NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Soil conservation

Soil Conservation is a set of management strategies for prevention of soil being eroded from the earth’s surface or becoming chemically altered by overuse, salinization, acidification, or other chemical soil contamination. The principal approaches these strategies take are: Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1067, 659 KB) Please see the file description page for further information. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1067, 659 KB) Please see the file description page for further information. ... Loess field in Germany For the Alternative Metal band, see SOiL. Soil, comprising the pedosphere, is positioned at the interface of the lithosphere with the atmosphere, and hydrosphere. ... Severe soil erosion in a wheat field near Washington State University, USA. For erosion as understood by materials science, see Erosion (materials science) For erosion as an English analogy, see Erosion (figurative) For erosion as an operation of Mathematical morphology, see Erosion (morphology) Erosion is the displacement of solids (soil... Soil salination results from the accumulation of free salts to such an extent that it leads to degradation of soils and vegetation. ... Excavation of leaking underground storage tank causing soil contamination Soil contamination is the presence of man-made chemicals or other alteration of the natural soil environment. ...

Many scientific disciplines are involved in these pursuits, including agronomy, hydrology, soil science, meteorology, microbiology, and environmental chemistry. Vegetation is a general term for the plant life of a region; it refers to the ground cover provided by plants, and is, by far, the most abundant biotic element of the biosphere. ... Severe soil erosion in a wheat field near Washington State University, USA. For erosion as understood by materials science, see Erosion (materials science) For erosion as an English analogy, see Erosion (figurative) For erosion as an operation of Mathematical morphology, see Erosion (morphology) Erosion is the displacement of solids (soil... Annual mean sea surface salinity for the World Ocean. ... Generally, remediation means giving a remedy. ... Excavation of leaking underground storage tank causing soil contamination Soil contamination is the presence of man-made chemicals or other alteration of the natural soil environment. ... Agronomy is a branch of agricultural science that deals with the study of crops and the soils in which they grow. ... Water covers 70% of the Earths surface. ... Soil science deals with soil as a natural resource on the surface of the earth including soil formation, classification and mapping; physical, chemical, biological, and fertility properties of soils per se; and these properties in relation to the use and management of soils. ... Satellite image of Hurricane Hugo with a polar low visible at the top of the image. ... An agar plate streaked with microorganisms Microbiology is the study of microorganisms, which are unicellular or cell-cluster microscopic organisms. ... Environmental chemistry is the scientific study of the chemical and biochemical phenomena that occur in natural places. ...

Vegetative cover

Decisions regarding appropriate crop rotation, cover crops, and planted windbreaks are central to the ability of surface soils to retain their integrity, both with respect to erosive forces and chemical change from nutrient depletion. Crop rotation is simply the conventional alternation of crops on a given field, so that nutrient depletion is avoided from repetitive chemical uptake/deposition of single crop growth. Broadly defined, a cover crop is any annual, biennial, or perennial plant grown as a monoculture (one crop type grown together) or polyculture (multiple crop types grown together), to improve any number of conditions associated with sustainable agriculture. ... Satellite image of circular crop fields in Haskell County, Kansas in late June 2001. ... Broadly defined, a cover crop is any annual, biennial, or perennial plant grown as a monoculture (one crop type grown together) or polyculture (multiple crop types grown together), to improve any number of conditions associated with sustainable agriculture. ... A windbreak,or shelterbelt, is usually made up of one or more rows of trees planted in such a manner as to provide shelter from the wind and to prevent soil erosion. ...

