Title: General Principles of Soil

Title: What
Fertility is Soil
and the title of this lecture?
Productivity
Speaker: Amit Dhingra
Speaker: William Pan
Created by: (remove if same as speaker)

online.wsu.edu
Unit 1, Lesson 2

General principles of soil

fertility and soil productivity

http://soils.usda.gov/education/resources/k_12/lessons/profile/
1.2 Learning Objectives
 Define soil, soil fertility, soil
productivity, essential plant nutrients
 Recognize interactions between
fertility and productivity factors
 Go Extraterrestrial in Assignment 1.2
Soil Definition

What is soil? What are the key parts of the

definition with respect to its i. function and ii. its
location, and iii. its formation?
SOIL (i) The unconsolidated mineral or organic material on the
immediate surface of the earth that serves as a natural medium
for the growth of land plants. (ii) The unconsolidated mineral or
organic matter on the surface of the earth that has been
subjected to and shows effects of genetic and environmental
factors of: climate (including water and temperature effects), and
macro- and microorganisms, conditioned by relief, acting on
parent material over a period of time. A product-soil differs from
the material from which it is derived in many physical, chemical,
biological, and morphological properties and characteristics.

Definitions of “soil” according to SSSA:

https://www.soils.org/publications/soils-glossary#
 Soil Fertility:

The status of a soil with respect to

its ability to supply the
nutrients essential to plant growth
 What Defines the Essential Plant
Nutrients?
The nutrient:
 is needed for the plant to
complete growth cycle
 performs a function that cannot
be done by another element
 is directly or indirectly involved
in plant metabolic processes.
 Essential Elements
for Plant Growth
Micronutrients(0.01-
 C, H, O 100 ppm)
 Fe
Macronutrients (0.2-5%)  Mn
 N  Cu
 P  Zn
 K
 B
 Ca
 Mo
 Mg
 S  Cl
 Ni
 Other Non-essential Elements
Absorbed by Plants
 Co  Pb
 Si  Cd
 Se  Hg
 Na
From orchard to golf course: different
systems, same SOIL
 Soil Fertility =

The status of a soil with respect to

its ability to supply the nutrients
essential to plant growth
Soil Productivity: The capacity of a soil, in its
normal environment, for producing a plant
or crop sequence under a specified system
of management.

A productive soil is one in which

the chemical, physical, and
biological conditions are favorable
for plant growth.
 Soil Productivity Factors
Climate Soil
 Precipitation  Organic matter
 Temperature  Texture
 Humidity  Structure
 Light  Cation exchange
 Altitude  Slope,
topography
 Wind
 Temperature
 CO2
 Water regime
 …
 Depth
 …
Soil Productivity vs. Fertility
Examine two soil profiles
 Can you describe the Quincy Palouse
major differences you
see between Central
WA, Basin irrigated
soil: Quincy sand vs.
Eastern WA, dryland
Palouse silt loam?
 Which soil has more
native fertility? Despite
this difference, are
they both potentially
productive? Why?
(Think of the crops
grown in the Basin)

http://www.cals.uidaho.edu/soilorders/
 Hawaii example

Oxisol

Lahaina Series, Maui

Oxisols generally contain low activity clays,
highly weathered, tropical soils are nonsticky
and workable. Nutrient cations, such as
calcium, magnesium, nitrate, and potassium,
must be added to the soil. Phosphorus may
also be limited, because it tends to form strong
bonds with the oxides.
Write examples of situations
where…
 A fertile soil may not be productive

 A potentially productive soil is not

fertile
Nutrient interactions with productivity
factors have shaped our production
oriented approaches in Soil Fertility:

 Identify essential nutrients.

 Establish nutrient relationships to

desired plant growth characteristics
(yield, quality, etc.) in the context
of other productivity factors (soil,
environmental and management).
 Define nutrient conditions for
desired growth, yield, quality.
Leibig’s “Law of the Minimum”
 The most limiting fertility or
productivity factor determines plant
productivity.

 Producers need to first optimize the

most limiting factor, then the second
most limiting factor and so on to
improve overall yield potential.
Synergism
 According to von
Liebig’s Law of the
Minimum, growth is
controlled not by the
total of resources
available, but by the
scarcest resource
(limiting factor).
Therefore, all nutrients
are synergistic with
one another to a
certain degree.
Interaction between two growth factors -
Example: Water and N

100
Irrigated

50
Dryland

70 110
N Applied (lb/a)
 Two rainfall zones
3000 Pullman
Y = A * ( 1 – e – C ( X))
Davenport Where:
2500
Y – yield
Yield (kg grain/ha)

X – N supply
2000
A – Max yield
C – efficiency factor
1500

1000

500

0
0 100 200 300 400
N supply (kg N/ha)
(Hammac and Maaz)
Soil Depth and
Soil Productivity

Soil Depth (ft) Relative

productivity (% )
1 35
2 60
3 75
4 85
6 100
Factors responsibility for 2x corn yield
increases between 1930 and 1980.
 Genetics: 59%
 Agronomic advances: 68%
 Crop rotation shifts: -6%
 Manure: -15%
 Insects:-15%
 Organic matter decline: -13%
 Soil erosion: -8%
 Other negative soil factors: -23%

Table 1-5 HBTN

Productivity and Fertility Needs
are Correlated
Fertility Requirements

Productivity Factors
Assignment 1.2. Do Mars and comet 67
P/C-G have evidence of soil or conditions
to create soil?

 Do a web search on these space projects.

 Consider the definition of soil and soil fertility.
Do you think we can state that there is soil or
past/present conditions and components to
create soil on Mars and comet 67 P/C-G?
Explain and give specific examples to support
your case, and cite your sources in a 1-page
essay.
 See ESA simulation and pictures of comet landing :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHzvl3QVyhg