BASIC SOIL COMPONENTS

1. Mineral
The largest component of soil is the mineral portion, which makes up approximately 45% to
49% of the volume. Soil minerals are derived from two principal mineral types. Primary
minerals, such as those found in sand and silt, are those soil materials that are similar to the
parent material from which they formed. They are often round or irregular in shape.
Secondary minerals, on the other hand, result from the weathering of the primary minerals,
which releases important ions and forms more stable mineral forms such as silicate clay.
Clays have a large surface area, which is important for soil chemistry and water-holding
capacity. Additionally, negative and neutral charges found around soil minerals influences
the soil's ability to retain important nutrients, such as cations, contributing to a soils cation
exchange capacity (CEC).

The texture of a soil can be determined from its sand, silt, and clay content using a textural
triangle. The triangle above (Figure 2) is the one created by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service and is primarily used in the United
States. Percent clay in this triangle is read on the left hand side of the triangle, the percent
silt is read on the right hand side, and the percent sand is on the bottom. For example, if a
soil contains 20% clay, 40% sand, and 40% silt (total = 100%), then it is a loam.

2. Water

Water is the second basic component of soil. Water can make up approximately 2% to 50%
of the soil volume. Water is important for transporting nutrients to growing plants and soil
organisms and for facilitating both biological and chemical decomposition. Soil water
availability is the capacity of a particular soil to hold water that is available for plant use.

The capacity of a soil to hold water is largely dependent on soil texture. The more small
particles in soils, the more water the soil can retain. Thus, clay soils having the greatest
water-holding capacity and sands the least. Additionally, organic matter also influences the
water-holding capacity of soils because of organic matter's high affinity for water. The higher
the percentage of organic material in soil, the higher the soil's water-holding capacity.

The point where water is held microscopically with too much energy for a plant to extract is
called the “wilting coefficient” or “permanent wilting point.” When water is bound so tightly to
soil particles, it is not available for most plants to extract, which limits the amount of water
available for plant use. Although clay can hold the most water of all soil textures, very fine
micropores on clay surfaces hold water so tightly that plants have great difficulty extracting
all of it. Thus, loams and silt loams are considered some of the most productive soil textures
because they hold large quantities of water that is available for plants to use.

3. Organic matter

Organic matter is the next basic component that is found in soils at levels of approximately
1% to 5%. Organic matter is derived from dead plants and animals and as such has a high
capacity to hold onto and/or provide the essential elements and water for plant growth. Soils
that are high in organic matter also have a high CEC and are, therefore, generally some of
the most productive for plant growth. Organic matter also has a very high "plant available"
water-holding capacity, which can enhance the growth potential of soils with poor water-
holding capacity such as sand. Thus, the percent of decomposed organic matter in or on
soils is often used as an indicator of a productive and fertile soil. Over time, however,
prolonged decomposition of organic materials can lead it to become unavailable for plant
use, creating what are known as recalcitrant carbon store in soils.

4. Gases

Gases or air is the next basic component of soil. Because air can occupy the same spaces
as water, it can make up approximately 2% to 50% of the soil volume. Oxygen is essential
for root and microbe respiration, which helps support plant growth. Carbon dioxide and
nitrogen also are important for belowground plant functions such as for nitrogen-fixing
bacteria. If soils remain waterlogged (where gas is displaced by excess water), it can
prevent root gas exchange leading to plant death, which is a common concern after floods.

5. Micro oganisms

Microorganisms are the final basic element of soils, and they are found in the soil in very
high numbers but make up much less than 1% of the soil volume. A common estimate is that
one thimble full of topsoil may hold more than 20,000 microbial organisms. The largest of the
these organisms are earthworms and nematodes and the smallest are bacteria,
actinomycetes, algae, and fungi. Microorganisms are the primary decomposers of raw
organic matter. Decomposers consume organic matter, water, and air to recycle raw organic
matter into humus, which is rich in readily available plant nutrients.