Cover crops serve the function of protecting the soil from erosion, weed establishment or excess evapotranspiration; however, they may also serve vital soil chemistry functions^[1]. For example, legumes can be ploughed under to augment soil nitrates, and other plants have the ability to metabolize soil contaminants or alter adverse pH. The cover crop Mucuna pruriens (velvet bean) has been used in Nigeria to increase phosphorus availability after application of rock phosphate^[2]. Some of these same precepts are applicable to urban landscaping, especially with respect to ground-cover selection for erosion control and weed suppression. Evapotranspiration (ET) is the sum of evaporation and plant transpiration. ... For other uses, see Chemistry (disambiguation). ... Varieties of soybean seeds, a popular legume Pea pods The term legume has two closely related meanings in botany, a situation encountered with many botanical common names of useful plants, whereby an applied name can refer to either the plant itself, or to the edible fruit (or useful part). ... An electrostatic potential map of the nitrate ion. ... The correct title of this article is . ... Binomial name Mucuna pruriens (L.) DC. The tropical legume Mucuna pruriens (syn. ... General Name, Symbol, Number phosphorus, P, 15 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 15, 3, p Appearance waxy white/ red/ black/ colorless Atomic mass 30. ... Above is a ball-and-stick model of the inorganic hydrogenphosphate anion (HPO42âˆ’). Colour coding: P (orange); O (red); H (white). ...

Windbreaks are created by planting sufficiently dense rows or stands of trees at the windward exposure of an agricultural field subject to wind erosion^[3]. Evergreen species are preferred to achieve year-round protection; however, as long as foliage is present in the seasons of bare soil surfaces, the effect of deciduous trees may also be adequate. Trees, shrubs and groundcovers are also effective perimeter treatment for soil erosion prevention, by insuring any surface flows are impeded. A special form of this perimeter or inter-row treatment is the use of a “grassway” that both channels and dissipates runoff through surface friction, impeding surface runoff, and encouraging infiltration of the slowed surface water^[4]. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2816x2112, 1319 KB) Summary i took this pic in march 2006 and release all rights Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2816x2112, 1319 KB) Summary i took this pic in march 2006 and release all rights Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Marin County (pronounced mah-RIN) is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. ... Windward is the side of a boat into which the wind is blowing. ... A Silver Fir shoot showing three successive years of retained leaves In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant which retains its leaves year-round, with each leaf persisting for more than 12 months. ... In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biodiversity. ... This article is about the leaf, a plant organ. ... hiii, This article is on plants. ... Groundcover is any plant used for the purpose of growing over an area of ground to hide it or to protect it from erosion or drought. ... Look up Channel on Wiktionary, the free dictionary In general, channel refers to the path between two endpoints. ... Runoff flowing into a stormwater drain Surface runoff is water, from rain, snowmelt, or other sources, that flows over the land surface, and is a major component of the water cycle[1][2]. Runoff that occurs on surfaces before reaching a channel is also called overland flow. ...

Erosion prevention

When surface planting is not feasible, there are a variety of mechanical management tactics to protect surface soils from water and wind erosion. Need for these tools arises on construction sites and other situations of transition, where bare soils are exposed. The primary tactics applied are mulching of soil surfaces and use of surface runoff barriers. From 1990 to 2005 considerable innovation has occurred in manufacture of plastic confined hay-bale products, so that a variety of shapes and sizes of runoff barriers can be delivered to the construction site. Severe soil erosion in a wheat field near Washington State University, USA. For erosion as understood by materials science, see Erosion (materials science) For erosion as an English analogy, see Erosion (figurative) For erosion as an operation of Mathematical morphology, see Erosion (morphology) Erosion is the displacement of solids (soil... Runoff flowing into a stormwater drain Surface runoff is water, from rain, snowmelt, or other sources, that flows over the land surface, and is a major component of the water cycle[1][2]. Runoff that occurs on surfaces before reaching a channel is also called overland flow. ...

There are also conventional surface geometric Rough free content practices that farmers have invoked for centuries. These fall into two main categories: contour farming and terracing, standard methods recommended by the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service , whose Code 330 is the common standard. Contour farming was practiced by the ancient Phoenicians, and is known to be effective for slopes between two and ten percent^[5]. Contour plowing can increase crop yields from 10 to 50 percent, partially as a result from greater soil retention. Contour plowing, Pennsylvania, 1938 Contour plowing or contour farming is the farming practice of plowing across a slope following its contours. ... Terraced vineyards near Lausanne The Incan terraces at PÃsac are still used today. ... The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is a relatively small government agency in the United States Department of Agriculture currently comprised of about 12,000 employees. ... Phoenician sarcophagus found in Cadiz, Spain; now in Archaeological Museum of CÃ¡diz. ...

