What Makes Soil Good
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Transcript What Makes Soil Good
What Makes Soil Good
Analysis of soils assists an agricultural
land brokerage professional estimate
the economic potential of the land
3-1
Objectives
Identify macro and micro nutrients in soil
Soil texture, structure, and consistence
Identify horizons in soil profiles
NCRS capability classification system
Resources to analyze agricultural property
3-2
Important Concepts for Soils Analysis
Four major components of soil
Mineral components develop from parent material
Organic matter
Ingredients that make soil solution
Biological Activity
Plants draw six macronutrients from soil
3-3
Important Concepts of Soils Analysis (cont.)
Trace elements or micronutrients
N-P-K designation for fertilizer
Soil deficiencies develop from shortages
Characteristics of soils
Texture depends on individual particles
Structure groups soil textures
3-4
Establishing Soil Texture
Coarse soils - loose and very friable
Moderately coarse soils - hold together when
moist
Medium soils - feel velvety
Moderately fine soils - form clods
Fine soils - form hard clods
3-5
Soil Structures
Four distinct structures
Platy soils - flat plate-like soil
Prismlike - flat and well defined
Blocklike - six-sided blocks of aggregate
Spheroidal - granular and round
3-6
Consistence
Loose - noncoherent
Very friable - crush under very gentle pressure
Friable - crush under gentle pressure
Firm - crushed with moderate pressure
Very firm - requires strong pressure
Extremely firm - resists crushing
3-7
Group Activity 3-1
Group Activity 3-1: Field Testing Soils
The instructor should arrange for an array 5 or 6
different tubs of local soils to be placed in the room.
The class can be divided into groups to inspect the
soils and analyze the soils in terms of texture and
consistency, actually making ribbons etc. They
should discuss and record their answers. The
instructor can then ask the groups for their
findings. Ideally, the instructor could inform the
students of the soil type each sample represents and
give an idea of its capabilities.
3-8
Acidity
Critical to agricultural activities
Calcium deficiency contributes
Measured by pH level
7 is neutral
Most crops prosper with 6.5 to 7 pH
3-9
Soil Depth
Depth
Descriptive
Depth
Designation
(inches)
Deep
over 36
Moderately deep
20.01-36
Shallow
10.01-20
Very shallow
under 10
3-10
Slope
Slope
Descriptive
Slope
Speed of
Designation
Percent
Runoff
Nearly level
0-1
slow to very slow
gently sloping
1-3
slow to medium
Moderately
sloping
Strongly sloping
3-5
slow to rapid
5-8
rapid to very rapid
Steep
8-12
rapid to very rapid
Very Steep
12
very rapid
3-11
Erosion
Descriptive
Designation
none to slight
moderate
severe
uncrossable
very severe
Amount of surface
soil removed
< 25 percent
25-75 percent
> 75 percent
> 75 percent
Surface Hazards
no gullies
some small gullies
frequent gullies some
numerous uncrossable gullies
and/or accumulations by wind
3-12
Horizons
Layers determine the characteristics
Four major horizons
O
horizons
A
horizons
B
horizons
C
horizons
3-13
Understanding Soil Surveys
NRCS
System of eight capability classes
Suitability of soil for cultivation
Classes based on limitations
NRCS system includes several subclasses
NRCS publishes surveys at the county level
3-14
Soil Classes
Class I - most desirable
Class II - have some limitations
Class III - permanent limitations
Class IV - marginally suited to cultivation
Class V - fewer erosion hazards
Class VI - similar restrictions to class IV
Class VII - similar to limitations of Class VI
Class VIII - cannot be used
3-15
Factors limiting Soil Productivity
Limitations
Moisture holding capacity
Soils type subject to the limitation
all deep and moderately deep coarse and
moderately coarse textured surface soils
with moderately coarse textured subsoil
all shallow and very shallow soils
Soil tillage (workability)
very sticky and plastic fine textured soils
rocky and stony soils
Depth
all soils with less than 36 inches of
available depth
3-16
Factors limiting Soil Productivity (cont..)
Limitations
Slope
Soils type subject to the limitation
all very rapid run-off soils
any soil when run-off rates prohibit
filling the soil's moisture holding capacity
Wind erosion hazard
areas with fewer than 30 inches of annual
rainfall on moderately coarse and coarse
textured surface soils
3-17
Factors limiting Soil Productivity (cont.)
Limitations
Water erosion hazard
Soils type subject to the limitation
all slowly and very slowly permeable
soils with slopes greater than 1 percent
all moderately permeable soils with
slopes greater than 3 percent
all rapidly permeable soils with slopes
greater than 5 percent
3-18
Soil Surveys Contents
Soil Map
Description of formation
Description of soils
Use and management
Classification of the soils
Extensive Glossary
3-19
Soil Surveys
Assign compound names
First name indicates soil series
Second name indicates texture
Characteristics common to subject area
Permits identification of soils
Quality and detail of information varies
3-20
Agricultural Production Capabilities
Production depends on structure
Dominant textures
Topsoil depth
Rooting depth
Soil fertility
Slope characteristics
3-21
Soil Capability Classes
Iowa State University Corn Suitability Ratings CSR
Soil
Area
Index
Type
(acres)
CSR
CSR x acres
_________________________________________________________________
______
Walters loam
23.87
87
2,076.69
Bierschwale clay loam
32.91
-----
59
1,941.69
--------
56.78
4,018.38
Weighted average CSR
4,018.38 / 56.78 = 70.8
_________________________________________________________________
_
3-22
Soil Analysis
Should draw on various sources
Indicate the history of the property
Include local county extension agent information
May include USDA information
Information from state level agricultural offices
Begin with a set of maps
3-23
Topography Examination
Irrigation
Methods of assigning water rights
Impact of water rights on property value
Drainage - surface or subsurface
Slopes
Erosion potential
3-24
Group Discussion
Group Discussion 3-1 Available soils
resources
Introduce several sample soil surveys for the region where the course is
being conducted. Discuss the capability classes and ask students to
identify yields for specific areas on the maps. Discuss the adequacy of
the current surveys.
3-25
Module 3 - Review
Understand the composition of the ideal soil
and how it supports agricultural production
Mineral material
organic matter
water
air
45,25,25,5
3-26
Module 3 - Review
Identify the macro and micro nutrients
available in soils
Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium, Calcium,
Magnesium, and Sulfur
Iron, Manganese, Copper, Zinc, Boron,
Molybdenum, Chlorine, Cobalt
3-27
Module 3 - Review
Understand the concepts of soil texture,
structure, and consistence
Coarse to Fine
Platy, Prismlike, Blocklike, Spherical
Loose to Very Fine
3-28
Module 3 - Review
Identify the horizons occurring in soil
profiles
O, A, B, and C
3-29
Module 3 - Review
Understand the Natural Resource
Conservation Service (NCRS) capability
classification system
Eight Productive capacity Classes
3-30
Module 3 - Review
Access resources to facilitate analysis of
the soils of a agricultural property
NCRS soil surveys
Local Sources
3-31
Self-Assessment Questions
The four major components of soil are
Soil deficiencies develop because of
The three main concepts describing soil character are
The NCRS capability classification system includes all of
the following except for
Limitations on soils in the NCRS system refer to
The corn suitability rating (CSR) developed for Iowa soils
3-32