1. Soil Science #1 Parent Material

2. What Is Soil? Soil: The unconsolidated mineral or organic material on the immediate surface of the earth that serves as a natural medium for the growth of land plants. (NRCS 2007)

3. Soil Formation Parent Material: Material (unconsolidated) in which soils form Climate: Temperature, rainfall, light, elevation Plant and Animal Life: In and on soil Relief: 3-D features (“lay of the land”) Time: For soil forming processes to act on parent material

4. General Processes…. Laurentide Glacier covered New England 80,000-12,000 years ago

5. Glaciers scrape land, pick up rocks, and shapes the land -Ice over 5000 feet high!!

7. As galciers melt/retreat parent material is redistributed

10. Cambrian Ordovician df ✖

11. Types of Parent Material Parent MaterialParticle SizeProcessFeatures Glacial Till Sand, Cobble, Gravel Material “dropped” by glaciers Jagged edges – not worn by flowing water – loamy/silty/sand – not stratified - TUNBRIDGE

12. Types of Parent Material Parent MaterialParticle SizeProcessFeatures Glacial outwash deposits Gravel, sandGlacial meltwater (along rivers above floodplain) Soils exist in layers (strata) of similar particle size- WINDSOR

14. Types of Parent Material Parent MaterialParticle SizeProcessFeatures Alluvial Deposits Silty, Sandy, Loamy Material carried by recent streams In streams below floodplain – stratified - HADLEY

15. Types of Parent Material Parent MaterialParticle SizeProcessFeatures Lacustrine Silt, ClayGlacial lakes allowed small particles to settle Little stratification - VERGENNES

16. Types of Parent Material Parent MaterialParticle SizeProcessFeatures Organic Deposits OrganicDecomposing plant material in depressions (ponds) Can be up to 50” thick- CARSLILE