Keyline design is an enhancement of contour farming, where the total watershed properties are taken into account in forming the contour lines. Terracing is the practice of creating benches or nearly level layers on a hillside setting. Terraced farming is more common on small farms and in underdeveloped countries, since mechanized equipment is difficult to deploy in this setting. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1886x1264, 1602 KB) Beschreibung Intika watamanta Amantani watata qhawachkanchik. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1886x1264, 1602 KB) Beschreibung Intika watamanta Amantani watata qhawachkanchik. ... Binomial name Solanum tuberosum L. The potato (Solanum tuberosum) is a perennial plant of the Solanaceae, or nightshade, family, commonly grown for its starchy tuber. ... Categories: Stub ... Keyline Planning may be best known as a technique for maximizing beneficial use of water resources of a piece of land. ... It has been suggested that Isobar, Isobath, Isodrosotherm, Isogon, Isohel, Isohume, Isohyet, Isohypse, Isotach and Isotherm be merged into this article or section. ...

Human overpopulation is leading to destruction of tropical forests due to widening practices of slash-and-burn and other methods of subsistence farming necessitated by famines in lesser developed countries. A sequel to the deforestation is typically large scale erosion, loss of soil nutrients and sometimes total desertification. Map of countries by population (See List of countries by population. ... Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, also known as tropical rain forests, are a tropical and subtropical biome. ... Assarting in Finland in 1892 Slash and burn (a specific practice that may be part of shifting cultivation or swidden-fallow agriculture) is an agricultural procedure widely used in forested areas. ... Like most farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa, this Cameroonian man cultivates at the subsistence level. ... Ship stranded by the retreat of the Aral Sea Desertification is the degradation of land in arid, semi arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors including climatic variations, but primarily human activities. ...

Salinity management

The ions responsible for salination are: Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺ and Cl^-. Salinity is estimated to affect about one third of all the earth’s arable land^[6]. Soil salinity adversely affects the metabolism of most crops, and erosion effects usually follow vegetation failure. Salinity occurs on drylands from overirrigation and in areas with shallow saline water tables. In the case of over-irrigation, salts are deposited in upper soil layers as a byproduct of most soil infiltration; excessive irrigation merely increases the rate of salt deposition. The best-known case of shallow saline water table capillary action occurred in Egypt after the 1970 construction of the Aswan Dam. The change in the groundwater level due to dam construction led to high concentration of salts in the water table. After the construction, the continuous high level of the water table led to soil salination of previously arable land. [[also greatly increased by poor drainage and use of saline water for watering agricultural crops. ... Overview of the citric acid cycle The citric acid cycle, one of the central metabolic pathways in aerobic organisms. ... Vegetation is a general term for the plant life of a region; it refers to the ground cover provided by plants, and is, by far, the most abundant biotic element of the biosphere. ... High-altitude aerial view of irrigation in the Heart of the Sahara ( ) Irrigation is the replacement or supplementation of rainfall with water from another source in order to grow crops or plants. ... Infiltration is the process by which water on the ground surface enters the soil. ... Saline may refer to: Salinity Saline (medicine) Saline, Michigan Saline, Scotland - a village in the burgh of Fife, Scotland. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Map showing reservoir The hydroelectric power station of Aswan Dam Aswan is a city on the first cataract of the Nile in Egypt. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Cross section showing the water table varying with surface topography as well as a perched water table The water table or phreatic surface is the surface where the water pressure is equal to atmospheric pressure. ... [[also greatly increased by poor drainage and use of saline water for watering agricultural crops. ... In geography, arable land is a form of agricultural land use, meaning land that can be (and is) used for growing crops. ...

