Important Factors in Soil Testing

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  • Author Joe Walter
  • Published December 10, 2010
  • Word count 733

Role of soil in plant growth is unique. Soil testing plays an important role in determining the type of soil present in your land.The soil serves as a basic resource and the roots of the plant serves as a means of transferring water and nutrients from the soil to the leaves. Soil provides physical support, acts as a moderator of temperature fluctuations and protects against toxins. Usually soil is divided into six types of sand, clay, mud, peat and limestone. Since soil type and quality directly affects the roots and work transfer of nutrients, it is good to understand the soil types and identify the best soil for your plant. Soil types can be differentiated on the basis of its color, moisture content, compaction, organic matter content, pH, structure, texture, pattern and temperature.

You can asses the soil types with the help of soil tests.

  1. Color: A key factor in determining soil organic matter, biotic activity, fertility and aeration. Therefore, depending on soil color, soil conditions can be determined:. the dark soil organic matter, available nitrogen, soil fertility and aeration will be very high, while the erosion factor is small. Average color of the earth, are all factors. Average light-colored soil, organic materials available, nitrogen fertility, and aeration is low, while the erosion factor is high. To identify the color of the earth, the only way is to dig in the 3? - 4? test deep colors with a piece of ground.

  2. Moisture: The soil moisture differed significantly with soil type, organic matter in soil and atmosphere.Although levels of moisture in the soil can be approximated, it is good to determine the moisture content of soil using a laboratory test [soil analysis]. Soil moisture is usually reported as percent moisture on the weight of a given sample.

  3. Compaction: Soil with a high compression ratio does not provide enough air for roots and water tends to move everything to cause more damage to plant growth. But a normal soil with low compression ratio may be able to absorb and retain water and release water slowly roots and provides sufficient air to the root zone of plants. Thus, the compression ratio lower in the soil, the plant will be producing more. For example, the sand does not retain many nutrients or water, while clay can retain more nutrients than other soils.

4.Organic matter: The content in the soil affects the plants and other organisms in the soil. decomposition of organic matter provides many essential nutrients for plants, as well as residents of the land. Therefore, keep soil deficient regular applications of organic matter in soil. The lighting is the best way to determine the amount of organic matter in soil.

5.PH levels: the level of about 6 to 6.5 pH in soil is good for plant growth. universal indicator solution or pH of the paper is the best source for determining the amount of soil pH. Remember that the level of pH below 3.5 is too acidic and above 8.5 is too alkaline. In addition, the pH varies within each layer of soil and different levels of soil pH.

6.Soil structure: it describes the soil affects the flow of water, air and root penetration in soil. The shape of the soil determines the soil structure. Therefore, to determine the structure of the soil, carefully cut layers and observe its characteristics with one of these types of soil structure, columns, plates, blocks, slabs, and fit.

  1. Profile: Determine the type of soil is actually possible to obtain a soil sample using a basic tool of the earth, a tool that helps remove dirt from the earth. The examination of this core of soil to determine soil type and its layers.

  2. Soil texture: The proportional distribution of the different sizes of particles in the soil determines the soil texture. Sand, clay and silt are the forms that describe the size of each particle in the ground. Sand is the largest clay particles and most granular particle size is very small and is usually sticky and difficult to press; limo average particle size and very sweet.

  3. Temperature: It plays a crucial role in determining the rate of plant growth and resistance to ground readings. The temperature of 40 to 85 F shows higher growth, while less than 40 F and 85 are considered on top of no growth at all.

Based on the corresponding soil tests carried out in the soil labs you can device your plan.

Joe Walter is an expert author for Soil Testing and Land Survey. He written many articles like Construction Material Testing, Engineering Survey,

and Infrastructure Consultants . For more information visit our site www.blueraysinfra.com. Contact him at bluerayinfra@gmail.com

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