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Soil genesis and development, lesson 4: Soil profile development

Reuter, R. and Mamo, M. and Kettler, T. and Ippolito, J.A. and McCallister, D.L. and Morner, P. and Soester, J, (2009) Soil genesis and development, lesson 4: Soil profile development. Journal of Natural Resources & Life Sciences Education. 38:239.

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Abstract

The processes occurring over time in a soil are
reflected in vertical and lateral physical and chemical characteristics
of that soil. The four soil forming processes, in
conjunction with the five factors of soil formation, organize
parent material into a soil profile that consists of soil horizons.
These processes can occur over millennia; however,
they can also be influenced by short-term variables such as
human use. Understanding the processes enables interpretation
of the natural history of a soil and provides a
starting point to evaluate how future changes will affect the
soil resource. Combining landscape history with knowledge
of principles of soil profile development allows for more
precise and effective land use planning, from residential
development to precision agricultural practices.
At the completion of this lesson, students will be able to do
the following:
1. Describe the four major soil forming processes.
2. Describe how these four processes redistribute soil
materials in vertical and horizontal dimensions.
3. Explain which soil processes are dominant in each
soil horizon.
4. Develop a profile horizon sequence based on given
soil properties and a set of soil forming factors
5. Describe the general soil forming processes based
on the soil forming factors that led to the development
of a given soil profile.
The lesson is written to target educational needs of lower-level
undergraduate students and is open for use by the
public and educational institutions.

Item Type: Article
NWISRL Publication Number: 1321
Subjects: Soil
Depositing User: Users 6 not found.
Date Deposited: 30 Nov 2009 22:20
Last Modified: 14 Oct 2016 14:59
Item ID: 1344
URI: https://eprints.nwisrl.ars.usda.gov/id/eprint/1344