Use of humic acids may prevent excess salination, especially in locales where excessive irrigation was practiced. The mechanism involved is that humic acids can fix both anions and cations and eliminate them from root zones. In some cases it may be valuable to find plants that can tolerate saline conditions to use as surface cover until salinity can be reduced; there are a number of such saline-tolerant plants, such as saltbush, a plant found in much of North America and in the Mediterranean regions of Europe. ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 569 KB) Summary Abandoned ship on the bed of the Aral Sea. ... ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 569 KB) Summary Abandoned ship on the bed of the Aral Sea. ... The Aral Sea (Kazakh: ÐÑ€Ð°Ð» Ð¢ÐµÒ£Ñ–Ð·Ñ– (Aral Tengizi), Uzbek: , Russian ÐÑ€Ð°Ð»ÑŒÑÐºÎ¿Ðµ Ð¼Î¿Ñ€Ðµ) is a landlocked endorheic sea in Central Asia; it lies between Kazakhstan in the north and Karakalpakstan, an autonomous region of Uzbekistan, in the south. ... Humic acid is one of the major components of humic substances (or Natural Organic Matter (NOM)) which are dark brown and major constituents of soil organic matter humus that contributes to soil chemical and physical quality and are also precursors of some fossil fuels. ... An anion is an ion with negative charge. ... A cation is an ion with positive charge. ... Species About 100-200 species, including: Atriplex alaskensis (Alaska Orach) Atriplex californica Atriplex calotheca Atriplex canescens Atriplex confertifolia Atriplex coronata (Crownscale Saltbush) Atriplex glabriuscula Atriplex hortensis (Garden or Red Orache) Atriplex halimus Atriplex heterosperma Atriplex hymenelytra Atriplex laciniata (Frosted Orache) Atriplex lentiformis Atriplex littoralis (Grass-leaved Orache) Atriplex longipes ( Orache... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ... The Mediterranean Sea is an intercontinental sea positioned between Europe to the north, Africa to the south and Asia to the east, covering an approximate area of 2. ... This article is 150 kilobytes or more in size. ...

Soil pH

Soil pH levels adverse to crop growth can occur naturally in some regions; it can also be induced by acid rain or soil contamination from acids or bases. The role of soil pH is to control nutrient availability to vegetation. The principal macronutrients (calcium, phosphorus, nitrogen, potassium, magnesium, sulphur) prefer neutral to slightly alkaline soils. Calcium, magnesium and potassium are usually made available to plants via cation exchange surfaces of organic material and clay soil surface particles. While acidification increases the initial availability of these cations, the residual soil moisture concentrations of nutrient cations can fall to alarmingly low levels after initial nutrient uptake. Moreover, there is no simple relationship of pH to nutrient availability because of the complex combination of soil types, soil moisture regimes and meteorological factors. Soil pH is an indication of the alkalinity or acidity of soil. ... Acid rain (or more accurately acid precipitation)[1] occurs when sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are emitted into the atmosphere, undergo chemical transformations and are absorbed by water droplets in clouds. ... Excavation of leaking underground storage tank causing soil contamination Soil contamination is the presence of man-made chemicals or other alteration of the natural soil environment. ... Acidity redirects here. ... A base in chemistry is a chemical substance which has a free pair of electrons to bind a hydrogen ion commonly referred to as a proton (IUPAC definition). ... Macronutrients are essential nutrients needed by the human body in large quantities for it to fuction normally. ... General Name, Symbol, Number calcium, Ca, 20 Chemical series alkaline earth metals Group, Period, Block 2, 4, s Appearance silvery white Atomic mass 40. ... General Name, Symbol, Number phosphorus, P, 15 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 15, 3, p Appearance waxy white/ red/ black/ colorless Atomic mass 30. ... General Name, Symbol, Number nitrogen, N, 7 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 15, 2, p Appearance colorless gas Atomic mass 14. ... General Name, Symbol, Number potassium, K, 19 Chemical series alkali metals Group, Period, Block 1, 4, s Appearance silvery white Atomic mass 39. ... General Name, Symbol, Number magnesium, Mg, 12 Chemical series alkaline earth metals Group, Period, Block 2, 3, s Appearance silvery white Atomic mass 24. ... For the chemical element see: sulfur. ... The common (Arrhenius) definition of a base is a chemical compound that either donates hydroxide ions or absorbs hydrogen ions when dissolved in water. ... Organic material or organic matter is informally used to denote a material that originated as a living organism; most such materials contain carbon and are capable of decay. ... A cation is an ion with positive charge. ...

