SoilErosion.com

Soil Erosion Problems and Solutions

soilerosionst

What Does Soil Need to Stay Healthy?

The key to any beautiful yard or garden is healthy soil. Essential for providing nutrients and support, healthy soil can make or break your landscaping or gardening efforts. For some homeowners, the soil around the house isn’t ideal for growing the plants they want, which can make it almost impossible to create the yard of their dreams. Indoor or patio container gardens can struggle with the same issue. 

Luckily, there are several ways you can improve the health of your soil, whether in your yard or in a container garden. We’ve created this guide to provide information about what makes healthy soil and ways you can improve it. 

What Makes Healthy Soil

Gardeners have many opinions on what makes soil healthy. Often, soil health depends on the region, its soil type, and the plant life it supports. Some attributes of soil that are important to be aware of include:

  • Texture: Soil comes in many types, typically categorized as sand, silt, or clay. Many regions have soil that is a mix of these three types. Sand is the loosest, while clay is the most tightly packed.
  • Organic Matter: Organic matter can affect your soil in a number of ways, ranging from soil adhesion to absorption to food for the organisms that live below ground.
  • Air Retention: Ideally, soil should have about 25% air retention. This gets oxygen to the roots without allowing so much air that the plant rots.
  • Water Retention: Soil should also have about 25% water retention to allow for the formation of both large and small soil particles. This helps support plant movement and the presence of soil life.
  • Soil Life: Everything from mites to earthworms make their home in the soil, and their presence provides plants with much-needed nutrients. In addition, their movement in the ground keeps soil from getting too packed. 
  • pH Balance: pH level is one of the trickiest components to balance but is very important to your soil’s health. Some plants need more basic soil while others thrive on acidity. Being aware of and manipulating your soil’s pH balance can make a huge impact on the success of any garden or landscaping.

These factors all contribute to healthy soil. Knowing how to improve them can help plant life thrive. To tell what type of soil you have and whether you need to make any changes, fill one-third of a jar with water. Add soil, and shake the jar until everything is mixed. Leave it overnight; it should stratify into different levels as it settles, with the organic matter on top. Mark the different levels so you know your ratio of soil types. Make sure there’s organic matter on top. If not, you need to add some into your soil. 

Improving Potting Mix

Potting mix is a difficult substrate to get right. Container gardens are less flexible than yard gardens because they’re self-contained. One of the best ways to improve a potting mix is to add another substrate to enhance both the texture and the nutrients. Coir is a great organic soil additive to help your potted plants thrive. Thanks to its porous nature, coir keeps oxygen in the soil while still providing the needed nutrients. Because it’s so absorbent, it is also easy to re-wet. This helps your plants stay healthy if you’re dealing with dry conditions. 

To use coir as a potting mix, start with your favorite potting soil. Place a coir brick in a large container with plenty of water. It’s important to use a container that’s big enough: Coir expands significantly when soaking. After you’ve soaked the substrate fully, mix it in with your soil. We recommend a 40% coir to 60% soil mixture. It’s important to note that because coir is so absorbent, you have to be very careful about salt buildup. 

Another popular alternative is homemade compost. Start with a compost bin in your kitchen or outside and only add items that will compost properly. A good rule of thumb is to think of things that rot easily. Common composting items include eggshells, fruit and vegetable scraps, grass and plant clippings, coffee grounds, and shredded newspaper. 

Once these items begin to rot and mix together, simply combine them with a little soil and use the resulting compost as a nutrient-rich additive for your container garden. Add a few inches to the garden once a year, as the nutrients will seep into the soil over time.

Soil Amendment

You can improve the soil in your yard, as well. Start by determining your main soil makeup, based on the trick mentioned previously. Depending on what you find, you can figure out what additives to use to improve the overall health. It’s important to consider what sort of plants you want before you dive into soil amendment. For example, coir has a more balanced pH balance, making it good for plants such as ferns and asparagus. Peat moss is more acidic, which is perfect for acid-loving plants such as azaleas, blueberries, and camellias. 

Soil amendment also includes changing up the texture. Hard-packed clay is nearly impossible to grow many plants in, as they have a hard time pushing roots through the tight particles. Mixing in coir is a good choice in these situations, as the coconut fiber-based additive improves porosity and encourages healthy water flow. 

