Sometimes we as farmers forget that the number one factor involved in supporting a crop is supporting the soil.
Our job as farmers is to support the soil, while the soil supports the plant, and the plant supports us. That makes the soil an essential element in every farmer’s livelihood. The soil supports all kinds of living organisms, both below and above ground.
Have some fun taking this quiz to test your knowledge of the soil. It may help remind you of soil’s important role in sustaining all kinds of life, including our own.
Test Your Knowledge of Soil and Water
1. How many years does it take to replace one inch of top-soil lost to erosion?
a. 1 year b. 5 years c. 250 years d. 500 years
2. There are more microorganisms in a handful of healthy soil than there are people:
a. on earth b. in the U.S. c. in China d. in Illinois
3. Flooded soils are factories for environmentally damaging gases such as:
a. methane b. co2 c. nitrous oxide d. all of these
4. And ideal, healthy soil has what % of water and what % air?
a. 10%/20% b. 20%/50% c. 25%/25% d. 50%/50%
5. Too much water in the soil keeps it from doing its primary job of:
a. balancing nutrients b. cleaning the water c. transporting nutrients
6. The release of oxygen to a plant in a flooded or saturated soil is how much slower?
a. 10 times b. 100 times c. 1000 times d. 10,000 times
7. Submerged plants can lose their ability to create:
a. starch b. photosynthesis c. oxygen d. chlorophyll
8. How many different types of soil are there in the United States?
a. 500 b. 1900 c. 70,000 d. 12,000
9. How many different types of bacteria are there in one gram of soil?
a. 5000 b. 500 c. 50 d. 250
10. How much dry soil passes through one earthworm each year?
a. 1000 lbs. b. 1 ton c. 85 lbs. d. 15 tons
11. Approximately how many earth worms can be found in an acre of soil.
a. 100,000 b. 250,000 c. 500,000 d. 1,400,000
Answers
1. d
2. a
3. c
4. c
5. c
6. d
7. b
8. c
9. a
10. d
11. d