The important observation is that pH is the regulatory mechanism to plant nutrient uptake, and that the theoretical concentration of soil nutrients is meaningless until pH levels are in the optimum range for uptake. Soil pH can be raised by amendment by agricultural lime; The pH of an alkaline soil is lowered by adding sulfur, iron sulphate or aluminum sulphate, although these tend to provide costly short term benefits. Urea, urea phosphate, ammonium nitrate, ammonium phosphates, ammonium sulphate and monopotassium phosphate also reduce soil pH. Agricultural lime is a soil additive made from pulverized limestone or chalk. ... General Name, Symbol, Number sulfur, S, 16 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 16, 3, p Appearance lemon yellow Atomic mass 32. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Atomic mass 55. ... Sulfate is the IUPAC name for the SO42- ion, consisting of a central sulfur atom single bonded to four tetrahedrally oriented oxygen atoms. ... Aluminum is a soft and lightweight metal with a dull silvery appearance, due to a thin layer of oxidation that forms quickly when it is exposed to air. ... Sulfate is the IUPAC name for the SO42- ion, consisting of a central sulfur atom single bonded to four tetrahedrally oriented oxygen atoms. ... Urea is an organic compound of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen, with the formula CON2H4 or (NH2)2CO. Urea is also known as carbamide, especially in the recommended International Non-proprietary Names (rINN) in use in Europe. ... Urea phosphate is an organic compound of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen and phosphorus. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Ammonium phosphate. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Monopotassium phosphate -- KH2PO4 -- (MKP) is a soluble salt which is used as a fertilizer, a food additive and a fungicide. ...

Soil organisms

Promoting the viability of beneficial soil organisms is an element of soil conservation; moreover this includes macroscopic species, notably the earthworm, as well as microorganisms. Positive effects of the earthworm are known well, as to aeration and promotion of macronutrient availability. .When worms excrete egesta in the form of casts, a balanced selection of minerals and plant nutrients is made into a form accessible for root uptake. US research shows that earthworm casts are five times richer in available nitrogen, seven times richer in available phosphates and eleven times richer in available potash than the surrounding upper150 mm of soil. The weight of casts produced may be greater than 4.5 kg per worm per year. By burrowing, the earthworm is of value in creating soil porosity, creating channels enhancing the processes of aeration and drainage^[7]. In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biodiversity. ... A microorganism or microbe is an organism that is so small that it is microscopic (invisible to the naked eye). ... Aeration is the process by which air is circulated through, mixed with or dissolved in a liquid (usually water) or substance (such as soil). ... Macronutrients are essential nutrients needed by the human body in large quantities for it to fuction normally. ... Feces, faeces, or fÃ¦ces (see spelling differences) is waste product from an animals digestive tract expelled through the anus (or cloaca) during defecation. ... Look up Cast in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Primary and secondary roots in a cotton plant In vascular plants, the root is that organ of a plant body that typically lies below the surface of the soil (compare with stem). ... Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic - President George Walker Bush (R) - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from... General Name, Symbol, Number nitrogen, N, 7 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 15, 2, p Appearance colorless gas Atomic mass 14. ... Above is a ball-and-stick model of the inorganic hydrogenphosphate anion (HPO42âˆ’). Colour coding: P (orange); O (red); H (white). ... Potash Potash (or carbonate of potash) is an impure form of potassium carbonate (K2CO3) mixed with other potassium salts. ... Poros (Greek: Î ÏŒÏÎ¿Ï‚) is a small Greek island-pair in the southern part of the Saronic Gulf, at a distance about 48 km (32 miles) south from Piraeus and separated from the Peloponnese by a 200-metre wide sea channel. ...