For sandy, loose soil, adding organic matter is key to getting a good consistency and texture. Whether you choose peat moss, coir, compost, or a store-bought blend, till it into the soil carefully and add more every year to ensure there are enough nutrients to support plant life. 

Having healthy soil can make all the difference in your garden, whether it’s in your yard or in a container. While it might take a little extra work, increasing the health of your soil will help benefit your gardening and landscaping projects in the long run. 

Human Contributions to Soil Erosion

Soil erosion is a serious consequence that affects the entire planet. Studies continue to support the fact that humans are the root cause of soil erosion, whether erosion occurs from wind or water. As the effects of erosion contribute to soil’s ability to produce and regenerate, soil quality continues to rapidly deplete. PH levels and nutrients are altered from erosion events and modern farming practices do little to offset these effects and often make it worse.

Population growth and agriculture are driving forces in the damage caused by erosion. As awareness grows, land management practices continue to evolve and search for solutions to mitigate erosion’s effects or work to prevent it from taking place.

What is Soil Erosion?

Soil erosion is the wearing away of soil layers from the effects of wind and water. Most soil erosion is caused by human activity, and agriculture and development are the primary drivers of wind and water erosion.

Wind erosion strips off topsoil and transports nutrients downwind while weakening soil’s stabilizing forces. The wind carries sediment over miles of land, leading to the exacerbation of allergies and upper respiratory conditions.

Soil erosion caused by water bombards soil with moisture it cannot absorb or resist. Topsoil and its nutrient layer might be carried away by a rain event, or soil’s pH and microbial colonies might be compromised.

Along with removing vital layers of fertile soil, wind and water erosion also carry away fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides. Erosion carries and distributes these materials within sediment to incite environmental harm. 

Why is Soil So Important?

Soil might seem like a passive material but it is a living and evolving substance that is the heart of where we grow our food, construct our shelters, and practice our business. Earth’s soils are in a delicate balance and formed over millennia by forces of wind and rain and natural erosion events. The shaping of new soil depends on the area where it forms, which forces contribute, local microbes that make soil home, and soil’s ability to grow and produce. 

As the human population continues to inflate, agriculture land is increasingly at risk. Degradation of soil can render some areas unfit for production, leaving land vulnerable to excess erosion. Currently, soil’s ability to regenerate and replace what was lost is locked in an ongoing battle with population growth. In time, nature may not be able to keep up and land that is still able to produce may become less and less viable.

Human Soil Erosion Facts

When we take a closer look at the human impact on soil health and the part human activity plays in erosion, there come certain eventualities. In a 2006 Cornell University study on the effects of human activity and soil erosion, The Journal of the Environment, Development and Sustainability, stated the following facts.

  • Humans have been responsible for excess soil erosion since the first millennium.
  • Natural soil erosion occurs at a rate of 60 million feet per one million years.
  • Human activity accounts for ten times more soil erosion than all natural erosion processes combined.
  • China and India lose soil to erosion thirty times faster than natural occurrences, while the U.S. loses soil ten times faster.
  • In some agricultural areas, soil erosion rate is 1500 feet per one million years.
  • Worldwide, 37,000 square miles of cropland are lost each year to erosion.
  • Erosion has rendered 30% of the world’s croplands unproductive.
  • In the U.S., an estimated $37 billion is lost in agricultural production due to erosion and its effects.
  • Damage can exceed $400 billion per year worldwide.
  • Wind erosion transports airborne dust which can carry human infectious disease and pathogens, including tuberculosis and anthrax.
  • Some dessert soils have lost their entire A horizon or topsoil.

 What Human Activities Lead to Soil Erosion?

Agriculture and development are primary human practices that lead to or worsen soil erosion. As the consequences to infertile soil and climate change become more apparent, taking action to offset the effects of soil erosion is vital to maintaining land for agriculture. Fortunately, changes are taking place in the following areas.

Overgrazing: Farmers may have an overabundance of livestock. Sheep, cattle, and goats consume protective vegetation or compact the soil when they trod over it.

Overcropping. Crops constantly in rotation deny the land time to lay fallow and restore soil’s nutrients and balance pH. Soils dry out due to overcropping which leads to infertility. Farmers might compensate with excess fertilizers or artificial nutrients.

