Upgrade to remove ads
Busy. Please wait.
Log in with Clever
or

show password
Forgot Password?

Don't have an account?  Sign up 
Sign up using Clever
or

Username is available taken
show password


Make sure to remember your password. If you forget it there is no way for StudyStack to send you a reset link. You would need to create a new account.
Your email address is only used to allow you to reset your password. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.


Already a StudyStack user? Log In

Reset Password
Enter the associated with your account, and we'll email you a link to reset your password.

Soil Chemistry

        Help!  

Term/Question
Definition/Answer
Importance of soil chemistry?   chemical properties of soil determine soil fertility and nutrient availability; impacts soil pH; Determines availability of toxic chemicals; can influence physical properties and moisture, OM  
🗑
What four things are essential to plant nutrients?   Carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen; Primary macronutrients - nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium; Secondary macronutrients - calcium, magnesium, sulfur; Micronutrients  
🗑
Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen   obtained by photosynthesis, NOT soil nutrients  
🗑
Primary macronutrients - Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium   NPK is nature's source of nitrogen; Nitrogen and Phosphorus are most common fertilizers applied  
🗑
Secondary macronutrients - Calcium, Magnesium, Sulfur   Sulfur is common fertilizer need in sandy soils; Calcium and magnesium are found in many soil parent materials  
🗑
Micronutrients   Boron, Chloride, Copper, Iron, Manganese, Molybdenum, Zinc, Nickel  
🗑
What element is essential for Nitrogen-Fixation by Legumes?   Cobalt - only N-fixation  
🗑
What are three other important soil Elements?   Sodium - high levels cause soil crusting; Aluminum - becomes toxic to plants in acidic soils; Silicon - Abundant in soils, no benefit or harm  
🗑
What are two sources of soil nutrients?   most come from SOIL MINERALS, but nitrogen comes from ORGANIC MATTER  
🗑
What are the four pools of soils elements?   Soil minerals; Organic matter; absorbed on soil colloids; soil solution  
🗑
Soil Colloids   clay and humus particles; carry slight negative charge; quantity of colloids in soil determined by soil texture/OM; interact closely with chemicals that have positive charge  
🗑
What are positively charged ions called?   cations  
🗑
Cations   Potassium - K+; Sodium - Na+; Ammonium - NH4+; Hydrogen - H+; Calcium - Ca++; Magnesium - Mg++  
🗑
Typical proportions of Cations in Soils   Calcium - 75-85%; Magnesium - 12-18%; Potassium - 1-5%; Sodium - 1%; Others - 1%  
🗑
Soil Test = Cation Exchange Capacity   Total number of exchangeable cations a soil can hold; relative to negative charge, Clay and OM have greatest influence, measures as milliequivalents per 100g of soil  
🗑
Negatively charged ions =   anions  
🗑
Anions   Chloride - CL-; Nitrate - NO3-; Sulfate - SO4-2; Borate - BO4-3; Phosphate - H2PO4, H2PO4-2  
🗑
Anion Retention in soils   Phosphate held strongly due to quick formation of insoluble compounds; Nitrate and Chloride not held in soils and move freely with soil water; Sulfate held loosly in some low pH soils  
🗑
What is Soil pH?   soil reaction (pH) is an indication of the acidity/basicity of the soil; at pH 7, Hydrogen ion concentration equals the hydroxyl ion concentration  
🗑
Hydroxyl ion vs. hydrogen ion   Hydrogen causes acidity; Hydroxyl causes basic condition (alkaline)  
🗑
pH   negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion activity (concentration); pH = -log[H+]; as pH decreases by one unit, acidity increases 10-fold  
🗑
What is the importance of soil pH?   influences availability of plant nutrients; may influence toxicity of aluminum; influence activity of soil microorganisms; influence soil applied herbicide activity  
🗑
Plant Nutrients Availability   direct effect on Fe, Mn, Ca, Zn, Mo; Neutral pH favors mineralization from organic matter  
🗑
