SOIL COMPOSITION WORKSHEET

Directions:

Use the information you obtain from the dish detergent jar and the soil and water jar experiments to answer the following questions. Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper. Be sure your answer numbers correspond to the number of each question.

1. Where did you obtain your soil sample or samples and what kind of plants are growing there?

2. Measure and record the volume of your sample's dried sand to the nearest one-quater teaspoon.

3. Measure and record the volume of your sample's dried silt to the nearest one-quater teaspoon.

4. Measure and record the volume of your sample's dried clay to the nearest one-quater teaspoon.

5. Add the three volumes--sand, silt, and clay--together to obtain the total volume and record this.

6. What percentage of the total volume is sand? silt? clay?

7. Using the Composition of Soils Chart, determine what kind of soil sample you have and give its name.

8. Observe the jar in which the soil settled into layers. Why do you think that the soil s settled into layers?

9. Which layer is sand? silt? clay?

10. How does particle size influence soils?

11. Pinelands soils are usually sand, sandy loam, or loamy sand. Refer to the Composition of Soils Chart and list the composition of each of these soils. (as an example, "silty clay" is 50% clay, 10% sand, and 40% silt)

12. How is the soil you tested similar to or different from Pinelands soils? Use your answer to question 7 compared to the information given in question 11 to help make this comparison.