Deforestation: Clearing large land areas to harvest wood for construction or as a source of fuel leave those stripped lands bare and vulnerable. Removal of vegetation exposes land to water and wind erosion. Lack of reforestation can result in a loss of biodiversity, compromising soil structure and health.

Steps to Minimize Soil Erosion

Minimizing conditions that lead to soil erosion, as well as lessening impacts, may slake the damage. Planting crops with ample time between rotations can give the soil a chance to regenerate and repopulate with microbes and nutrients. Reduced soil tillage also has beneficial effects by lessening soil aggregate loss while reinforcing soil’s staying power.

Strip or terrace planting can help support soil in erosion events while providing nutrients and balancing pH. Using natural geotextiles help soil keep its moisture level in balance and provides nutrients to the soil. Replacing lost vegetation helps soil repopulate beneficial bacteria and regain their fertility and resilience.

Although extensive damage has already been done, steps can be taken to reduce the impact of wind and water erosion. Since human activity accounts for nearly all excessive erosion consequences, recognizing the role humans play and taking action to protect the planet and her growing layer of soils might mean the difference between a fed planet and a starving one.

Actions like altering farming practices to lessen land disturbance, planting natural vegetation and managing land so that the soil is protected and cared for. This results in lands that are able to produce because the soil is fertile and in balance so that it can work to human advantage, which is what we intended to begin with.

How is a Changing Climate Affecting Environmental Erosion?

The land’s ability to grow and produce food and shelter for the earth’s human population is at risk. Wind and water erosion contribute to massive amounts of soil and land losses while weakening the soil’s chances of recovering.

Human population growth and agricultural practices are taking their toll on soil’s ability to rebound and recover from erosion events. Native vegetation removed from land exposes soil to the elements and weakens its structure by impeding microbe populations. Bare land limits the abundance of nutrients that are normally returned to the soil through decomposition. 

Changes in temperature and precipitation affect soil health overall. Climate change plays a key role in weather events that create conditions for wind and water erosion. Because these conditions are primarily man-made, it will take man-made actions to reverse or minimize the damage. 

What is Climate?

There can be some confusion when referring to climate, going so far as interchanging the words climate and weather. While weather relates to immediate or day-to-day conditions (it’s snowing, or a storm is brewing), climate refers to an overall state of being. Climate is a compilation of weather events over a period of time and can illuminate patterns and inspire predictions. Changes in climate affect the soil’s ecosystem through changes in precipitation, temperature increases, plant growth rates, and loss of nutrient intake and uptake.  

Climate change refers to the acceleration of Earth’s natural cycles, how those changes impact weather events, and the planet’s overall health. Fossil fuel use, agriculture, and development all contribute to climate change and its effect on weather. As soil is compromised due to these changes in climate patterns and day-to-day weather cycles, its fertility is threatened, which in turn diminishes human efforts to grow food. 

How Does Climate Affect Soil?

Climate changes are affecting both temperature and precipitation cycles. As temperatures increase, precipitation changes. One example is when rainfall replaces snowfall. To remain stable and productive, soil must retain certain levels of moisture depending on its region. Precipitation is more than the amount of water that drops onto the soil; it also relates to how quickly water evaporates and returns to the atmosphere. Temperature and precipitation can contribute to soil moisture. However, if the process of pulling water back out of the soil, referred to as ET, or evapotranspiration, isn’t taking place, pH levels and microbial activity might degrade.

Soil requires many actions to maintain its vitality. As each component is impacted, soil struggles to recover and continue production. Loss of available land is directly related to soil erosion. Human activity contributes to soil losses 10 times faster than the rate of loss through natural erosion processes. China and India see their soil loss at more than 30 times the normal erosion rate.

How Does Climate Change Affect Erosion?

Because wind and water events dictate soil erosion, it is apparent that climate change directly affects the prevalence of erosion. Fall and winter are traditionally the end of the harvesting season and signal the onset of the rainy season. Bare land is more vulnerable to erosion during this period, as its protections are compromised. Crop covers are lower or nonexistent, and soil is unable to stay in place and resist runoff.

