It might be great for mud pies, but there is much more to soil than just dirt. A single shovel of soil contains more living things than all the human beings ever born!
Amazingly, we know very little about life in the earth under our feet yet every living thing you can think of – including you – depends on this vast hidden ecosystem.
Come and see how plants touch every aspect of our lives in the Land of the Living. From the food we eat to the clothes we wear and medicines that cure us of life threatening diseases. Without plants the world would be a very dull place indeed!
Digging the Dirt
Soil contains all the minerals that plants need to grow: nitrogen for leaves; phosphorous for flowers, seeds and roots; potassium for making chlorophyll, the chemical that plants use to turn sunlight into food; and trace elements which keep plants healthy. In return, the roots of plants and trees help protect the soil by stopping it being washed away by the weather.
Going Underground
Soils are as different as the plants and animals growing and living above them. There are lots of ingredients that can go into the basic recipe to produce soil which might be crumbly, sticky, sandy, peaty or chalky.
A soil’s texture depends on whether it is made from fine or coarse grains. Different plants thrive in different types of soil. Some plants like wildflowers love poor soil, while roses thrive in rich, fertile soil. Alpine plants survive on the thinnest of soils, but many vegetables will only grow in deep soil where they can reach down their roots.