“Acid Sulfate Soils” (2018)
http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/topics/land-and-soil/soil-degradation/acid-sulfate-soils
This site gives a brief, explanation of acid sulfate soils. Stating the impact, causes, location and preventions of acid sulfate soils. The impacts such as damaging water ways and killing aquatic life are thoroughly explained to educate people on the effects of acid sulfate soils. Causes being past practices in drainage and flood-mitigation, both coastal and inland. This website gives a sufficient introduction and explanation to acid soils, while rendering resources for further knowledge. All information on this site is easy to access and displays the contributors to the article.
“Aluminum Toxicity and Tolerance in Plants”
(1995)
http://www.plantphysiol.org/content/107/2/315.full.pdf
“Basics of
Salinity and Sodicity Effects on Soil Physical Properties”
http://waterquality.montana.edu/energy/cbm/background/soil-prop.html
This site has
a breakdown of what salinity is and how it impacts the soil and surrounding
environment. This site is neatly organized and provides relevant visuals
alongside the information. It is from the Montana State University and provides
access to contact information, and many reference sources. The information is
easy to understand as well as accurate, making it a great source for a
highschool student.
This document
provided a very thorough explanation of some of the basics of soil chemistry.
The information and style of this document suggest that it is fairly current,
however, it does not provide any information regarding the author or publish
day. The pdf includes information covering properties of colloids, properties of
soil clays, cation exchange capacity, base saturation, the soil solution, soil
pH, acidity in soils, and effects of aluminum on soil acidity. It is very easy
to navigate, the information is appropriate and approachable, and it is provided
by a renowned polytechnic institute. It is ranked a 7 out of 10.
“Basic Soil Chemistry: pH” (undated)
http://gen.uga.edu/documents/soil/activity/Basic_Soil_Chemistry_pH.pdf
This website is about pH, one of the basics of soil chemistry. This website is good because it starts with basic information, which explains what you should know about pH before you begin. It also has a sidebar to inform the objectives, skills, and supplies. There is also a step by step of a lab that might want to be used. The website is easily maneuvered, and very simple. It has clear instructions, and an example data table for beginners.
"Basic Soil Components"
http://www.extension.org/pages/54401/basic-soil-components
“Basic Soil Properties” (2005)
http://landresources.montana.edu/swm/documents/Final_proof_SW1.pdf
This website
focuses on the topics of soil properties, soil textures, soil chemical
properties, soil organic matter, and microbes. The website is easy to read and
follow. It has appropriate visuals and references. The website explains the
relationships and the effects that chemicals will have on different aspects in
the soil.
“Carbon Cycle.” (2003)
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/carbon/efcarbon.html
This easy to maneuver website is colorful and eye-catching, attracting the reader to it right away. There are brief descriptions in a simple manner that includes good descriptions and information of the carbon cycle. The carbon cycle is one of the biogeochemical cycles that happens partly in the soil. There are good links as well as a thorough references page. Diagrams and graphics are colorful and neatly put together.
“Changing pH in Soil” (2018)
http://vric.ucdavis.edu/pdf/Soil/ChangingpHinSoil.pdf
This website discusses the effects soil pH has on plant growth. It explains why pH is important and the ideal levels pH should be at. The website uses data tables to help further the reader’s understanding of the material they’re discussing. The website does a good job at explaining the pH, although their specificity is lacking.
“Chapter 3: Soil Chemistry”( 2005)
This website has a lot of detailed information on soil chemistry. It is a very long article and is very detailed. There is no table of contents on this article to see what particular topic to research on. However, the subtitles are made clear. This article is well written and has good pictures to demonstrate what the author is talking about. It looks overwhelming when first looking at this website, but the content is useful and abundant.
“Chemical Properties of Soils” (March 2017)
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/315669865_Chemical_Properties_of_Soils
This site has a pdf that breaks down the chemical components of soil and
its structure, as well as reviews different kinds of minerals and factors that
impact soil. It was created by a well-known professor at the University of
Mysore in India.
There are not many visuals to
support text, but they are not really necessary as the information is organized
in a way that makes it easy to navigate and understand. The topics are explained
in detail but remain relatively easy to understand.The information can be
considered reliable as the author is well-known and qualified. This site scored
an 8 + on a scale of 1-10.
