The importance of soil

Today it will be presented a video that explains the importance of soil in a very clarifying way. The Soil Science Program of the Chicago Botanic Garden bring out the functions of soil as an essential part of agriculture, holding plants and providing nutrients. At the beginning it is possible to visualize the difference between the three major textures of soils: sandy, loam and clay. As it is possible to see, the best type of texture must hold water and nutrients and have a good quantity of organic matter, so it can grow plants. This video helps to understand some of the characteristics of soils that were pointed out in this blog.

Furthermore, the video not just talks about the physical characteristics of soils, but also about the presence of micro and macro organisms that contribute to the maintenance and cycling of nutrients into soils. Specially in the upper part of the soil there are great amount of organisms such as bugs and earthworm that breakdown components from animals and plants in decomposition into nutrients. Microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria also help to continue the process.

The video also illustrates the behavior of water into soil, filtration contamination. However, the increase of pollutants in the environment has affected soil healthy and capacity to recovery. At the end it is explained that soil takes too long to be formed and its mismanagement could be the cause of the extinction of past civilizations. Therefore, “soil science is the key to our future”.