Review Questions
- Describe at least two ways in which soil is a living resource.
- Name two factors that influence soil formation.
- Which region of a soil profiles reacts the most?
- Is the soil in your back yard most likely a residual soil or a transported soil? How
could you check? - Name several advantages to adding humus to the soil.
- What are three soil horizons? Describe the characteristics of each.
- Name three climate related soils. Describe the climate and vegetation that occurs in
the area where each forms. - Where would you choose to buy land for a farm if you wanted fertile soil and did not
want to have to irrigate your crops?
Vocabulary
deciduous trees Trees that lose their leaves once a year.
humus The partially decayed remains of plants and animals; forms the organic portion of
soil.
inorganic Parts of the soil which do not come from living organisms; the rock and mineral
portion of the soil.
laterite Nutrient poor, red, tropical soil which forms in a region with rainforest vegetation.
loam Soil texture which forms from a roughly equal combination of sand, silt and clay.
organic Generally considered to mean components of the soil which come from living
organisms.
pedalfer Fertile, dark soil which forms in mid latitude, forested regions.
pedocal Slightly less fertile soils which forms in drier, grassland regions.
permeable Describes a type of soil which allows water to move through it easily.
residual soil Soil that forms from the bedrock upon which it resides or lies.