The Pacific Northwest’s Regional Approaches to Climate Change (REACCH) annual report states that, ‘Although warming results in an increase in rain and a decrease in snow water equivalent into late winter, soil losses are tempered. We hypothesize that this is due to the early onset of biomass growth caused by warming,”

Although this statement might indicate that climate change can have its advantages, the swap of rainfall for snowfall is not an advantage. Additional rainfall means an increase in precipitation. As more rain than snow falls, and because snow is less dense, rain accumulates at a faster rate and heightens the conditions for soil erosion. 

Soil and Climate Change

Soil is the basis for food and shelter, and the degradation of its health can lead to environmental, economic, and human health losses. Under current agricultural practices, tillage alone could increase the erosion rate from 0.17 tons per acre to 0.5 tons per acre, resulting in a 192% increase in soil loss.  

Erosion leads to the devastating loss of topsoils as well as a weakening of the underlying subsoils. Acidity accumulates in soil and trickles down to ultimately affect the O horizon — soil’s parent layer.

Controlling Erosion in the Face of Climate Change

By altering farming practices and replanting protective vegetation, we might be able to minimize climate change effects on soil and erosion loss. The use of coir textiles that help soil retain water and maintain pH levels while diverting erosion’s path prove to reduce loss, as well. Taking care not to compact wet soil or let it dry out contributes to a healthy microbial colony that aids in soil’s nutrient uptake, distribution, and regeneration.

The Geography Department at University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences offers a hopeful scenario: “There’s an obvious warning here with respect to ongoing and future climate change — relatively minor climate-driven disturbances could result in disproportionately severe erosion and land degradation. But there’s also an opportunity — in some situations relatively minor climate-driven disturbances in areas already experiencing erosion or degradation could be tipped into a minimum erosion, non-degrading state.”

It is not too late to recognize the effects of climate change and soil erosion. Committing to practices that help reduce instances of erosion or working to avoid it in the first place can have a positive impact on the land that is still able to work in human favor. As conditions change for better or worse, human interaction might be the first line of defense to man-made situations. 

When precautions are put into place and soil is given the chance to recover from previous seasons or harvests, the land might have an opportunity to bounce back and continue to produce. Stemming the effects of soil erosion is a crucial component for overall soil health and, ultimately, the health of the planet.

Erosion Effects on Soil Bacteria

The erosion of soils due to water or wind can disrupt a network of creatures invisible to the naked eye. These organisms work together to compose a fertile and complete soil. When land is stripped of its natural vegetation, its protection against erosion results in soil losing its ability to hold water and nutrients.

As organic matter is lost, farmers or landowners may add fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides frequently or aggressively in an attempt to bring back soil harmony. Communities of microbes are also disturbed in the process of tilling soil and during erosion events. As the soil loses its working populations of microbes, pH levels may rise or free fall. Pest infestation is much more likely and nutrient availability is heavily impacted.

Why Does Soil Matter?

The formation of soil first happens beneath the uppermost visual layer where plant growth takes place. The soil might contain several layers or horizons, each of which contributes to the structure of the uppermost layer; the topsoil. Beneath the topsoil is subsoil that can be negatively impacted by erosion, especially when pH balance reaches below the surface to make the proper balance of nutrients and gases that much harder to achieve.

The topsoil, or what geoscience refers to as the A horizon, contains a myriad of organic matter that contributes to overall soil health and productivity. Soil is composed of rock, clay, or sand as well as plant and animal tissue going through the process of decomposition. This breakdown of material contributes to a thriving microbial community working together to balance and regenerate the soil’s make-up.

What Happens in Soil Erosion?

Agricultural land can experience rates of erosion 10 times the normal rate of loss. Approximately 1,500 feet of soil loss per 1 million years can be attributed to agriculture. While that may not seem like much, consider that the normal rate from natural erosion events is 60 feet of soil loss per 1 million years. Also considering that it takes thousands of years for soil to form and populate, the loss of half the world’s topsoil is a devastating consequence and one from which nature may struggle to rebound.

What Are Soil Microbes?

Soil is a living, moving substance that is home to different types of bacteria that contribute to the soil’s composition, nutrient availability, and recycling processes. These microbes are vital to soil health and aid in the breakdown of organic material like decaying plants and animals.