Soil microorganisms play a vital role in macronutrient cycles. For example, nitrogen fixation is carried out by free-living or symbiotic bacteria. These bacteria have the nitrogenase enzyme that combines gaseous nitrogen with hydrogen to produce ammonia, which is then further converted by the bacteria to make other organic compounds. Some nitrogen fixing bacteria such as rhizobia live in the root nodules of legumes. . Here they form a mutualistic relationship with the plant, producing ammonia in exchange for carbohydrates. In the case of the carbon cycle, carbon is transferred within the biosphere as heterotrophs feed on other organisms. This process includes the uptake of dead organic material (detritus) by fungi and bacteria in the form of fermentation or decay phenomena. Some soil microorganisms known as extremophiles have remarkable properties of adaptation to extreme environmental conditions including temperature, pH and water deprivation. Yellow fungus: From http://www. ... Yellow fungus: From http://www. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A microorganism or microbe is an organism that is so small that it is microscopic (invisible to the naked eye). ... Macronutrients are essential nutrients needed by the human body in large quantities for it to fuction normally. ... General Name, Symbol, Number nitrogen, N, 7 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 15, 2, p Appearance colorless gas Atomic mass 14. ... Look up Fixation in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Common Clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris) in their Magnificent Sea Anemone (Heteractis magnifica) home. ... Phyla Actinobacteria Aquificae Chlamydiae Bacteroidetes/Chlorobi Chloroflexi Chrysiogenetes Cyanobacteria Deferribacteres Deinococcus-Thermus Dictyoglomi Fibrobacteres/Acidobacteria Firmicutes Fusobacteria Gemmatimonadetes Lentisphaerae Nitrospirae Planctomycetes Proteobacteria Spirochaetes Thermodesulfobacteria Thermomicrobia Thermotogae Verrucomicrobia Bacteria (singular: bacterium) are unicellular microorganisms. ... Nitrogenase (EC 1. ... For other meanings see gas (disambiguation). ... Ammonia is a compound with the formula NH3. ... Benzene is the simplest of the arenes, a family of organic compounds An organic compound is any member of a large class of chemical compounds whose molecules contain carbon and hydrogen; therefore, carbides, carbonates, carbon oxides and elementary carbon are not organic (see below for more on the definition controversy... Soybean root nodules, each containing billions of Bradyrhizobium bacteria Rhizobia (from the Greek words riza = root and bios = Life) are soil bacteria that fix nitrogen (diazotrophy) after becoming established inside root nodules of legumes (Fabaceae). ... Primary and secondary roots in a cotton plant In vascular plants, the root is that organ of a plant body that typically lies below the surface of the soil (compare with stem). ... A nodule describes an aggregation of similar cells or particles in a number of scientific fields: In medicine it refers to a small aggregation of cells. ... Varieties of soybean seeds, a popular legume Pea pods The term legume has two closely related meanings in botany, a situation encountered with many botanical common names of useful plants, whereby an applied name can refer to either the plant itself, or to the edible fruit (or useful part). ... In biology, mutualism is an interaction between two species in which both species derive benefit. ... Lactose is a disaccharide found in milk. ... The carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged between the biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere of the Earth (other astronomical objects may have similar carbon cycles, but nothing is yet known about them). ... Flowchart to determine if a species is autotroph, heterotroph, or a subtype A heterotroph (Greek heterone = (an)other and trophe = nutrition) is an organism that requires organic substrates to get its carbon for growth and development. ... Detritus may refer to: In geology, detritus is the name for loose fragments of rock that have been worn away by erosion. ... Divisions Chytridiomycota Zygomycota Ascomycota Basidiomycota The Fungi (singular: fungus) are a large group of organisms ranked as a kingdom within the Domain Eukaryota. ... Phyla Actinobacteria Aquificae Chlamydiae Bacteroidetes/Chlorobi Chloroflexi Chrysiogenetes Cyanobacteria Deferribacteres Deinococcus-Thermus Dictyoglomi Fibrobacteres/Acidobacteria Firmicutes Fusobacteria Gemmatimonadetes Lentisphaerae Nitrospirae Planctomycetes Proteobacteria Spirochaetes Thermodesulfobacteria Thermomicrobia Thermotogae Verrucomicrobia Bacteria (singular: bacterium) are unicellular microorganisms. ... Fermentation in progress Fermentation is a process of energy production in a cell in an anaerobic environment (with no oxygen present). ... This page may meet Wikipedias criteria for speedy deletion. ... An extremophile is an organism, usually unicellular, which thrives in or requires extreme conditions that would exceed optimal conditions for growth and reproduction in the majority of mesophilic terrestrial organisms. ...

