PRESBYTERIAN UNIVERSITY COLLEGE, GHANA
Programme:M.Sc. Natural Resources Management
Course Code and Title: NRMP 802: Soil Ecology
Lecturer: Vitus Tankpa (Ph.D)
Learning Outcomes
Understand and explain the concepts and properties of
soil
Describe soil formation
Understand and explain the functions of soil
Soil quality
Soil management and definition of terms
Introduction
Introduction
What is soil
the word ‘‘soil’’may have very different meanings
There is little merit in attempting to define soil, because of the
complexity of its make-up, and of the physical, chemical and
biological forces that act on it
soil means different things to different users, eg
to the geologist and engineer is little more than finely divided rock
material
to the hydrologist soil is storage reservoir affecting the water balance
of a catchment
while the ecologist may be interested only in those soil properties
that influence the growth and distribution of plants and animals
The farmer is naturally concerned about the many ways in which soil
influences crop growth and the health of his livestock
What is soil
In view of this wide spectrum of potential user-interest, it is
appropriate to understand what soil is made of,
So often the definition rather based on what soil is made up of and
what lives in the soil?
Thurs soil is made up of,
Minerals, substrate of rocks, sand, silt and clay
organic matter
water and air
What is soil cont’d
• Soil, like air and water, is a fundamental natural resource
supporting a variety of ecosystem goods and services to the
benefit of the mankind
• The soil is the greatest reservoir and the last frontier of
biodiversity which is composed of the four basic components
viz. mineral solids, water, air and organic matter including
living biota(Seifu &Elias, 2018)
• According to Terry Cooper, soil is a natural resource that we
must protect in order to have a future on planet earth
• “The Nation that destroys its soil destroys itself” -- Franklin D.
Roosevelt.
SOIL AS AN ECOSYSTEM
Definition of Some terms
Ecosystem: An interacting natural environment
which includes all animal and plant life that is
found.
An ecosystem is a community of living and
non-living things that work together – it consists
of abiotic (soil, water, air) and biotic parts (flora,
fauna)
Thus, soil is a balanced ecosystem inhibited by
insects, nematodes, earthworms, bacteria,fungi
and other microbes
SOIL AS AN ECOSYSTEM
Soil air: Pore
spaces for the Soil organic matter:
exchange Organic matter
c
5% gani
gases materials and biological
Or
Air, life that is incorporated
25% into the soil
Water Mineral,
Soil water:
,25% 45%
Stored in the soil
for plant use.
Soil minerals: rocks,
Contains
and soil particles that
nutrients for
make up soil solids
plant growth
HOW SOIL FORMS
Soil formation is a longterm process, it
takes several million yrs to form a thin
layer of soil
Soil as a complex mixture of various of
elements, it formation is also complex
The formation of a soli depends on the
physico-chemical properties of the parent
rock, intensity and duration of weathering,
climatic and other parameters
Therefore the are combination of factors
that determine soil formation
HOW SOIL FORMS
Factors of soil formation
5 factors in the landscape combine to
make the soil we find in a place and
define the characteristics that the soil
will have
HOW SOIL FORMS
1.Parent Material: Whether it is bedrock 2. Climate: The average weather patterns for a
found in place, volcanic debris, material region that occur over a number ofyears.Climate
that has been blown in by wind, or carried factor such as temperature and the amount of
and deposited by water or glaciers, soils precipitation affect how biological factors change
form out of the parent material. the soil and how nutrients and materials are
leached through the soil profile
3.Biological factors: living organisms that 4.Topography: the slope of the land which can
influence the development of soil and soil be one of the things that determine the type of
profile. Plants incorporate matter into the soil that is formed. Soil are typically less
soil and in some cases change the developed on hilltops and hillsides, because soil
chemistry of the soil. Microbes and is slowly moved by erosion factors. Soil is deeper
insects break down organic matter and and more developed in low areas
create pore space in the soil
5.Time: The amount of time the soil has been forming; The length of
time the other soil forming factors have been in place changing the
nature of the soil is an important component to how the soil appears
to us today
SOIL PROFILE and Horizon
Soil profile: is a vertical section
through the soil extending into
unweathered parent material and
exposing all the horizon
Soil horizon: are layers of the different
types of soil found at different depths
of the soil profile
The O horizon is the organic layer made of
wholly or partly decayed plant material and
animal debris, normally found in a forest with
fallen leaves, branches and other debris
SOIL PROFILE and Horizon
The A horizon also called the top soil, the most fertile layer of soil,
contain most organic matter, usually the top or first layer
The E horizon, is called the layer of eluviation, this is the zone of the
greatest leaching of clay, chemicals and organic matter
The B horizon, is called the subsoil, is the zone of accumulation where
chemicals leached out of the a horizon; reason why most subsoil has an
increase in clay content
The C horizon called the parent material, lack the properties of the a
and b horizon, less touched by soil forming processes
The R horizon, is the underlying bedrock such limestone, sandstone,
granite
Soil texture and structure
Soil texture refers to the size of
particles; these include
sand(large), silt(medium) and
clay(small)(the determine the
fineness and coarseness of the
soil)
These 3 particles are the primary
mineral building blocks of soil
Soil structure: the way soil
particles cling together to form
soil units or aggregates while
leaving pore space to store air,
water, nutrients and allow root
penetration
Soil texture and structure
A well-structured soil forms stable aggregates (aggregates that
don't fall apart easily)
-has many pores allowing infiltration and movement of water and air.
-is friable, easily worked and allows germinating seedlings to emerge
and to quickly establish a strong root system.
A poorly structured soil has either few or unstable (readily broken
apart) aggregates and few pore spaces
-can result in unproductive compacted or waterlogged soils that have
poor drainage and aeration.
-is more likely to become eroded.
Functions of soil
Soil perform several vital functions
Soil Quality
• Soil Quality is the capacity or ability of the soil to supply the basic
nutrient and maintain the appropriate conditions necessary for plant
growth and sustenance of life living organisms.
• When the soil cannot perform its normal functions then its quality has
been affected. Soil should be functional to maintain the performance
of the soil ecosystem
Soil Quality cont’d
•Soils have chemical,
biological, and physical
properties that interact in a
complex way to give a soil
its quality or capacity to
function
Indicators for soil quality
screen
Proposed physical, chemical,
and biological indicators for
screening the quality or health
of soils (Seifu & Elias 2018)
Soil quality is estimated by
observing or measuring
different properties or
processes, and, several of
these indicators can be used
to determine soil quality
indices
Soil quality assessment
Why assess soil quality?
Soil quality versus Soil
health
Factors affecting soil quality
Soil and crop
management practices
imposed on land
resources by humankind
determine whether
inherent soil quality will
be lowered, sustained, or
improved over relatively
short time intervals
Processes associated with land use and management
practices that reduce soil quality
Soil quality management
components
Enhance organic matter
Avoid excessive tillage
Manage pest and nutrients efficiently
Prevent soil compaction
Keep the ground covered
