Agricultural soil science

INTRODUCTION With over 50% of the global land surface being affected by land use or land cover change over the last few hundred years, mostly from the expansion of agriculture, there has been numerous climatic impacts (Foley, 2005). With such vast areas, specifically of the US Corn Belt, dedicated to agricultural production it is imperative that we as a society approach this endeavor cautiously. One approach to agriculture often cited as having the potential to produce the food, feed, and fiber necessary to sustain us with minimal disturbance to surrounding ecosystems is referred to as conservation agriculture (CA). CA as defined by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), is an approach to farming that “aims…

Soil Health Assessment on the Sanborn Field Long-Term Experiment Study: a review Saranya Norkaew Department of Soil, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences School of Natural Resources, University of Missouri-Columbia MO Introduction Degradation of soil resources is still the most serious and widespread threat to humankind. Soil has an important role to play in the global environment of food security, water security, climate stability, biodiversity, and ecosystem services (McBratney et al.,…

Soil erosion is one of the most serious threats in our world. Humans cause 40% of soil erosion. Soil erosion is topsoil, which is organic soil made up with rich nutrients. Erosion can be caused by careless farming techniques that lead to water erosion. When it is raining and you are walking to class you can see soil erosion where they have been working beside the English building. Soil erosion and water erosion is practically the same thing. No one will ever notice soil erosion because nobody…

Over the years farming practices have changed dramatically, and as a result many health complications have emerged. Because of the extreme transformations of agricultural practices, the health of animals, the environment, and more importantly humans have been put at risk. Today’s farming practices include feeding the livestock food they were not intended to eat corn and the remains of other animals. In contrast, farming in the 1700’s typically included animals eating grass (in which they were…

Water is a key to organizing all creatures lives and is important in many land surface disciplines such as agriculture, hydrology and environmental science (Delworth and Manabe, 1989). Especially, soil moisture is vital of importance to plant in order to maintain its life processes biologically. Water constitutes 80 to 90% of the fresh weight of most herbaceous plant parts and more than 50% of the fresh weight of woody plants. On the other hand, increasing population and decreasing water source…

The green revolution occurred between the 1930’s and the late 1960’s. Monsanto was at the top of the list of “corporate totalitarians” that benefited from the depletion and deterioration of our natural resources. The term refers to the increase of agricultural production worldwide, particularly in developing countries. To guarantee this increase in production, concerned parties relied on modern irrigation projects, dangerous chemical herbicides and pesticides, synthetic nitrogen fertilizers and…

Kishan Patel Section: 008 Pattern: Calcium levels in the soil controls soil pH and species richness within a community Hypothesis 1: Calcium levels in the soil controls soil pH. Prediction: An increase in the calcium levels in the soil will make the soil less acidic. Reasoning: Calcium exists mainly in the soil as exchangeable cations (ca^2+) associated with basic anions, which reacts with soil acidity (H) to neutralize it. Analytical approach: Regression Independent variable: Calcium levels…

A Retired Professional Interview The agricultural and extension education profession has changed and developed over time. As a future worker in this career, I need to know more about the agricultural and extension education profession and how it developed with time. In order to fully understand that, I interviewed the retired extension worker in Mississippi State. He is known as one of the top soybean specialists in the US. This interview took place on Monday, March 21, 2016 at Starbucks on…

I chose to major in agricultural and consumer economics with a concentration in agribusiness markets and management because of my family’s connection to agriculture. My father is a farmer and owns his own agriculture based business. My father’s business has inspired me to work in the agriculture industry and I would like to pursue a degree directly relate to that field. One goal I have for my future is to work in my father’s company and eventually, I would like to become CEO. My experiences…

Introduction: Soil samples where collected to test at Green River College, King County Washington, Sec 16 T21N R05E, W.M. in the gator pond retention area. Testing was done every half chain, for a distance of 528 feet to the north/south, 16 lines. Plots to the east/west where done until the water no longer flowed into the water shed. Data collected included, amounts of sand silt and clay, the amount of gravel, and dominate and co-dominate species in a 4 foot radius and the density of each plot.…