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UNIT C1. Basic Principles of Agricultural/Horticultural Science. UNIT C1. Basic Principles of Agricultural/Horticultural Science. Understanding Moisture Holding Capacity. Lesson 6. Next Generation Science/Common Core Standards Addressed!.
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UNIT C1. Basic Principles of Agricultural/Horticultural Science
UNIT C1. Basic Principles of Agricultural/Horticultural Science
Next Generation Science/Common Core Standards Addressed! • CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.4 - Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades 9–10 texts and topics. • CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.5 - Analyze the structure of the relationships among concepts in a text, including relationships among key terms (e.g., force, friction, reaction force, energy). • CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.6 - Analyze the author’s purpose in providing an explanation, describing a procedure, or discussing an experiment in a text, defining the question the author seeks to address. • CCSS.Math.Content.HSN-Q.A.1- Use units as a way to understand problems and to guide the solution of multi-step problems; choose and interpret units consistently in formulas; choose and interpret the scale and the origin in graphs and data displays.
Bell Work • What is soil moisture holding capacity? • Why is it important for a soil to hold water? • Can a soil hold water too tightly?
Interest Approach • Place a jar of pure sand and a jar of good black soil before the students. • Ask them which of the samples would produce the best crops. There may be a variety of answers. • Lead discussion in the direction of how much water would be available to plants growing in each of the samples. • Which sample will provide the most moisture to the plants? Why?
Learning Objectives • Explain moisture holding capacity. • Explain what determines a soils moisture holding capacity. • Determine the moisture holding capacity of a given soil profile.
Available soil moisture Available water holding capacity Capillary moisture Gravitational moisture Hygroscopic moisture Moisture holding capacity Soil moisture tension Important Terms
What is moisture holding capacity? • Moisture holding capacity is the ability of the soil within the soil profile to retain water.
Moisture is retained in three ways: • Gravitational moisture is the water that moves downward through the soil. • It may help replenish groundwater supplies. • It is also available to plants.
Moisture is retained in three ways: • Capillary moisture is the water that is held within the pore spaces between soil particles. • It is also available to plants
Moisture is retained in three ways: • Hygroscopic moisture is the soil water that tightly clings to the soil particles. • This moisture is usually not available to plants.
What is available to the plants? • Available soil moisture is the water in the soil that can be used by plants. • When moisture levels are high, plants can easily extract moisture from the soil. • As the water is used, soil moisture tension increases. • Soil moisture tension is the force by which soil particles hold on to moisture.
What is used to determine how much moisture a soil can hold? • Moisture holding capacity is determined primarily by the soils texture. • As a rule, the finer the texture of the soil, the more moisture it will hold. • A soil high in sand will hold less water. • Soils high in clay, hold water and keep it from percolating out of the root zone.
What is used to determine how much moisture a soil can hold? • If the soil is entirely clay, it will hold the water too tightly. • This means less water is available to plants than if silt were present. • A good silt loam holds the most moisture available for plants
How do you determine the amount of moisture a soil profile can hold? • The amount of moisture the soil can hold for plants is referred to as available water holding capacity.
Available water holding capacity depends on: • 1. How deep the soil profile is. • 2. The type of soil texture found throughout the soil profile.
Available water holding capacity depends on: • On average, the following textures will hold the designated amount of moisture per inch of soil: • fine textured .20 inches • moderately fine textured .25 inches • medium textured .30 inches • moderately coarse textured .20 inches • coarse textured .10 inches
How do you know figure the water holding capacity • To determine the available water holding capacity for a given area, multiply the depth of each horizon, to a maximum depth of 60 inches, by the amount of water the texture within that horizon can hold. • Add the totals for each horizon to calculate total water holding capacity.
Example • A horizon: 9 inches deep, medium texture = 9 × .30 =2.70 inches • B horizon: 23 inches deep, moderately fine texture = 23 × .25 = 5.75 inches • C horizon: 28 inches deep, medium texture = 28 x .30 = 8.40 inches • Total = 16.85 inches of water
Summary • Explain moisture holding capacity. • Explain what determines a soils moisture holding capacity. • Determine the moisture holding capacity of a given soil profile.
Additional Resources • VAS U4052a, Understanding Soils. Urbana, Illinois: Vocational Agriculture Service. NEXT: Student Learning Activities
Student Learning Activities • Sample tests are available in the Lesson Plan tab.