First Lab Report: Balsam Ballerina
- Get link
- X
- Other Apps
LECTURER’S NAME: MADAM DIANA DEMIYAH
MOHD HAMDAN
TITLES: SOIL COLOUR ANALYSIS
SOIL TEXTURE ANALYSIS
PLANT OBSERVATIONS
COURSE: SS11403 ENVIRONMENTAL SOIL SCIENCE
DATE OF SUBMISSION: 20TH MARCH 2018
NAME OF MEMBERS
|
MATRIC NO
|
FARLIANA BINTI PADUPAI
|
BS17110276
|
KIM MUN KIT
|
BS17110536
|
MARYELL IRISHA BINTI HILLARIAN
|
BS17110372
|
NURUL FATIEN NADZIRAH BINTI JAITULLAH
|
BS17110289
|
RATNA FAIRUZ BINTI NOOR AZAM
|
BS17280750
|
TEO YU ROU
|
BS17110465
|
Certain experiments were conducted during the first week of lab, which are:
i) Soil physical property, colour identification using Munsell Colour Chart
ii) Soil texture using feel and jar methods
Before the experiment was started, the type of soil is kept
constant in this experiment. Heaps of soil from the were filled into four big
plastic bags to as laboratory samples. The soil samples were taken from
the lakeside of the Faculty of Science and Natural Resources (FSSA) as
shown in Diagram 1. Meanwhile, Diagram 2 shows the additional details of the
FSSA Lake.
Initially, the reason for our soil retrieval in that area was
because of the high content of organic matter of the soil. We have
found that the soil at the boundary contains an abundance of humus and debris,
as well as organisms that enrich the nutrient content of soil and aid in the
growth of plant, for instance, the worms. Not only that, we also decided to
choose that location, the nearest to the lake water specifically, due to
the colour of the soil which is dark brown or brownish-black. Black
soil is said to be high in humus and manganese content. However, certain
difficulties were encountered while digging the soil out. One of it was the soil
was pretty hard to break, resulting in longer time for us to fill 4 plastic
bags with soil. We took about 2 hours to complete the soil retrieval
Diagram 1: FSSA Lakeside
(black soil cannot be seen
clearly because of its position that is very close to the water)
Diagram 2: Specified details of
soil location
2.1. OBJECTIVES
1. To define soil texture.
2. To determine the type of soil
sample taken.
3. To determine soil texture
qualitatively by the ribbon method.
4. To determine the soil texture by
calculating its components of sand, silt and clay.
5. To recognize the differences
in soil textures.
Activity 1.1: Jar Method
3.1.1 MATERIALS AND APPARATUS
·
Glass rod
·
2 transparent
glass jars of the same size
·
Tapwater/distilled
water
·
Soil sample
4.1.1 PROCEDURES
1. 60% of the jar is filled with soil. Water is then added, filling the
whole jar.
2. The jar is closed tightly with a jar lid, and is shaken vigorously
for 10 minutes.
3. The jar is then settled out undisturbed for at least 24 hours for the
particles to settle down according to their sizes.
Diagram 1: Jar 2
after it has been shaken
4. The soil layers are observed by their layers and marked out.
Percentage of sand to silt to clay is calculated using the formula below.
Meanwhile, the soil texture is determined by the Soil Textural Triangle as
shown in Diagram 1.
% sand (silt or clay) = [depth of
sand (silt/clay) layer in mm]
X 100
[total depth of soil in
mm]
Diagram 2: Soil Textural
Triangle
5.1.1 RESULTS
Jar 1
Diagram 5: Jar 2 after a week
Diagram 5: Soil texture analysis of Jar 2
6.1.1 DISCUSSIONS
Soil texture is one of the most important physical properties of soils. Soil
texture is related to a number of important soil characteristics such as water
holding capacity, soil drainage, and soil fertility. Soil texture refers
to the ratio of different-sized mineral particles in the soil. Based on size,
mineral particles are referred to as clay, silt, or sand.