"Chemistry of Soil"
The website is a long article that covers topics like soil components, the essential elements for plant growth, the importance of soil pH, the effects of excess nutrients on ecosystems, and the history of soil chemistry. This website separates its topic through bolded headers rather than links so it fairly easy to navigate through. There are no visuals but the website does a good job at explaining the importance of soil and what’s in the soil
The Chemistry of Soils” (2008)
http://base.dnsgb.com.ua/files/book/Agriculture/Soil/The-Chemistry-of-Soils.pdf
“Concentration and chemical species of iron in soils
from groundwater/surface water ecotones” (2009)
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/02626669509491418
This website explains what Iron is, the different species of Iron, and
the tolls that an excess of Iron takes on plants. It also explains the different
effects on the discharge of Iron on groundwater/runoff. This website is a field
research paper, so it includes an abstract, introduction, methods, results,
discussion, references, and acknowledgments. There is a difference between the
reactions of elements in soils, and in water, and this site distinguishes
between the two very well.
The site is simple to maneuver, and all the information provided from it
is easily comprehendible. This is a good website because it has step-by-steps,
materials, and the author is credible. This website is a good source to use when
researching Iron.
“The Dirt on Soil” (2015)
https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/dirt-soil
This website is bringing awareness of the importance of quality soil. It has
subsections of fertilizing the soil, stopping flooding, helping combat other
environmental issues, and the different layers of soil. This information is
discussed with the chemistry that goes into taking care of soil. The website has
a ranking of an 8- because if the clarity of length organization and
accessibility. Again, the references are well organized, and the language is
clear. The lack of visuals and author credentials brings the rating down.
General Composition (2016)
“Humans influence soil chemistry from beyond the grave” (2017)
This site explains how humans are affecting soil chemistry beyond the grave. There are many different environmental factors of soil, and this shows how a specific one can cause a significant impact. Environmental factors are often the cause of changes, but disruptions are also being impacted more by humans. Due to these problems, the soil chemistry is changed.
“The Importance of
Proper Soil Chemistry to a Healthy Garden”
This website includes information about how important soil chemistry is to a healthy garden. This information is helpful to gardeners or home owners that want to know more. This website is also good to use because it even contains facts about the author and other websites that are related to this topic. The only problem that one could consider is the fact that there are no visual images to strengthen the topic.
“Indicators: Soil Chemistry” (2016)
https://www.epa.gov/national-aquatic-resource-surveys/indicators-soil-chemistry
“Interpreting Your Soil Test Results” (2018)
https://ag.umass.edu/soil-plant-nutrient-testing-laboratory/fact-sheets/interpreting-your-soil-test-results
This website introduces the different chemicals that are found in soil, and what each of them do to improve, or hurt the soil. The purpose of this website is to give information on how to interpret a soil test and its results. With very specific information, the website is split up with the given different chemicals, as well as other diagnostics and cures that they found in their studies on the left side of the website. The chemicals that were studied are; Phosphorus, Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium, Sulfur, Aluminum, Lead, and other tests that are crucial for soil chemistry. Even though this website has important facts, it does not give other hyperlinks to help navigate the website for viewers.
“Iron (Fe) Nutrition of Plants” (2015)
“Micronutrients” (undated)
http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/mauisoil/c_nutrients04.aspx
This website gives a general overview of all the micronutrients found in
soil and their functions. It tells what forms the nutrients are found in inside
the soil. It also goes into specifics about the different micronutrients that go
through cycles in the soil. It is helpful to use when starting research because
it gives general information about each of the micronutrients in the soil, and
it is a good beginning website to use. If you are looking for specifics, it is
not the best website to use. It also does not include visuals, so do not use
this website when looking for helpful visuals.
“The Nature of Phosphorous in Soil” (2009)
http://www.extension.umn.edu/agriculture/nutrient-management/phosphorus/the-nature-of-phosphorus/
This website provides information on the make of phosphorous and its functions and tendencies in soil. It goes into great detail in describing “The Phosphorous Cycle” and the different forms of it. It is very great in its details which enables one to have a deeper understanding of phosphorous and its different functions. More visuals would have been greatly appreciated but overall it was quite detail and extensive in its information.
