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What is soil made of?

Discover what soil is made of, including weathered rock and organic material like humus, and how soil forms from parent material. Explore soil layers, mass movements, and erosion prevention by plants. Delve into the types of soil, such as residual and transported soil.

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What is soil made of?

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  1. What is soil made of? Soil has 4 components: • Weathered rock • Organic material (humus) • Air • Water

  2. Soil is formed from weathered rock and organic material (HUMUS) • PARENT MATERIAL is what the soil forms from • When the parent material is the underlying bedrock of the area the soil is called RESIDUAL SOIL (residual = what is left behind when the bedrock weathers) • If the soil was formed in one place and carried elsewhere (by wind, water, glaciers, etc…) then the soil is called TRANSPORTED SOIL

  3. Cross section of soil layers Each layer is called a HORIZON Horizon O/A = Topsoil (mostly Humus, some weathered rock) Horizon B = Mostly weathered rock, some organic material (mineral rich zone) Horizon C = Broken Bedrock BEDROCK

  4. HORIZON A HORIZON B HORIZON C

  5. IT TAKES 100-400 YEARS FOR 1cm OF TOPSOIL TO FORM!!!! • Plants hold the soil together and prevent soil erosion

  6. MASS MOVEMENTS MOVEMENTS OF THE EARTH CAUSED BY THE FORCE OF GRAVITY

  7. CREEP • Very slow downward movement of soil • Only noticeable by the results of trees, fence posts, telephone poles, etc… that are tilted downhill

  8. LANDSLIDE • RAPID mass movement of soil downhill (usually a very steep slope) • AVALANCHE – landslide made of Ice & Snow as well as Soil • SLUMP – small areas of land move downhill - especially along roadways that cut into the side of hills

  9. Baltimore, Maryland Landslide

  10. MUDFLOWor LAHAR • Very fast & Dangerous movement of water saturated soil (MUD)

  11. Even though rapid mass movement is more noticeable than slow mass movement, overall, more material is transported via creep than all others combined

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