Clay particles are small and electrically charged, so they attract and
hold water molecules. Thus, it is important that soils used to grow crops have
some clay content. Clay also helps make soil resistant to erosion.
Like clay, silt particles are also small enough to hold water in the
soil. But exposed silt washes away easily, taking nutrients with it.
A soil with too much sand content allows water to pass through very
quickly and does not hold enough moisture to support most plants. Exposed sandy
soils many be subject to erosion if the angle of the land, the slope, it too
severe.
From the experiment, we have found that our soil sample in both of the
jars have the highest percentage for sandy texture, although from observation
the soil is clayey in appearance.
Both jars fell into the category of silty loam. Silty loam sand is said
to have moderate drainage, which differs when it comes to drainage quality
determination through soil colour. However, plants growing in silty loam need
more water than those in clay soil, but much less than those in a sandy soil.The
quantity of organic matter is likely to be adequate, but annual additions of
compost only improve the already excellent soil quality. It's wise to maintain
a cover of mulch on silty soils to prevent the loss of moisture and slowly add
organic matter to the soil.
3.1.2 MATERIALS AND APPARATUS
Ruler, soil sample, distilled water, spatula
4.1.2 PROCEDURES
1. Two tablespoons of soil sample were taken using a spatula and put onto the palm of a hand.
2. A sufficient amount of distilled water was added onto the soil sample, drop by drop, until it reached a certain consistency.
3. The soil was mixed well with the water using a spatula.
4. The soil that had been wet was squeezed between the thumb and forefinger to form a flat ribbon.
5. Step 3 was repeated until the soil broke by itself due to the squeezing pressure and depended on the tolerance of soil to form longer ribbon.
6. The length of ribbon that could be formed was measured using a ruler and the texture of soil was determined.
5.1.2. RESULTS
5.1.2. RESULTS
Length of ribbon (cm)
|
Type of soil
|
3.5
|
Clay loam
|
Table 1: Our type of
soil based on length of ribbon formed
6.1.2. DISCUSSIONS
Soil texture is determined by the particles that make up the soil, including organic matter but mostly inorganic matter. Inorganic soil particles range from large gravel to tiny clay. They are classified according to their sizes:
1. Gravel: particles
greater than 2mm
2. Coarse sand:
Particles between 0.2mm to 2mm
3. Fine sand:
Particles between 0.2mm to 0.02mm
4. Silt: particles
between 0.02mm to 0.002mm
5. Clay: Particles
smaller than 0.002mm
Soil texture is
divided into three main types, sandy, silt and clay. Sandy soil has large
particles with small surface area, having poor water retention thus low
moisture and there is seldom chemical activity in the soil as the soil has low
nutrient bonding. Silt soil has limited surface area and little chemical
bonding. It has poor air and water movement. Clay soil has tiny clay
particles with large surface area, therefore clay has high water adherence and
thus high ability to retain water and has high moisture. Due to very good nutrient
bonding, clay is chemically active. However the water retention has caused it
to hardly to be used by plants.
7.1 REFERENCES
Legume Laboratory (2015), How to determine your
soil texture, Retrieved on 20 March 2018 from https://legumelaboratory.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/how-to-determine-your-soil-texture.pdf
Ritchey, Edwin L (2015), Determination
of Soil Texture, Retrieved on 19th March 2018 fromhttps://uknowledge.uky.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=1139&context=anr_reports
Queensland
Government (2013). Soil texture. Retrieved on 19th March
2018 fromhttps://www.qld.gov.au/environment/land/soil/soil-properties/texture
The most widely used method for determining soil colors is comparison of soil samples with the color chips in the Munsell soil color charts (MSC). In the Munsell color system, color is expressed in terms of hue (basic color), value (lightness or darkness), and chroma (intensity of basic hue). We observed which of the hue, value and chroma in the chart book matches our soil sample.
1. Objective:
To determine the colour of soil sample taken from nearby FSSA lake using Munsell Colour Chart.
