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Final Evaluation Lab Practicum Take Home Assessment Formal Examination
Exam Week Lab Practicum Take Home Assessment Formal Examination
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Formal Exam Review Topic Subject Areas
Agronomic Practices Practical Nutrient Management Soil Quality Site and Landscape Mngmt Fertilization Soil Erosion Process of Water and Wind Erosion Management tools against erosion Soil Quality Inherent & Dynamic soil characteristics Assessment of Soil Quality Indicators of Soil Quality
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Practical Nutrient Management
Review of Nutrients Fertilizer – how we make decisions about fertility… nutrients forms choices content, release rates, availability and cost convenience and use & side effects determining need testing Application methods
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Soil Erosion Process of Water and Wind Erosion
Management tools against erosion Numbers on degraded lands and soil degradation Process of (soil) erosion The role of Soil Properties on erosion Types of Erosion – gravity, water and wind Control Practices – cover, engineered, tillage and vegetative – controls for physical degradation Soil Loss Equations – wind and water
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Soil Quality SOIL QUALITY is how well soil does what we want it to do Soil quality is ... The capacity of a specific kind of soil to function, within natural or managed ecosystem boundaries, to sustain plant and animal productivity, maintain or enhance water and air quality, and support human health and habitation.
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SOIL HAS BOTH INHERENT AND DYNAMIC QUALITY
Inherent soil quality is a soil’s natural ability to function. Sandy soil drains faster than clayey soil Deep soil has more room for roots than shallow soils These characteristics do not change easily
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SOIL HAS BOTH INHERENT AND DYNAMIC QUALITY
Dynamic soil quality is dependent on how a soil is managed. amount of soil organic matter soil structure Soils respond differently to management depending on the inherent properties of the soil and the surrounding landscape water and nutrient holding capacity
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Soil quality is an assessment of how well soil performs
ASSESSING SOIL QUALITY Soil quality is an assessment of how well soil performs ALL of its functions. It cannot be determined by measuring only crop yield, water quality, or any other single outcome The quality of a soil is an assessment of how it performs all of its functions now and how those functions are being preserved for future use
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measure changes in soil functions
Useful indicators : are easy to measure measure changes in soil functions encompass chemical, biological, and physical properties are accessible to many users and applicable to field conditions are sensitive to variations in climate and management Indicators can be assessed by qualitative or quantitative techniques. After measurements are collected, they can be evaluated by looking for patterns and comparing results to measurements taken at a different time or field.
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Physical* Biological* Chemical*
Bulk Density Root Health Assessment Phosphorus Macro-porosity Beneficial Nematode Popl Nitrate-N Meso-porosity Parasitic Nematode Popl Potassium Micro-porosity Potential Mineralizable N pH Avail Water Cap Decomposition Rate Magnesium Residial Porosity Particulate O.M Calcium Penetr. 10kPa Active Carbon Fe Dry Aggregate size Weed Seed Bank Aluminum <0.25, & 2-8 mm) Wet Aggregate Size Microbial Resp. Rate Manganese ( & 2-8 mm) Glomalin Zinc Surface Hardness O.M. Content Copper Subsurface Hardness Exchangable Acidity Field Infiltration * source: Cornell Soil Health Assessment Training Manual
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Avoid excessive tillage.
MANAGING FOR SOIL QUALITY Add organic matter. Avoid excessive tillage. Carefully manage fertilizer and pesticide use. Increase ground cover Increase plant diversity
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Connection Game Systemic Knowledge Assessment Concise relationships
Clear connections Logical explanations If the relationship is not direct fill in the missing term (component)
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Texture, pH and Organic Matter (3 connections)
Texture, pH and Organic Matter (3 connections) 2) Temperature, Water, Decomposition and e- (6 connections) 3) Colloids, Nutrients, CEC, Buffering and Weathering (10 connections)
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= Term = Connection
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Lab Practicum Part 1. Examine the three soils in the buckets at the back of the classroom. Determine the texture, pH and color of each. Fill in the matrix below. Part 1 Soil Texture Soil pH Soil color Soil # 1 Soil # 2 Soil # 3
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Part 2. Examine the three monoliths in the front of the classroom
Part 2. Examine the three monoliths in the front of the classroom. Using the OSD’s provided, determine the correct Soil Series for each monolith. Fill in the matrix below. Then determine the Order, Suborder, Great Group and Subgroup for each. Remember that monoliths are real soils, while the OSD’s describe the ideal soils. Part 2 Monolith # 1 Monolith # 2 Monolith # 3 Soil Series Order Suborder Great Group Subgroup
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