Aluminum Toxicity Influence   acidity releases aluminum from soil minerals  
🗑
Soil Applied Herbicide Application   determines if able/available to kill weeds; determines the degradation rate  
🗑
What are some of the main ways soils become acidic?   parent material is acidic (sandstone); application of nitrogen fetilizers; heavy precipitation; native vegetation = forested land; crops grown; burning fossil fuels  
🗑
Form of nitrogen fertilizer application?   ammonium/ammonium phosphate  
🗑
heavy precipitation =   leaching of bases  
🗑
because crops grown,   basic compounds removed by harvest  
🗑
What are some of the sources of soil acidity?   Active acidity - measured directly by pH meter to test Hydrogen in soil solution; Reserve acidity - hydrogen held on soil exchange sites/organic matter that is available to replace the hydrogen in soil solution: Al3+ + H+  
🗑
What element can be added to raise the soil pH?   lime or calcium carbonate: CaCO3  
🗑
What are some steps to managing soil pH and Lime?   soil test to determine lime required; plan ahead bc lime takes time; lime particles size determines how fast neutralization occurs; limes works best when applied early  
🗑
Soil tests for lime?   soil pH and CEC  
🗑
How can you manage to lower the soil pH?   apply elemental sulfur to naturally high pH soils; high pH caused by poor drainage  
🗑
Poor drainage:   install subsurface till drainage  
🗑
Elemental sulfur:   soil bacteria converts to sulfuric acid; not economical for field crops  
🗑
Salinity   high concentration of total salts  
🗑
What are some causes of salinity?   Poor Drainage; Shallow Water Table; Seepage Zones; Parent Materials  
🗑
Where is salinity in soils a problem in Nebraska?   Lancaster and Saunders counties  
🗑
What is salt?   and inorganic material/mutually charged molecule that can dissolve in water  
🗑
How is salinity measured?   estimated by measuring the Electrical Conductivity (EC); mmhos/cm  
🗑
What are two different ways to manage saline soils?   leach soils with enough non-saline water that salts are moved below root zone (adequate drainage required); grow salt tolerant crops  
🗑
What are the minimum requirements for saline soil reclamation?   assess problem; make sure there's mechanisms for drainage; have clean water supply  
🗑
Sodicity =   high concentration of sodium (Na)  
🗑
What changes may sodic soils (sodium) make to soil physical properties?   soil aggregates are destroyed; causes poor drainage/crusting  
🗑
What are two things you need to know when managing sodic soils?   the basic rule; may need to grow salt-tolerant crop until process in complete  
🗑
The Basic Rule   good drainage - outlet to send sodium when it is displace; source of calcium/exchange process - gypsum (CaCO4 x 2H2O); source of water to flush sodium from system  
🗑
In what ways is salinity stress similar to draught?   salts have pulling force on water; soil salinity = root salinity water less likely to enter roots; soil salinity is to high - water is pulled back into soil and plant wilts and dies; (most plants respond to salinity in same way as water deficiency)  
🗑
What can an accumulation of Na+ do?   damage cell mechanisms  
🗑
What can an accumulation of Cl- do?   inhibit photosynthesis  
🗑


   

Review the information in the table. When you are ready to quiz yourself you can hide individual columns or the entire table. Then you can click on the empty cells to reveal the answer. Try to recall what will be displayed before clicking the empty cell.
 
To hide a column, click on the column name.
 
To hide the entire table, click on the "Hide All" button.
 
You may also shuffle the rows of the table by clicking on the "Shuffle" button.
 
Or sort by any of the columns using the down arrow next to any column heading.
If you know all the data on any row, you can temporarily remove it by tapping the trash can to the right of the row.

 
Embed Code - If you would like this activity on your web page, copy the script below and paste it into your web page.

  Normal Size     Small Size show me how
Created by: horktera
Popular Agriculture sets