Across
- 2. The ion OH- .
- 5. A substance which gives off hydroxyl ions when dissolved in water, as contrasted with an acid, which gives off hydrogen ions.
- 7. The artificial application of water to soil for the purpose of increasing plant production.
- 11. Soil that consists of less than 52 percent sand, 28 to 50 percent silt, and 7 to 27 percent clay, resulting in a soil texture ideal for gardening.
- 12. An element or compound in a soil that is essential for the growth of a plant.
- 13. A chemical term referring to basic reaction where the pH reading is above 7, as distinguished from acidic reaction where the pH reading is below 7.
- 18. The capacity of soil or rock for transmitting a fluid. Degree of permeability depends upon the size and shape of the pores, the size, and shape of their interconnections, and the extent of the latter.
- 19. A substance containing hydrogen that dissociates to form hydrogen ions when dissolved in water. Term applied to any substance with a pH less than 7.0.
- 20. A numerical measure of acidity or hydrogen ion activity of a substance such as food or soil. The neutral point is pH 7.0. All pH values below 7.0 are acid and all above 7.0 are alkaline.
- 23. Accumulation of water-worn pebbles larger than two millimeters in diameter.
- 24. Strictly, calcium oxide, CaO, but, as commonly used in agricultural terminology, calcium carbonate, CaCO3, and calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2, are included. Agricultural lime refers to any of these compounds, with or without magnesium carbonate, which are used as amendments chiefly for acid soils.
- 25. The property or power of conducting heat, electricity, or sound.
- 27. Unweathered hard rock that lies directly beneath the soil layers or beneath superficial geological deposits, such as glacial drift.
Down
- 1. A layer of soil, approximately parallel to the surface, having distinct characteristics produced by soil-forming processes.
- 3. A mineral calcium sulfate, combined with water of hydration. In arid regions, large tonnages are used to treat sodic soils.
- 4. The quantity of saltiness in seawater or freshwater, most commonly expressed in parts of dissolved salt per 1,000 parts of water.
- 6. A textural class of soils that contains 80 percent or more of silt and less than 12 percent clay.
- 8. Mineral matter of variable composition, consolidated or unconsolidated, assembled in masses or considerable quantities in nature.
- 9. An atom or a group of atoms carrying an electrical charge, which may be positive or negative.
- 10. To supply the necessary mineral and organic nutrients to soil or water to aid the growth and development of plants.
- 14. Produced by plants and animals; of plant or animal origin.
- 15. The removal of soluble constituents from soils or other materials by percolating water.
- 16. In soil science, a group of textural classes in which the particles are finer than gravel but coarser than silt, ranging in size from 2.00 to 0.5 millimeters in diameter. It is the textural class of any soil that contains 85 percent or more of sand and not more than 10 percent of clay.
- 17. The long-term average weather conditions
- 21. A colorless, odorless, flammable gas, the lightest of the elements that combines chemically with oxygen to form water.
- 22. Refers to the extent of voids or openings in the soil that exist between soil particles and soil peds or clods. These pores hold water and air for absorption by plant roots. About half of soil volume which is in a good physical condition for plant growth is pore space.
- 26. A size term denoting particles, regardless of mineral composition, with diameter less than two microns.
- 28. Any living individual whether plant or animal.