Soil Science in The Media...

 I was looking for YouTube videos that showed soils in a fun and interesting way, and I happened to stumble across this YouTube video. The following video is an advertisement by the Soil Science Society of America to promote the conversation of soils. The video shows a series of public service announcements (PSA) about soil health and quality. The videos really show the importance of soil science in a new light.  The video is about 8 minuets long, I highly recommend viewing the entire message.

I want to discuss the facts that the presentation presents, that I feel are very important when talking about the importance of soil and soil health.

The first PSA states that soils are important in filtering our water. Some people might ask how does this work? Well think of the soil system as a complete watering filtration system. The water will meet with microorganisms who can help take inorganic materials out of the water. The varying textures of soil fine to coarse also provide varying filters. Clay sized particles are very fine and the pores between the particles are also very fine, so water passing through will leave behind many inorganic products letting clean water pass through into the aquifers. I found various fun experiments online that show exactly how different textures filter. Below is a YouTube video that shows how the experiments work.

 The second PSA shows how there are billions of microorganisms in a tablespoon of soil. There are million of bacteria, fungi and actinomycetes in the soil that help preform many functions such as fixing nitrogen to make it plant available. The microorganisms are very important in making the soil function properly, that's why we need to promote soil health to keep these little guys healthy and happy.  Below is a link to an NRCS document that shows how soil microorganism work and their associated functions.

• http://www.conservationwebinars.net/webinars/soil-quality-the-foundation-for-resource- management/at_multi_download/relatedFiles?name=Soil%20Microorganisms%20and%20their%20Functions.pdf

I feel the third PSA is explanatory. All plants are grown in the soil and animals eat these plants, then we consume these animal products. So in theory everything we consume really can be traced back to the soil. 

The end of the video shows the "Dig It: Secrets of Soil" exhibit at the Smithsonian Museum. I have not had the pleasure to visit this exhibit, but I have heard wonderful things from many that have visited it. I hope to go soon to see soil science in all it's glory!

 

I really think these short PSA's really show how important soils really are and how important it really is to protect and support our soils.