UNIT – 9 SOIL

IMPORTANT NOTES

Soil -
 Life-supporting upper surface of the earth that is the basis of all agriculture.
 It contains minerals and gravel from the chemical and physical weathering of
rocks, decaying organic matter (humus), microorganism, insects, nutrients,
water, and air.
 Soils differ according to the climate, geological structure, and rainfall of the
area and are constantly being formed and removed by natural, animal, and
human activity.
Weathering -
 Weathering is the breaking down or dissolving of rocks and minerals into
smaller particles by the action of wind, water and temperature on Earth’s
surface.
 Water, ice, acids, salt, plants, animals, and changes in temperature are all
agents of weathering.
Composition of Soil –
1. Mineral matter (45%) – Rock particles (gravel, sand, silt, clay) from the
bedrock and weathered rock.
2. Air (25%) – found in the pore spaces between rock grains.
3. Water (25%) – Also found in pore spaces which gets absorbed by soil through
capillary action.
4. Organic matter (5%)–
 Humus – Humus is the organic component (rotting dead matter)
present in the soil formed by the decomposition of plant materials by
microorganisms present in the soil.
 Living organisms – earthworms, beetle, fungi, bacteria.
Soil profile -
 The soil profile is a composition of different layers of soil in a vertical section.
 Each layer is different from others because of its texture, colour, depth and
chemical composition. Horizon
 Each layer in a soil profile is defined as a horizon.
1. A- horizon or topsoil is the dark, soft, porous layer which can absorb
and hold more water. It is rich in humus.
2. B-horizon or middle (second) layer is the more compact and harder
 layer. It has less humus but more minerals.
3. C-horizon is the third layer made up of small lumps of rocks.
4. Bedrock, the fourth and hardest layer, is the base material for the type
of soil.
Types of Soil
The soil is classified on the basis of the proportion of particles of various sizes.
1. Sandy Soil
 Sand tends to have large particles and the particles are solid and have
no pockets where water and nutrients can hold to it.
 Because of this, water and nutrients tend to run out, and because
sandy soil lacks both water and nutrients, many plants have a difficult
time surviving in this kind of soil.
2. Clayey Soil
 The clayey soil consists of a larger proportion of finer particles.
 Clay soils contain less space between the particles to hold air.
 Clays swell and shrink as they wet and dry, effectively cultivating
themselves.
3. Loamy Soil
 When the proportion of larger and finer particles are equal, then that
type of soil is called as loamy soil.
 Loamy soil is a mixture of silt, clay and sand which is the best topsoil
for growing plants as it contains humus and right water holding
capacity.
Types of soil –
Soil fertility –
Fertility of soil depends on the amount and type of minerals and humus resent in it.
Ways to increase soil fertility
 Vermicomposting – Using earthworms to decompose biological wastes and
use their vermicast or worm castings which is considered as bio-fertilizer.
 Appropriate plantation –
 Growing leguminous plants – The symbiotic bacteria, Rhizobium that
grows in the root nodules of leguminous plants helps to fix
atmospheric nitrogen in the soil to enrich with nitrogenous compounds.
 Growing blue-green algae (Nostoc, Anabaena) in paddy field.
 Crop rotation – Growing of different crops alternatively on a piece of land to
avoid losing the fertility of soil and to optimize nutrients in the soil.
Percolation of water -
 Percolation is the process of filtering liquid while passing through a filter.
 Rainfall seeps underground through percolation, where water travels
downwards through the tiny spaces between rocks and soil particles.
  The water eventually saturates the underlying rock much like water fills the
tiny holes of a sponge. This helps to replenish aquifers under the ground.
Percolation rate of soil -
 Percolation rate of soil is used to determine the absorption rate of the soil.
 The rate of percolation is the ratio of the amount of water in millimetres to
the percolation time in minutes.

amount of water (mL)

Percolation rate (mL/min) =
percolation time (min)
Moisture in Soil -
 Moisture is soil is the amount of water present in the soil.
 Moisture in the soil can be removed by setting up the following experiment.
 Take soil samples and put it in a boiling tube and heat it, we can observe
water drops in the mouth of the test tube. This way we can remove
moisture in the soil.
Absorption of water by soil -
 The amount of water absorbed by the soil when water is poured into the
soil is called absorption capacity or absorption of water by soil.
Percentage of water absorbed -
(u-v)
Percentage of water absorbed by soil = x 100
weight of soil
Weight of water absorbed by the soil = (u - v) g
Volume of water absorbed by the soil = (u - v) mL (Note: 1mL of water = 1 g)
where u is the initial volume of water/initial weight of water, v is the final volume of
water/final weight of water absorbed by the soil.
Crops and its relation to types of soil -
Depending on the climatic factors and components of the soil different types of
crops are grown in different regions.
 Clayey soil and loamy soil - Good for growing cereals like wheat and gram.
Clayey soil, soils rich in organic matter and soils with good capacity to
retain water - Good for growing paddy, wheat.
 Loamy soil, soils with high draining capacity and can hold plenty of water -
Good for growing Lentils (masoor) and other pulses, cotton.
Hydroponic plants -
Plants which do not need soil to grow instead these plants need water to grow.
These types of plants are known as hydroponic plants.
Soil erosion -
 The process of removal of land by water, wind or ice in the absence of plants
is known as erosion.
Factors influencing soil erosion –
 Deforestation
 Heavy rains and flood
 Poor farming methods
 Overgrazing
Soil conservation - Methods to prevent soil erosion are:
 Afforestation – growing new saplings in the places where the trees are cut
down.
 Crop rotation – to increase soil fertility and grow more plants.
 Terrace farming – In hilly areas, plants are grown on the terraces of mountain
slopes to ensure runoff water falls on the next field and prevent removal or
sliding of top soil of the slopes.
Uses of Soil -
 It supports plant growth by holding roots firmly and supplying water and
minerals.
 It is the natural habitat for many organisms like earthworm, burrowing
animals, bacteria, etc.
 Buildings need soil base to be built upon.
 Different constructing materials like bricks, concrete glass, etc. are
manufactured using soil.
 Clay soil is used making pottery and artifacts.