A | B |
Soil | Provides support and nutrients for the plants. |
Nutrients | Plants and animals need these to live and grow |
Rock, clay, silt, sand, and humus | What's in soil? |
weather, water, and living things | These break down rocks into soil |
Topsoil | Upper soil surface layer |
Subsoil and bedrock | Layers of soil under the topsoil |
Humus | Decayed plant and animal matter in the topsoil, adds nutrients to soil |
Clay | Contains tiny particles of soil that hold water well and provides nutrients |
Sand | Made up of small grains of worn-down rock, has few nutrients, and does not hold water well. |
Silt | Made up of very small broken pieces of rock. Its particles are larger than clay and smaller than sand. |
Erosion | Water and wind carry topsoil away. Plants and trees hold soil in place and prevent it. |
Soil takes a long time to form from rocks. | Why conserve soil? |