Other specialized microorganisms such as nitrogen-fixing bacteria have symbiotic

relationships with plants that allow plants to extract this essential nutrient. Such "nitrogen-
fixing" plants are a major source of soil nitrogen and are essential for soil development over
time. Mycorrhizae are fungal complexes that form mutualistic relationships with plant roots.
The fungus grows into a plant's root, where the plant provides the fungus with sugar and, in
return, the fungus provides the plant root with water and access to nutrients in the soil
through its intricate web of hyphae spread throughout the soil matrix. Without microbes, a
soil is essentially dead and can be limited in supporting plant growth.

IMPORTANCE OF SOIL

Soil is the basic need for plants, crops, and other vegetation to grow. The soil is
considered as the foundation of plants as it is where the roots are found. Is is also the soil
which is responsible for biodiversity process wherein dead body of plants, animals, and other
organisms decompose. It is also vital in providing an adequate water supply. The soil also
has water absorption properties which is important in reducing pollution which come from
chemicals in pesticides. Many minerals can also be found from the soil.

FACTORS OF SOIL FORMATION

1. Parent material
This refers to the organic material from which the soil is formed. Soils will carry the
characteristics of the parent material, whether it’s color, structure, texture, and so on.
2. Organisms
The richness of organic matter depends on the living things that live on and in the soils.
For instance, microorganisms help with mineral and nutrient cycling and chemical
reactions. Bacteria, earthworms, fungi, and burrowing animals aid with soil aeration.
Worms decompose organic matter as dead animals contribute to more decaying organic
matter. Plant roots hold soils and provide vegetative residue.
3. Climate
Temperature and precipitation determine how quickly the soil weathers and soil
properties such as mineral composition and organic matter content. Temperature
directly influences the speed of chemical reactions. The warmer the temperature, the
faster reactions occur. Moisture determines the chemical reactions that will occur.
Greater soil moisture increases moves minerals deeper into the soil profile.
4. Topography
Slope and aspect affect soil formation. The steepness of the slope affects the amount of
deposition or erosion.Slopes may be exposed to more direct sunlight, drying out soil
moisture and reducing fertility.
5. Time
Soils take many years to form. The age of a soil is determined by development, not
chronological age. With time, organic matter settles deeper below the surface.
Eventually they may change from one soil type to another.

HUMAN PRACTICES THAT HARM SOIL

1. Overgrazing

Overgrazing occurs when farmers stock too many animals such as sheep, cattle or goats on
their land. The animals damage the soil surface by eating the vegetation and either digging
into wet soil or compacting dry soil with their hooves. This can prevent grass growing and
slow down the percolation of water through the soil. This leads to the damaging of the soil
structure as the level of nutrients is removed and the air between peds is compressed out.
This then can reduce the amount of water between the soil crumbs as the weight and
movement of the animals flattens and compresses the soil. Soils with less vegetation
become exposed, drier and prone to further erosion by the wind and rain. Soils that become
drier tend to be vulnerable to the winds blowing the top soil away. The Sahel region of Africa
is an example of soil erosion caused both by overgrazing and population growth. In the
West of Ireland additional funding from the EU in the 1990’s saw an increase in the sheep
population. However, areas of West Mayo suffered soil erosion by the additional hooves
and further funding was needed to sort this problem.

2. Overcropping

Overcropping is when the land is being continuously under cultivation and is not allowed to
lie fallow between crops. This constant farming of the land reduces the soils ability to
produce valuable humus for soil fertility as it is constantly being ploughed or stripped for crop
growth. The soil becomes drier and less fertile. While humus is primarily needed for the
addition of nutrients and minerals it is also a valuable source of air and water needed by soil
to keep it moist and aerated. With less humus the soil dries out and is open for wind and
rain erosion. Usually over cropping occurs in areas where there is a demand for crops either
for market or a large local population. Many farmers attempt to restore soil fertility by adding
fertilizers or artificial nutrients but some countries do not have this opportunity due to poverty
or lack of education. In South America soya is a quick-growing and valuable crop. The
leading producers of soya in this region are Brazil and Argentina. Despite some artificial
fertilisers being added the soil is not allowed enough time to recover its fertility or structure
and is ultimately being eroded by this human activity.