Microbes help to complete biochemical processes such as transforming nitrogen to a form usable by plants. Microbes contribute to the recycling of nutrients, thereby rebuilding the soil’s structure over and over again.

Soil contains aggregates that help protect its rate of decomposition. The National Resource Conservation Society defines soil aggregates as: “Soil aggregates are groups of soil particles that bind to each other more strongly than to adjacent particles. The space between the aggregates provides pore space for retention and exchange of air and water.”

Tilling land breaks down soil aggregates to compromise soil stability. As aggregates are crushed under heavy machinery, carbon might be released and soil microbes may overfeed on a now abundant energy source. As microbes feast, their normal rate of decomposition and recycling is disrupted. Once the feeding frenzy is finished, nutrients are not replaced and microbes die out once the food supply is exhausted. The living soil then becomes vulnerable to pests, inciting producers to turn to pesticides and other chemicals to restore balance.

Are There Different Types of Soil Microbes?

Microbes are the working group that continuously renews soil’s breakdown-rebuild process. They can be divided into sub-categories:

  • Micro-organism: Consists of soil bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and nematodes.
  • Mesofauna: Includes mites, springtails, proturans, and pauropods.
  • Macrofauna: These are in the form of earthworms and termites.

Soil microbes are generally comprised of these groups with most microbes taking on the role of decomposers. This group can consume simple carbon compounds while they break down pesticides and pollutants. Decomposers work to retain soil nutrients as well as prevent the loss of nutrients such as nitrogen. The rest might form partnerships with plants to exchange nutrients or contribute to the recycling of nitrogen and the degradation of pollutants.

As wind and water erosion strip away beneficial topsoil, biodiversity takes a hit and microbe populations suffer. Once these tiny organisms and beneficial bacteria are not in place to do their jobs, soil integrity is lost and will struggle to recover. Moreover, unhealthy soil can move and expand into other areas when it is left unprotected.

Steps to Aid Soil Recovery

Water and wind erosion can have serious effects on soil’s microbial health. As conditions for recovery continue to be assessed and evaluated, steps can be taken now to help minimize the effects of erosion on the soil’s hard-working microbial colony. 

Over-tilling soil and stripping the land of its protections put soil at risk. Replacing the vegetation that aids in feeding the soil’s microbes helps to counterbalance the loss of those tiny creatures. Bare land sets the stage for wind or water erosion and altering planting techniques (strip-farming, terracing, no-till) can lessen the disturbance of the soil. Using coir geotextiles can assist soil by holding it in place, keep it from drying out, or balance soil’s pH for a thriving microbe community.

Soil health is dependent on several factors and when one or more are imbalanced there is cause for concern. When microbe activity is disrupted or if its natural decomposition cycles are altered, soil quality suffers. Resulting issues of erosion, pH imbalance, and loss of soil fertility all adversely affect the soil’s ability to continue to produce.

Once the protection of soil is as big a priority as its use to grow and produce is, human activity can turn the man-made tide to encourage a thriving microbial community. Reducing damaging practices and adding natural textiles and plants can help curb erosion and hold soil in place. Earth’s upper layer is where we build and live. Protecting that layer encourages the soil to continues to produce and recover with the help of its microbial village. Time and space are critical components for these little guys to help soils convert food to energy, aid decomposition, and regenerate earth itself.

Importance of soil

If you dug a hole 100 feet down into the ground, what would you discover? The first thing you’ll notice is that you’ve burrowed through many distinct layers of soil. Just what can you learn from this cross-section of earth waiting below the surface? Let’s take a closer look, explore the importance of soils, and see why dirt is crucial to all life on Earth.

Why Is Soil Important?

Soil is essential to life as we know it here on terra firma. It provides a place for plants to grow and a home for insects and fulfills other critical duties that our flourishing planet depends on, including the following:

A Medium to Grow Food

Soil is an essential component of plant growth. It supports their root systems, protects them from erosion, and keeps them growing upright. It also provides plants with essential minerals and nutrients, including water.

A Home for Many Organisms

A large variety of animals, insects, and other microbes live in soil and depend on it for food and air. It’s a diverse habitat for a wide range of organisms, such as worms and termites, that help break down organic matter and enrich the soil. It’s also a nesting ground used by many creatures to raise their next generation.

