Soil science studies the Earth’s soil as a natural resource, with two main divisions: pedology studies soil in nature, while edaphology studies human use. The field has many uses, including predicting growth, managing landfills, and remediation of soil contamination. There is overlap between the two divisions, and soil science also has applications in paleontology, archaeology, and climatology.
Soil science is the study of the Earth’s soil as a renewable natural resource. This field was originally a conglomeration of several disciplines, especially chemistry, biology, and geology, but has since become a fully recognized field of study. The field has science divided into two main divisions: pedology studies soil as it exists in nature, and edaphology studies humans’ use of soil as a tool. Although the two areas study different things, they have the same general objectives: to maintain soil quality, slow down desertification and safeguard human activities both from a human and soil point of view.
The study of man’s impact on soil has been around for a long time. From the basic concepts of agriculture to crop rotation to modern soils and lab-mixed fertilizers, all of these ideas come from studying soil and how humans use it. Even so, it was not until the 20th century that the field of soil science became a recognized scientific discipline.
There are two broad categories of soil science. Soils focus on how soils develop naturally, including how they are affected by their environment and how the environment affects them. This leads to the classification of different soils with different properties. Soil has a dramatic impact on what can and cannot grow in an area, allowing researchers to both predict future growth and decode past growth.
Soil science edaphology focuses on human use and impact on soil. This division often gets the most coverage as it focuses on areas such as increasing soil fertility for higher crop yields, managing sewers and landfills, and predicting water runoff during floods. Since this field covers all man’s use of the land, it is the larger of the two main divisions.
While the field of soil science is split into two areas, it’s rarely that simple. There is a great deal of overlap between the two spheres. For example, soil scientists would have a greater understanding of soil composition and morphology over time, but an edaphologist would need that information to determine whether soil can support an artificial structure. On the other hand, historical soil data is valid only when there is no human use; to decode the housing layers, it would be necessary to consult an edaphologist.
While many of the uses of soil science are well known, even to a layman, some are less obvious. These fields work heavily with the remediation of soil contamination from landfills, toxic dumps and ecological accidents. A soil scientist is often consulted by paleontologists and archaeologists to help decipher where specimens are found in highly disturbed areas. Finally, the modern field of climatology is learning that soils contain vast amounts of information relating to greenhouse cycles and carbon fixation.
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