EVSC 220 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Soil Organic Matter, Fauna, Soil Chemistry
8 Dec 2018
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Document Summary
Apply functional classi cations (energy, carbon, oxygen) to major soil microorganisms. Organic fraction within the soil is not as understood as the inorganic fraction. Clays and small bits of organic matter. Above and below ground: gophers and moles. Mix som downwards within pro le creating organic rich a horizons. Produce macropores, preferential ow of water through tunnels made by macro-fauna. Once soil passes through a worm it tends to aggregate much better than before. They aid in decomposition of material, they will drag plant material through the soil and mix it into the soil mostly through the gut of the earthworm. Better aggregation, deeper top soil, more nutritious soil. Roots provide interface between soils and plants. Roots can physically modify the environment increasing aeration, pushing things around, drying the soil out. First few mm = great habitat for microbes. Populations much higher here than bulk soil.
