Properties of Soil Data Sheet
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University Of Georgia *
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44306430
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Geography
Date
Apr 3, 2024
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docx
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5
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Properties of Soil: Agricultural and Water Availability Impacts
Claire Murad
2/18/2024
1
I.
Introduction The objectives of this lab were to present how the size of soil particles and the natural
porosity of sand, clay, and soil would affect the agricultural aspect of plant growth. The purpose of this lab is to test out the two objectives, which help determine the current conditions of the land. Once the current conditions are known the gathered information on what nutrients are needed to make the land deemed harvestable. There
could be a deficiency in N, P, and S which is unwanted as agricultural nutrient richness is more successful in plant growth. On the other hand, there could be an influx of nutrients causing increased growth in plant structure. The sand, clay, and soil samples are tested to support the statement of how particle size will affect porosity and lead to the outcome of how much nutrients a plant is receiving.
II.
Results
In Activity 1, the layer of clay in the collected soil is very minimal in comparison to sand and soil, at 5%. Next, the depth of sand at 35% comes second behind the depth of soil at 60%. As soil comes up first, it supports the high percentage present, making up most of the collected soil sample. In Activity 2, the clay took the longest amount of time (140s) to formulate a single water droplet. The soil took the shortest amount of time (6s) to create a water droplet. Lastly, the sand took 21s to create a water drop. In activity 3, there was an error with a part of the lab that did not allow it to be completed. However, the predictions of the pH level results would indicate a more basic soil for both, between 6-7. The soil should be a more neutral base to induce plant growth. In Activity 4, The collected soil sample (50 feet) had nitrogen-depleted (N0), phosphorus-depleted (P0), potash adequate (K2), and the other soil sample (10 feet) had nitrogen-depleted (N0), phosphorus-deficient (P1), and potash sufficient (K3). Data Table 1 (Activity 1)
Depth
of Clay
Layer
(cm)
Depth
of Silt
Layer
(cm)
Depth
of
Sand
Layer
(cm)
Total
Depth
(cm)
%
Clay
%
Silt
%
Sand
Soil Type
Collected Soil
Sample
0.2 cm
1.5 cm
2.5 cm
4.2 cm
5%
35%
60%
Topsoil
© 2016 Carolina Biological Supply Company
2
Figure 1 The separation of layers after settling for 24 hours among sand, clay, and collected soil samples. The sand absorbed all the water given, the clay hardened after absorbing the water, and the collected soil showed the most apparent layer among all samples.
Data Table 2 (Activity 2)
Time taken for first
drop to emerge from
column (s)
Sand
21 s
Clay
140 s
Collected Soil Sample
6 s
Data Table 3 (Activity 3)
Collected Soil Sample
Other Soil Sample
(Location Description:
_
near Oconee River
___)
pH
N/A
N/A
Data Table 4 (Activity 4)
Nitrogen
Phosphorus
Potash
Collected Soil Sample
N0
P0
K2
Other Soil Sample
N0
P1
K3
© 2016 Carolina Biological Supply Company
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3
Figure 2 N, P, and K tests after they settled for 10 minutes for the mineral levels of the soil to determine the amount of intake a plant would take into the roots and the rest of the structure. This sample was around 10 feet from the riverbank.
Figure 3 N, P, and K tests after they settled for 10 minutes for the mineral levels of the soil to determine the amount of intake a plant would take into the roots and the rest of the structure. This sample was around 50 feet away from the riverbank.
1.
What factors may have influenced the difference in pH and nutrient readings between the two
soil samples in Activities 3 and 4?
The possible factors that may have caused the difference between the two soil samples could be the distance away from the riverbank or the amount of rainwater collected during the past few rainy weeks. The rainwater main may have introduced more minerals. 2.
When it comes to growing crops as a farmer, what type of soil do you believe would be the most fertile (consider structure, texture, permeability, and porosity when arriving at your answer)?
The deeper layer of topsoil would be the most fertile due to its texture and porosity. The amount of time it took for water to travel through soil would indicate shorter among of time for water to be absorbed by the plant. The texture is what allows for the minerals to be introduced. © 2016 Carolina Biological Supply Company
4
III.
Discussion
In Activity 1, the collected soil sample showed most of it to be soil, and to support the
ideology of it having smaller particles; the amount of time was 6 s (Activity 2). This indicates that collected soil has high porosity, and more space between particles, which absorbed less of the minerals and nutrients needed. However, one of the errors could be that the soil had already been submerged with rainfall before the experiment.
On the other hand, the clay (140s for a drop to emerge) showed signs of low porosity and absorbed too much of the water indicated by the hardening of the clay. From Activity 4, the nitrogen-depleted levels of both soil samples indicate nitrogen deficiency. This means that there is the possibility of leaching, which supports the N molecules being stripped away by rain flow. The deficiency of N and other nutrients leads to alternations of plant functions to be present, such as metabolic disorders. IV.
Conclusion
To conclude the experiment, all the activities that were completed were to support the
factor of soil particle size and porosity for agriculture. There are certain conditions, such as pH level and amount of P, K, and N present, to be met to ensure that the agriculture would be secure enough for plant growth. If those conditions are not met, symptoms are shown from the depletion of various factors. Overall, the collected soil sample would need adjustments until it is deemed as useful for agriculture. © 2016 Carolina Biological Supply Company