Chapter 9, Problem 1TYC

To determine

To explain: People’s dependency on healthy soil for day-to-day well-being, characteristics of soil that are important for crop growth and agriculture, and the way in which such characteristics are important.

Answer to Problem 1TYC

People rely on healthy soil for growing both food and cash crops as well as food items used to feed livestock. Soil possess some important characteristics for promoting crop growth and agriculture. They include presence of organic matter which provides nutrients and supports with structure and water retention and presence of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus that help in plant growth. Moreover, soils that retain water (however drain excess water) make the accurate amount available to plants. The structure and texture of soil impacts root penetration and growth. Healthy soil comprises of all the rudimentary minerals, nutrients and organic matter essential for crop growth and agriculture.

Explanation of Solution

Healthy soil refers to the combination of minerals, bacteria, protozoa, fungi, rock, air, water, organic matter, and a variety of insects. Healthy soil continuously replenishes the soil and helps in maintaining long-term soil fertility.

Healthy soil is the basis of healthy food. Healthy food determines the health of a person. A person’s diet is the key to his health. People require food in their life to obtain energy. Food that a person consumes is directly or directly dependent on plants or crops. As crops require soil to grow, people are dependent on soil for their nutritional requirements. Healthy soil contains the basic micronutrients and macronutrients for plant growth. This maintains the healthy growth of crops. Crops require properly-aerated, well-irrigated soil that contains all the essential nutrients to grow. Crops yielded from that soil provide food to the people in their daily lives. Thus, people depend on healthy soil for their food requirements.

The characteristics of soil important for crop growth and agriculture are as follows:

1. 1. Organic Matter: The presence of organic matter and humus in the soil makes the soil more productive, thus promoting the healthy growth of plants and agricultural crops.
2. 2. Soil texture: Soil texture determines the relative content of different particles in soil, such as silt, clay, and sand.
3. 3. Porosity: Porosity determines the amount of water and aeration that soil can hold. Porosity refers to the pore spaces present within the soil.
4. 4. Aeration: Aeration determines the perforation of soil with air. A well-aerated soil is good for agriculture.
5. 5. Water holding capacity: This property determines the amount of water that soil can hold. Water holding capacity of clay is more than that of silt and sand. Certain crops demand more water holding capacity while certain others do not.