10 Facts About Soil formation

Soil formation, known as pedogenesis, is the process of soil genesis as regulated by the effects of place, environment, and history.

Soil formation is influenced by at least five classic factors that are intertwined in the evolution of a soil.

The type and amount of precipitation influence soil formation by affecting the movement of ions and particles through the soil, and aid in the development of different soil profiles.

Soil formation is the most speciose ecosystem on Earth, but the vast majority of organisms in soil are microbes, a great many of which have not been described.

Soil formation animals, including soil macrofauna and soil mesofauna, mix soils as they form burrows and pores, allowing moisture and gases to move about, a process called bioturbation.

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Humans impact soil formation by removing vegetation cover through tillage, application of biocides, fire and leaving soils bare.

Soil formation-forming factors continue to affect soils during their existence, even on stable landscapes that are long-enduring, some for millions of years.

Russian geologist Vasily Dokuchaev, commonly regarded as the father of pedology, determined in 1883 that soil formation occurs over time under the influence of climate, vegetation, topography, and parent material.

Soil formation demonstrated this in 1898 using the soil forming equation:.

The empirical method is still mostly employed today, and soil formation can be defined by varying a single factor and keeping the other factors constant.