3. Deforestation

Deforestation is the cutting down of large areas of forests leaving an open, exposed
landscape. Deforestation occurs for many reasons such as the sale of wood, charcoal or as
a source of fuel, while cleared land is used as pasture for livestock, plantations of
commodities, and settlements. The removal of trees without sufficient reforestation has
resulted in damage to habitat, biodiversity loss and aridity (drying of soil). This human
activity quickly accelerates natural erosion in two ways. Firstly the removal of trees is a
removal of nutrients and minerals from the soil as the source of humus is greatly reduced.
The natural dead organic material that supplies the soil with its humus is generally leaves
that have fallen from the trees, animal droppings, tree fruit or decaying trees in the soil.
Secondly, deforestation accelerates soil erosion by leaving large areas exposed to heavy
rainfall (which can cause leaching or flash floods) or wind erosion. Without the roots of the
trees to keep the soil structure in place the soil is loose and easier to erode. The tropical
rainforests of Brazil are seeing huge areas of forest being cut down each day. Each year
about 13 million hectares of the world’s forests are lost due to deforestation.

4. Windbreaks

Windbreaks are natural wind barriers created by planting trees that produce many branches
and leaves. This method is used at the edges of large farmland areas (or individual fields) to
stop the wind from blowing soil away which can damage or destroy the soil. One area of a
windbreak can have an immediate effect on a much larger area as the power of the winds
are greatly reduced. While it is important to break the strong winds it is also important to
allow a certain amount of wind through this barrier as it controls the flow of the wind without
creating a complete block which could result in swirling winds or strong gusts near the
barrier. In West Africa large countries like Mali have seen that tree windbreaks can increase
the yield of protected fields by up to 20%.

5. Farming techniques

Farming techniques such as contour ploughing, stubble planting and time of ploughing can
also be useful methods of soil conservation. Contour ploughing is the ploughing of the land
following the natural contours of the land instead of the usual practice of going up and down
the slopes in lines. If farmers follow the natural contours it can reduce the amount of soil
creep or mass movement along the slope as the soil is not destabilised and more vulnerable
to erosion. The grooves between ploughed lines allows rainwater to find its way naturally
downslope again reducing the possibility of valuable top soil being carried downhill. Stubble
planting is something that is practiced in Ireland in areas where grains and cereal crops are
produced. As the wheat or barley is harvested by the combine harvester it leaves short
stubble of stalks left in the ground. Over time these stubbles decompose becoming valuable
humus. The stubble also act as anchors to keep the soil in place until the next crop is
planted. Then when the next crop is being planted a technique known as ‘slitting’ is used.
This is where small slits are cut into the soil for seeding for the next batch of crops. By not
reploughing the soil the structure is maintained and the possibility of erosion is reduced or
removed. Finally farmers have changed their planting times to reduce the possibility of soil
erosion. This now takes place in wetter conditions when the soil is not likely to become
windborne in warm, dry conditions.

6. Stone Walls

Stone walls work like simple versions of windbreaks. These walls of stone are built following
the contours of the soil to prevent soil erosion down slope and to allow the rain water to
percolate down through the soil rather than straight down the slope.

WAYS TO CONSERVE AND PRESERVE SOIL

When land is planted with crops, those are harvested and the land is left bare. That’s
something that never happens in nature. Under natural conditions there’s always something
covering the ground. Soil is never dug over in nature either. Animals and birds might scratch
around and occasionally bury things, but they never turn over a field. The job of aerating the
soil is done from underneath, by insects and earthworms.

So in looking at how to protect soil and steward it for future generations, we’re looking at less
intervention, not more. We want to avoid digging any more than necessary, and we don’t
want to leave the ground bare. Those are the two most important things, and there are
farming techniques that will make a difference and can be incorporated into conventional
agriculture.

One of the most promising is low-till agriculture. Traditionally a farmer would plough a field,
turning over the soil and then breaking it up with a harrow to prepare it for replanting. This
destroys the structure of the soil, and isn’t strictly necessary anyway. Low till farming uses a
seed drill instead, planting the seeds in individual holes or in a narrow trench. Because fewer
heavy tractors have rolled over the soil, it’s also less compacted. Low till or no till agriculture
began in Brazil and South America, and the techniques have been spreading. A quarter of
US farmers now practice low till, and best practice needs to be shared further.