The viability of soil organisms can be compromised when insecticides and herbicides are applied to planting regimes. Often there are unforeseen and unintended consequences of such chemical use in the form of death of impaired functioning of soil organisms. Thus any use of pesticides should only be undertaken after thorough understanding of residual toxicities upon soil organisms as well as terrestrial ecological components. An insecticide is a pesticide used against insects in all developmental forms. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Ecology is the branch of science that studies the distribution and abundance of living organisms, and the interactions between organisms and their environment. ...

Killing soil microorganisms is a deleterious impact of slash and burn agricultural methods. With the surface temperatures generated, virtual annilation of soil and vegetative cover organisms are destroyed, and in many environments these effects can be virtually irreversible (at least for generations of mankind. Shifting cultivation is also a farming system that often employs slash and burn as one of its elements. Assarting in Finland in 1892 Slash and burn (a specific practice that may be part of shifting cultivation or swidden-fallow agriculture) is an agricultural procedure widely used in forested areas. ... Shifting cultivation is an agricultural system in which a person uses a piece of land, only to abandon or alter the initial use a short time later. ... Assarting in Finland in 1892 Slash and burn (a specific practice that may be part of shifting cultivation or swidden-fallow agriculture) is an agricultural procedure widely used in forested areas. ...

Soil contamination

There are thousands of anthropogenic chemicals that enter soil systems, most of which have an adverse effect upon soil quality and plant metabolism. While the role of pH has been discussed above, heavy metals, solvents, petroleum hydrocarbons, herbicides and pesticides also contribute soil residues that are of potential concern. Some of these chemicals are totally extraneous to the agricultural landscape, but others (notably herbicides and pesticides) are intentionally introduced to serve a short term function. Many of these added chemicals have long half-lives in soil, and others degrade to produce derivative chemicals that may be either persistent or pernicious. Excavation of leaking underground storage tank causing soil contamination Soil contamination is the presence of man-made chemicals or other alteration of the natural soil environment. ... Look up anthropogenic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A chemical substance is any material substance used in or obtained by a process in chemistry: A chemical compound is a substance consisting of two or more chemical elements that are chemically combined in fixed proportions. ... For other uses, see Solvent (disambiguation). ... Hydrocarbons are refined at oil refineries and processed at chemical plants A hydrocarbon is a chemical compound that consists only of the elements carbon (C) and hydrogen (H). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A cropduster spreading pesticide. ... Half-Life, often abbreviated as HL or HL1, is a sci-fi first-person shooter computer game developed by Valve Software, first released by Sierra Studios on November 19, 1998. ...

Typically the expense of soil contamination remediation cannot be justified in an agricultural economic analysis, since cleanup costs are generally quite high; often remediation is mandated by state and county environmental health agencies based upon human health risk issues. Economics (deriving from the Greek words Î¿Î¯ÎºÏ‰ [okos], house, and Î½ÎÎ¼Ï‰ [nemo], rules hence household management) is the social science that studies the allocation of scarce resources to satisfy unlimited wants. ... Environmental health is defined by the World Health Organization as: Those aspects of human health and disease that are determined by factors in the environment. ... Health can be defined negatively, as the absence of illness, functionally as the ability to cope with everyday activities, or positively, as fitness and well-being (Blaxter 1990). ...

Mineralization

To allow plants full realization of their phytonutrient potential, active mineralization of the soil is sometimes undertaken. This can be in the natural form of adding crushed rock or can take the form of chemical soil supplement. In either case the purpose is to combat mineral depletion of the soil. There are a broad range of minerals that can be added including common substances such as phosphorus and more exotic substances such as zinc and selenium. There is extensive research on the phase transitions of minerals in soil with aqueous contact^[8].

The process of flooding can bring significant bedload sediment to an alluvial plain. While this effect may not be desirable if floods endanger life or if the eroded sediment originates from productive land, this process of addition to a floodplain is a natural process that can rejuvenate soil chemistry through mineralization and macronutrient addition. Alluvium is soil land deposited by a river or other running water. ... Gravel floodplain of a glacial river near the Snow Mountains in Alaska, 1902. ... Macronutrients are essential nutrients needed by the human body in large quantities for it to fuction normally. ...

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