What are the best management practices of the Everglades Agricultural Area?

The Everglades of Florida are not just swamp-filled alligator territory! Part of the Everglades is managed as a highly productive agricultural area. Called the Everglades Agricultural Area, it is located south of Lake Okeechobee. The land mass area is about one fourth the size of the original everglades. Soils in the Everglades Agricultural Area are …

How do wild pigs affect riparian systems?

If you live in the southeastern United States, there’s a good chance you’ve encountered wild pigs or their damage. They can live along stream beds and dig in fields or along roadsides. In the U.S., wild pigs are an invasive species and don’t have many predators. They can affect water quality, compete with native species …

How do soils and humans impact one another?

Soils are a finite resource, and only renew over centuries or millennia. Soils provide many “services” to humans, yet it is largely an ignored resource. Some of the services soils provide are: Capturing and cleaning rain and snowfall,Providing structure to grow our food,Holding carbon in the form of organic matter (carbon sequestration), andProviding a home …

Why is phosphorus needed on farms?

Celebrating the 350th Anniversary of Phosphorus’ Discovery! Did you ever wonder why your home and garden fertilizer has specific ratios of nutrients? Well, the story goes back even further – to the discovery of those elements! Phosphorus is one of the main “ingredients” for healthy plant growth. This year, 2019, is the 350th anniversary of …

Soils and your Thanksgiving meal

As you sit around your Thanksgiving table this year, we thought we’d give you some ideas about current research topics that help bring you your dinner. In addition to the growers who tended your food, perhaps you’ll also be thankful for the research scientists working behind the scenes to help us have a sustainable food …

How do forests recover from fires?

Forest fires can be devastating events. We hear in the news about many forest fires, the homes destroyed, and the lives lost1. Fires also have effects on the forest itself, and soil plays an important role in bringing the forest back to life. Jack pine tree seeds need the heat of a fire in order …

How are biosolids used in cities?

Fixing a former industrial site with biosolids and sediments can be a safe and practical use of local resources.

I’ve heard that soil microbes are living in Antarctica. How can that be?

The polar regions of the globe are often very cold for the most of the year. In the dead of winter, these environments can experience air temperatures well below -50° F! The coldest temperature on record (-128° F) was measured in Antarctica in 1983. Soil with a permafrost layer beginning at 60 cm near the …

How can soils help with climate change?

Soil can help with climate change by storing carbon through a process called “carbon sequestration.” However, the amount of carbon soil can store depends on choices made by farmers and other landowners. The choices farmers make—the crops they grow, whether or not they plow (till or no-till), and the amount of fertilizer they use—can influence …

How does soil differ across Earth’s biomes? Part 2

Read Part 1 of this answer here. Ecologists group large geographic regions with similar environments and distinctive plant and animal communities into biomes. The environmental factors influencing biomes include latitude, the general climate and topography of the region, and soil. Soil is the foundation of every terrestrial ecosystem. Each biome has soils with characteristics unique …