A Water Filtration System

Much of our planet’s rainfall and snowmelt flows to larger water bodies like streams and lakes, but much of it soaks into the ground. As it continues to seep through many layers of soil, it’s filtered clean of dust, chemicals, and other contaminants. This filtered water provides both plants and humans with one of the purest sources of liquid needed for good health and prime growth.

It Helps Maintain Atmospheric Gases

Dirt helps maintain adequate aeration and provides air to plant roots. By acting as a storehouse, layers of dirt help to regulate atmospheric carbon dioxide. Soil contains nearly twice as much carbon as the air, plus nitrogen and phosphorus. These nutrients are stored, transformed, and cycled into the ground.

Types of Soil

In the U.S., there are 12 classifications of soil textures. Here, we will discuss the four most common types, including the following:

Sandy Soils

Sandy soil has a gritty feel and warms up quickly in spring. It’s free draining and features large, hard particles, though it’s inferior at holding water.

Sand doesn’t bind very well with soil aggregates and it’s often low in nutrients because the nutrients wash away easily. The natural weathering of bedrock like limestone, shale, granite, and quartz produces sand.

Silty Soils

This type of soil has a fine, smooth texture and holds water better than sand. It makes a superior choice for crop cultivation because it holds more nutrients than course-particles. It’s heavier than sandy soils but not as heavy as clay. Silt forms when dust and fine debris are carried by water or ice and deposited on the ground.

Clay

Clay is made up of the smallest particles. They bind incredibly well, resulting in little or no breathing spaces for plants and insects. Clay is sticky when wet and easily molds into any form. When dry, it hardens into a rock. Soil that is rich in clay doesn’t drain very well at all and is thought to originate in the sediment of sea or lake bottoms.

Loam

Loam is a mixture of sand, clay, and silt particles. It’s high in the essential mineral calcium and retains water well. Most agriculturalists agree that loam is ideal for most crops. It’s a vegetable farmer’s top choice as it’s full of decomposed organic material and plenty of nutrients. These nutrients demonstrate why organic matter is important in soil. It also has a soft texture and is easy to cultivate.

Factors That Affect Soil Formation

The ground produces soil based on five factors. The interaction between parent material, time, climate, landscape, and the bounty of healthy organisms is what gives birth to new dirt.

Parent Material

Soil’s parent material refers to the minerals and organic matter from which it’s formed. It will retain its origin rock’s color, texture, structure, and mineral composition.

Time

It can take many years to break down parent material into dirt. As the land ages, new organic matter adds to the mix, and exposure to water and wind changes its features. As earth gets buried over time, it may evolve into a completely different type of soil.

Climate

Climate is often one of the most active factors that shape the formation of new soil. The two most critical climatic components are temperature and rainfall. A warm, damp climate means more vegetation and organic matter and the increased potential for water erosion.

Landscape

The landscape also plays a prominent role in soil formation. Water runs down steep, long slopes quickly, leaving behind poor quality soil on the hillside and an abundance of fertile land at the base. Expose these hills to direct sunlight, and these extreme conditions dry out the ground, making it less productive.

Uses of Soils

Much of the planet’s exposed surface has a covering of thick soil. It’s a precious ecosystem that offers mankind many useful applications.

Agriculture

According to the North Carolina Department of Agriculture, plants derive 13 essential nutrients from soil alone. It’s an excellent medium for growing food, as the roots use the dirt for strength and stability, too. Agriculture is definitely one of the most important functions of soil.

Building

From adobe covered structures to building blocks made of pure mud, soil has played an integral part in humanity’s building process for thousands of years. When compacted and dried, earthen bricks can support enormous loads. Providing shelter reveals yet more of the importance of soil.

Pottery

Clay is an essential component for making pottery. Even our ancestors knew that you just need to add water to this type of soil to create beautiful, functional ceramics. Clay is quite versatile, and once dry holds its shape indefinitely.

Health and Beauty Products

Soil’s microbes can be harmful to some strains of bacteria, which is why it’s commonly used to make antibiotics, ointments, and anti-cancer drugs. Even cosmetologists make beauty products from clay, including blush, foundation, facial masks, and toothpaste.

Soil is essential to all life on Earth. Its abundant supply takes years to replenish, and with so many varied uses, it’s conservation is important.