soil
Sign in to savethumb|upright=1.25|Surface-water-Gley soil|gley developed in [[glacial till in Northern Ireland]]
AI overview
I don't have sufficient context to write an accurate overview of soil based solely on the image caption provided, as it only describes one specific type of soil (gley soil in glacial till) rather than explaining what soil is generally or why it matters broadly. Writing beyond this single example would require me to invent facts rather than base the overview only on the given context.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Article
37 sectionsContents
- Processes
- Composition
- Formation
- Physical properties
- Soil moisture
- Soil gas
- Solid phase (soil matrix)
- Soil biodiversity
- Chemistry
- Cation and anion exchange
- Cation exchange capacity (CEC)
- Anion exchange capacity (AEC)
- Reactivity (pH)
- Base saturation percentage
- Buffering
- Redox
- Nutrients
- Soil organic matter
- Horizons
- Classification
- Uses
- Degradation
- Acidification
- Contamination
- Desertification
- Erosion
- Salination
- Reclamation
- History of studies and research
- Studies of soil fertility
- Studies of soil formation
- See also
- References
- Sources
- Bibliography
- Further reading
- External links
thumb|upright=1.25|Surface-water-Gley soil|gley developed in [[glacial till in Northern Ireland]]
Soil, also commonly referred to as earth, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, water, and organisms that together support the life of plants and soil organisms. Some scientific definitions distinguish dirt from soil by restricting the former term specifically to displaced soil. thumb|upright|Soil measuring and surveying device Soil consists of a solid collection of minerals and organic matter (the soil matrix), as well as a porous phase that holds gases (the soil atmosphere) and a liquid phase that holds water and dissolved substances both organic and inorganic, in ionic or in molecular form (the soil solution). Accordingly, soil is a complex three-state system of solids, liquids, and gases. 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. It continually undergoes development through numerous physical, chemical, and biological processes, which include weathering with associated erosion. Given its complexity and strong internal connectedness, soil ecologists regard soil as an ecosystem.