 40% silt
59
mineral soil
soil that is mainly mineral material and low in orgainic material
61
saturation
wetness characterized by zero or positive pressure of the soil water. Under conditions of saturation, the ater will flow from the soil matrix into an unlined auger hole
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minimum tillage
only the tillage essential to crop production and prevention of soil damage
65
cropping system
Growing crops according to a planned system of rotation and management practices
67
Illuviation
The movement of soil material from one horizon to another in the soil profile. Generally material is removed from an upper horizon and deposited in lower horizon
67
nutrient plant
Any element taken in by a plant essential to its growth. These include nitrogen, phosporus, potassium, calcium, manesium, sulfur , iron, manganese, copper, boron, and zinc, obtained from the soil and carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen obtained from the air and water
68
drainage class
refers to the frequency and duration of wet periods under conditions similar to those under which the soil formed. Seven classes of natural soil drainage are recongnized-- excessively drained, somewhat excessively drained, well drained, moderately well drained, somewhat poorly drained, poorly drained,and very poorly drained
69
sheet erosion
the removal of a fairly uniform later of soil material from the land surface by the action of rainfall and surface runoff
70
concretions
cemented bodies with crude internal symmetry organized around a point, a line, or a plane. They typically take the form of concentric layers visible to the naked eye. Calcum carbonate, iron oxide, and manganese oxide are common compounds making up concretions
71
structure soil
The arrangement of primary soil particles into compound particles or aggregates
72
Calcareous soil
a soil containing enough calcium carbonate (commonly combined with magesium carbonate) to bubble visibly when treated with cold, dilute hydrochloric acid
74
nodules
cemented bodies lacking visible internal structure. Calicum carbonate, iron oxide, and manganese oxide are common compounds making up nodules
75
Available water capacity
the capacity of soils to hold water available for use by most plants. It is commonly defined as the difference between the amount of soil water at field moisture capacity and the amoint at wilting point. It is commonly expresed as inches of water per inch of soil. The capacity, in inches, in a 60 inch profile or to liniting later is expressed as very low 0-3, low 3-6, moderate 6-9, high 9-12, and very high more than 12.
76
cover crop
a crop grown primarily to improve and protect the soil between periods of regular crop production, or a crop grown between trees and vines in orchards and vineyards
78
inflitration
the downward entry of water into the immediate suregace of soil or other material, as contrasted with percolation, which is movement of water through soil layers or materials
79
strip cropping
Growing crops in a systematic arrangement of strips or bands that provide vegetative barriers to wind erosion and water erosion
80
flood plain
a nearly level alluvial plain that borders a stream and is subject to flooding unless protected artificially
81
accelerated erosion
Erosion much more rapid than geologic erosion, mainly as a result of human or animal activities or of a catastrophe in nature, such as a fire, that exposes the surface
82
Association, soil
A group of soils or miscellaneous areas geographically associated in a characteristic repeating pattern and defined and delineated as a single map unit
83
consistence soil
the degree of cohesion and adhesion of soil material and its resistence to deformation when reuptured consistence includes resistance of soil material to rupture and to penetration; plasticity, toughness, and stickiness, of puddled soil material, and the maner in which the soil material behaves when subject to compression
85
soil seperates
Mineral particles less than 2 millimeters in equivalent diameter and ranging between specified size limits.
87
Alkali (sodic) soil
a soil having so high a degree of alkalinity (pH 8.5 or higher) or so high a percentage of exchangeable sodium (15 % or more of the total exchangeable bases), or both, that plant growth is restricted
88
cation
a ion carrying a positive charge of electricity
89
series soil
a group of soils that have profilies that are almost alike, except for differnces in texture of the surface layer. All the soils of a series have horizons that are similar incomposition, thickness, and arrangement
90
excess sodium
excess exchangable sodium in the soil. The resulting poor physical properties restrict the growth of plants
91
munsell notation
A designation of color by degrees of three simple variables - hue, value, and chroma
92
hard bedrock
bedrock that connot be excavated except by clasting or by the use of special equiopment that is not commonly used in construction
93
fragipan
a loamy brittle subsurface horizon low in porosity and content of orgainic matter and low or moderate in clay buy high in silt or very fine sand. A fragipan appears cemented and restricts roots. When dry, it is hard or very hard and has a higher bulk density than the horizon or horizons above. When moist, it tends to rupture suddenly under pressure rather than to deform slowly
94
Intake rate
the average rate of water entering the soil under irrigation.
95
hydrologic soil groups
soils grouped according to their runoff potential. Runoff potential is affected by depth to a seasonal high water table, the infiltration rate and permeability after prolonged wetting, and depth to a very slowly permeable layer