If you grow vegetables in the garden or on the allotment, you may know about mulching –
adding a layer of compost and straw, or leaf mould, on the surface of the growing patch. This
will be drawn into the ground by the worms, adding organic matter and improving water
retention. That’s the simple end of things, and on a farm one might practice a far more
elaborate set of techniques around ‘integrated soil fertility management’. But ultimately we’re
talking about the same thing: using crop residues, manure or compost, to take care of the
soil.

Hills are particularly vulnerable to erosion, and farmers have discovered that ploughing
around the contours of the hills is much better than running lines up and down them. But it’s
better not to plough a hill at all. In some traditional forms of agriculture, hillsides were
terraced, creating lots of flat spaces rather than big slopes. This dramatically reduced
erosion.

Drylands are also more vulnerable, because the wind can pick up dry and dusty earth and
sweep it away. Farmers have a range of techniques to preserve soil in more arid conditions,
including windbreaks, and banks of earth to trap moisture. Strip farming can also help,
alternating strips of crops with fallow land, or growing two different crops in the same field.

When drylands succumb to erosion, the result is desertification, and in some parts of the
world there has been concerted effort to halt deforestation. The most ambitious is the great
green wall in the Sahel. Morocco has encouraged a shift from grain crops to olive groves
and orchards. China has a huge tree planting scheme to restrict the advance of the Gobi
desert.

Does organic farming have a role? Yes, in that organic farming puts soil stewardship right at
the core. “Life, especially the life in all soil” says Charles Dowding, is “the essence of organic
gardening.” I tend my own garden and allotment to mostly organic standards, but that
‘mostly’ is key. Aiming for certified organic is an unnecessarily high standard. Farming can
learn plenty from organic farming without taking the whole philosophy on board. That’s
happening already, under the name ‘conservation agriculture‘.

As well as land management, another avenue to investigate is how we can reduce the
pressure on soil. How we feed ourselves is a good place to start, and the most obvious issue
is livestock production. Overgrazing is a big contributor to erosion. If we ate less meat, we’d
have fewer animals to feed, and that would have less of an impact on the soil. As I’ve written
about a fair bit this year, we could also be looking at different meats, or meat alternatives.
Getting more of our protein from plants, especially pulses, would help. As with the organic
question, a 100% vegetarian diet is a great personal choice, but not ideal for everyone – it
would rule out food production on marginal land, where livestock is the only option. So we’re
talking about less meat rather than none.

More radical solutions to take the pressure off soil include hydroponics, where crops are
grown indoors in water, or aeroponics, which involves growing things in a nutrient mist. This
is good for salad vegetables rather than staple crops, but it has been done at an impressive
scale in some places. There’s only so much we can grow indoors, but intensive greenhouse
farming has a role, especially when combined with solar power and water recycling.

Perhaps even more promising, but scarcely practiced at all, is ocean farming. Some cultures
eat ‘sea vegetables’ and some don’t. A wider take-up of ocean crops would allow us to
produce more food at sea. Provided this is done responsibly – and it can be – then that
would free up more land.
The good news is that we don’t need any new technologies or ideas to care for soil better.
But we do need much more attention on soil, and a wider understanding of how precious it
is.

CITATIONS

Gao, J. (2017, November 29). What factors control soil formation? Retrieved from
https://www.quora.com/What-factors-control-soil-formation

DeGomez, T. (2015, January 21). Basic Soil Components. Retrieved from

https://articles.extension.org/pages/54401/basic-soil-components

Leaving Certificate Geography. (n.d.). How Human Activities can Accelerate Soil Erosion.
Retrieved from http://lcgeography.preswex.ie/how-human-activities-can-accelerate-soil-
erosion.html

Williams, J. (2016, December 8). How to Protect the Soil. Retrieved from
https://makewealthhistory.org/2016/12/08/how-to-protect-the-soil/