rock and soil
Terms
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- Dust Bowl
- an area of the Great Plains named because wind erosion caused soil loss during the 1930s
- chemical weathering
- breaks down rock through chemical changes, such as water, oxygen, carbon dioxide, living organisms, and acid rain
- conservation plowing
- soil conservation method in which the dead stalks from the previous year's crop are left in the ground to hold the soil in place
- bedrock
- the solid layer of rock beneath the soil
- soil
- loose, weathered material on Earth's surface in which plants can grow
- loam
- soil that is made up of about equal parts of clay, sand, and silt
- erosion
- the MOVEMENT of rock particle by wind, water, ice, or gravity
- humus
- dark-colored substance that forms as plant and animal remains decay
- abrasion
- the grinding away of rock by rock particles carried by water, ice, wind, or gravity
- mechanical weathering
- breaks rock into pieces by freezing and thawing, heating and cooling, growth of plants, actions of animals, and abrasion
- decomposters
- the organisms that break the remains of dead organisms into smaller pieces and digest them with chemicals
- weathering
- the process that BREAKS DOWN rocks and other substances at Earth's surface
- contour plowing
- the practice of plowing fields along the curves of a slope to slow runoff of extra rainfall and prevent soil from washing away
- soil horizon
- a layer of soil that differs in color and texture from the layers above and below it
- sod
- the thick mass of tough roots at the surface of the soil
- ice wedging
- water fills cracks in rocks, then freezes and and the ice breaks the rock
- topsoil
- a crumbly, dark-brown soil that is a mixture of humus, clay, and other minerals
- soil conservation
- the management of soil to prevent its destruction
- subsoil
- usually consists of clay and other particles washed down from the A horizon, but little humus
- permeable
- a material that is full of tiny connected air spaces that allow water to seep through it
- litter
- the loose layer of dead plant leaves and stems on the surface of the soil