Reading of MSC Chart: 10 YR 4/2
There are three colour attributes in Munsell colour chart, hue, value and chroma, known as the (HVC). Hue determines the colour shade of the soil, such as red, green and blue, and there are codes for the colours like Red (R), Yellow-Red (YR), Green-Yellow (GY) etc. Value is the darkness of the soil. In Munsell chart, the values are indicated with numbers such as 2, 4, 6, vertically, and the colour is the lightest at the top and darkest at the bottom. As the numbers are arranged in descending order from top to bottom, 2 will be darker than 6. Chroma is the purity or intensity of colour. The chroma runs horizontally ascending from weak to strong from left to right, therefore 2 is weaker than 6. The three dimensions of colours are expressed in their specific notation, for example 5R 7/2. 5R refers to the hue or colour, 7 is the value or darkness and 2 is the chroma or intensity of colour.
Soil colour is affected by the composition and proteins of soil materials. Soil colour does not influence the behavior of soil, but it usually indicates the characteristics and processes occurring in the soil. There are wide ranges of colours of soil, gray, black, white, red, brown, yellow or even blue and green. The presence of iron oxides gives yellowish or reddish colour of soil, organic matters turn the soil brownish or black colour while damp soil is usually darker than dry soil.
5. References:
To determine the colour of soil sample taken from nearby FSSA lake using Munsell Colour Chart.
2. Procedure:
1. A portion of soil sample was taken and positioned on the fingers in a way that exposes the main colour of the soil.
2. The portion of soil was sprayed evenly with a little amount of water to increase accuracy in obtaining its actual colour during this procedure.
3. The soil was brought closer to the Munsell Colour Chart to identify the colour that matched the soil the most.
2. The portion of soil was sprayed evenly with a little amount of water to increase accuracy in obtaining its actual colour during this procedure.
3. The soil was brought closer to the Munsell Colour Chart to identify the colour that matched the soil the most.
3. Result:
Hue (Yellow – Red)
|
Value
|
Chroma
|
10 YR
|
4
|
2
|
Diagram 12: Soil colour in Munsell Soil Colour Chart
4. Discussions
The Munsell Colour chart is a colour system to identify the colour of soil visually in a scientific approach. Munsell colour system was evoluted by Albert Munsell, who hopes to combine scientific and artistic expressions into a system.
There are three colour attributes in Munsell colour chart, hue, value and chroma, known as the (HVC). Hue determines the colour shade of the soil, such as red, green and blue, and there are codes for the colours like Red (R), Yellow-Red (YR), Green-Yellow (GY) etc. Value is the darkness of the soil. In Munsell chart, the values are indicated with numbers such as 2, 4, 6, vertically, and the colour is the lightest at the top and darkest at the bottom. As the numbers are arranged in descending order from top to bottom, 2 will be darker than 6. Chroma is the purity or intensity of colour. The chroma runs horizontally ascending from weak to strong from left to right, therefore 2 is weaker than 6. The three dimensions of colours are expressed in their specific notation, for example 5R 7/2. 5R refers to the hue or colour, 7 is the value or darkness and 2 is the chroma or intensity of colour.
Soil colour is affected by the composition and proteins of soil materials. Soil colour does not influence the behavior of soil, but it usually indicates the characteristics and processes occurring in the soil. There are wide ranges of colours of soil, gray, black, white, red, brown, yellow or even blue and green. The presence of iron oxides gives yellowish or reddish colour of soil, organic matters turn the soil brownish or black colour while damp soil is usually darker than dry soil.
5. References:
1. Munsell Colour (2012), Retrieved on 19th March 2018 from http://munsell.com/about-munsell-color/how-color-notation-works/how-to-read-color-chart/
2. Devashish Kar (2016) Methodologies of Different Types of Studies, Retrieved on 19th March 2018 from https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/munsell-color-system
- Get link
- X
- Other Apps
Comments
Post a Comment