Soil Plant Environment Science

On successful completion of this module the student will be able to:

• Describe the role of soil systems in the context of ecosystem services and soil functions
• Explain the principal responses of plants to solar radiation, temperature, drought and aeration stress
• Measure and quantify the key features of the soil physical environment (i.e. soil texture and structure, bulk density, porosity and volumetric and gravimetric water content)
• Explain the transport of water through soil, plants and the atmosphere in terms of differences in water potential
• Assess the role and contribution of soils in the cycling of nitrogen and carbon in the environment
• Describe the main classes of organisms in soil and their functional importance in soil systems
• Evaluate the impact of land management decisions on soil functions for agricultural production and environmental protection
• Assess how soil properties change in the landscape and evaluate the implications of the spatial variability on soil functions.

• Soil systems, soil functions and ecosystems goods and services
• Soil plant environment and the hydrological cycle
• Plant responses to solar radiation, temperature, drought and aeration stress
• Water potential, flow and rates of movement and infiltration; water release characteristics
• Physical properties: 3-phase soil model, bulk density, soil moisture content, porosity
• Soil chemistry: pH, CEC, salinity and the carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycles
• Soil biology: diversity, and functional importance
• Soil diversity in the field and landscape
• Agricultural soil management, diffuse pollution and soil erosion.