Question

Explain the factors that affect the soil formation.

Answer 1

Instructions: It is a straightforward question.

Solution:
The factors that affect soil formation are parent rock, time, plants and animals, topography, and climate.

Parent rock: It provides the base materials for soil formation.

Climate: Climatic factors such as temperature and rainfall help break down the parent rock.

Organisms: The organisms i.e., flora and fauna help in adding the organic content to the soil.

Topography: Here the role of gravity is significant. For example, we tend to find only the thin layer of soil on steep slopes, because most of the soil formed will get removed from the slopes often. This is not the case on a gentle slope. That is why the thickness of the soil is more on gentle slopes.

Time: It is the most important factor which determines the extent of soil formation. More the time, more will be the formation of soil in a particular place. Similarly, less the time, less will be the soil formation.