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The porosity is a measure of the total pore space in the soil. This is defined as a fraction of volume often given in percent. The amount of porosity in a soil depends on the minerals that make up the soil and on the amount of sorting occurring within the soil structure.
Primary porosity The main or original porosity system in a rock or unconfined alluvial deposit. Secondary porosity A subsequent or separate porosity system in a rock, often enhancing overall porosity of a rock. This can be a result of chemical leaching of minerals or the generation of a fracture system.
The porosity of a soil is an important factor that determines the amount of water a soil can hold, how much air it can hold, and subsequently how well plant roots can grow within the soil. [14] Soil porosity is complex. Traditional models regard porosity as continuous. This fails to account for anomalous features and produces only approximate ...
Soil structure affects aeration, water movement, conduction of heat, plant root growth and resistance to erosion. [26] Water, in turn, has a strong effect on soil structure, directly via the dissolution and precipitation of minerals, the mechanical destruction of aggregates [27] and indirectly by promoting plant, animal and microbial growth.
The benefits of improving soil structure for the growth of plants, particularly in an agricultural setting, include: reduced erosion due to greater soil aggregate strength and decreased overland flow; improved root penetration and access to soil moisture and nutrients; improved emergence of seedlings due to reduced crusting of the surface; and ...
[1] [2] Accordingly, soil is a three-state system of solids, liquids, and gases. [3] Soil is a product of several factors: the influence of climate, relief (elevation, orientation, and slope of terrain), organisms, and the soil's parent materials (original minerals) interacting over time. [4]
Pores (the spaces that exist between soil particles) provide for the passage and/or retention of gasses and moisture within the soil profile.The soil's ability to retain water is strongly related to particle size; water molecules hold more tightly to the fine particles of a clay soil than to coarser particles of a sandy soil, so clays generally retain more water. [2]
Oxygen is essential to the growth of plant roots and soil organisms while the release of carbon dioxide through respiration is an integral part of the global carbon cycling. Optimal water and air movement through soils not only provide essential elements to sustain life but are also fundamental to various soil processes such as nutrient cycling.