What are the factors that determine soil formation?
What are the factors that determine soil formation?
Factors Responsible for the Formation of Soil
Relief features, parent material, atmosphere, vegetation, and other types of life, as well as time away from human activities, are the key factors responsible for soil formation.
1. Parent Material:- is deposited by streams or is derived from in-situ weathering. At this point, the soil has many properties, such as mineral composition, color, particle size, and chemical elements. The black soil, for example, derives its color from lava rock.
2. Climate:- This is one of the key factors in soil formation because it influences the weathering rate of the parent rock.
3. Function of precipitation:- The variability of precipitation affects the composition of the soil. For example, areas with low rainfall and high evaporation rates have led to the accumulation of salts in the soil. The soils underlying tropical rainforests appear to be nutrient-poor due to extensive leaching due to heavy rainfall.
4. Function of temperature:- It also plays an important role because temperature variations cause shrinkage and swelling, frost action, and general soil weathering.
5. Biota (Flora, Fauna, and Microorganisms):- Biota, in combination with climate change, modifies the parent material for the production of soil. For example, leguminous plants (such as beans, peas, and groundnuts) have nitrogen-fixing bacteria. These plants are taking nitrate ions directly from these nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The fertility of the soil is improved by fixing atmospheric nitrogen to ammonia or ammonium.
6. Topography (Relief, Altitude, and Slope):- It is considered a passive factor in climate change because it influences soil processes, soil distribution, and the form of vegetation.
7. Time:- The formation of the soil is not a one-day process, but takes several years of formation. Younger soils have similar characteristics to their parent material, but as they mature, the addition of organic matter, exposure to moisture, and other environmental factors can change their characteristics.
It should be noted that all the above factors are separate but interdependent, as the soil profile of any area in the world depends on the climate, parent material, topography, and time.
Factors Responsible for the Formation of Soil
Relief features, parent material, atmosphere, vegetation, and other types of life, as well as time away from human activities, are the key factors responsible for soil formation.
1. Parent Material:- is deposited by streams or is derived from in-situ weathering. At this point, the soil has many properties, such as mineral composition, color, particle size, and chemical elements. The black soil, for example, derives its color from lava rock.
2. Climate:- This is one of the key factors in soil formation because it influences the weathering rate of the parent rock.
3. Function of precipitation:- The variability of precipitation affects the composition of the soil. For example, areas with low rainfall and high evaporation rates have led to the accumulation of salts in the soil. The soils underlying tropical rainforests appear to be nutrient-poor due to extensive leaching due to heavy rainfall.
4. Function of temperature:- It also plays an important role because temperature variations cause shrinkage and swelling, frost action, and general soil weathering.
5. Biota (Flora, Fauna, and Microorganisms):- Biota, in combination with climate change, modifies the parent material for the production of soil. For example, leguminous plants (such as beans, peas, and groundnuts) have nitrogen-fixing bacteria. These plants are taking nitrate ions directly from these nitrogen-fixing bacteria. The fertility of the soil is improved by fixing atmospheric nitrogen to ammonia or ammonium.
6. Topography (Relief, Altitude, and Slope):- It is considered a passive factor in climate change because it influences soil processes, soil distribution, and the form of vegetation.
7. Time:- The formation of the soil is not a one-day process, but takes several years of formation. Younger soils have similar characteristics to their parent material, but as they mature, the addition of organic matter, exposure to moisture, and other environmental factors can change their characteristics.
It should be noted that all the above factors are separate but interdependent, as the soil profile of any area in the world depends on the climate, parent material, topography, and time.