“Nitrogen” (2015)
http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/mauisoil/c_nutrients01.aspx
The University of Hawaii discusses nitrogen on
the webpage, showing the many uses of nitrogen in plant life and soil ecology.
Nitrogen is needed for amino acids, and amino acids make up proteins. Nitrogen
also holds genetic codes. Nitrogen is most limiting to crop life, and it is also
easily lost in soil. There are two main types of nitrogen including ammonium and
nitrate. The plant uptake depends on the type of nitrogen. The website includes
many diagrams of the nitrogen cycle and various crops. This link is very useful
for the understanding of soil nutrients and productivity of plants.
“Nitrogen Basics – The Nitrogen Cycle.” (2005)
http://cecentralsierra.ucanr.edu/files/229005.pdf
The source identifies
the basics of nitrogen and the Nitrogen Cycle and defines the different stages
of said cycle. It also illustrates “how nitrogen from manure, fertilizers and
plants moves through the soil to crops, water and the air”. The website includes
an engaging diagram of the directions and stages of the nitrogen cycle, and the
length of the article correlates with the specificity of the information. This
source is from Cornell University Cooperative Extension, a reliable “.edu”
giving it an overall score of 8.4+.
“Soil” (2018)
https://www.britannica.com/science/soil/Soil-behaviour
This site provides an in-depth description of soil contents, structure,
chemical makeup, etc. It has appropriate and helpful visuals and is organized in
a sort of “outline-like” formation with topics and subtopics, which makes for
easy navigation. The article is pretty lengthy, but due to the range of topics
discussed, can still be considered appropriate. References and links for
further reading are in abundance on this site. There are ample contact
opportunities via the links on the site. The page is on the Encyclopedia
Britannica, which is a well-known, and commonly used source for research at the
high school level. This site scored a rating of 8+ on a scale of 1-10.
“Soil Acidity and Liming” (2007)
https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/mauisoil/c_acidity.aspx
The purpose of this site is to inform readers the origins of acidity within the soil and the ways to manage the soil to the desired pH. This website covers specific information but is very easy to understand with friendly language. The website is organized into the following headers: effects of soil pH, origins of pH, origins of acidity, pools of soil acidity, buffering capacity, problem associated with acidity in Maui County, Management of soil acidity, liming, calcium carbonate equivalent of liming materials, neutralizing exchangeable aluminum, liming curves, application and over liming, gypsum, and tool box. The negative aspects of this site is its lack of easy navigation and visuals.
"Soil Chemistry"
http://www.d.umn.edu/~pfarrell/Soils/powerpoints/Soil%20Chemistry.ppt
This was a very reliable resource, it was very easy to navigate and was approachable and appropriate. It covers information on the cation exchange and soil reactions. It provided specific information without being overwhelming and was very well done. I also included addition information about a variety of inorganic nutrients and chemicals. It is given a -8 out of 10.
“Soil, Plant Nutrition and Nutrient Management” (2018)
https://extension2.missouri.edu/mg4
This site serves as a “master gardener core manual” providing plentiful information regarding the soil health, plant nutrients. purpose of many chemicals within the soil including: nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, boron, chlorine, copper, iron, manganese, nickel, and zinc. The information provided is very lengthy, it could be condensed but is very friendly with many visuals including pictures, and tables. This site is full of contact information and many of the authors have reputable backgrounds. Due to the length, it is somewhat difficult to navigate.
“Soil solutions to iodine deficiency” (2016)
http://www.ign.org/taking-a-deeper-look.htm
This site educates people on soil solutions to iodine deficiency. The World Health Organization and the UNICEF in 1994 found that universal salt iodization would battle iodine deficiency. This website also introduces and explains the pro and cons of the chemical iodine in livestock, crops, and humans. It explains why morbidity rates mortality rates have increased because of the lack of iodine. Studies through the use of iodized fertilizer found that iodine concentrations in food plants have increased. This site is the Iodine Global Network that links to information about soil solutions to iodine deficiency. This page uses a mature language and clearly explains, the chemical iodine, iodine deficiency and the studies conducted to prevent iodine deficiency.
“The
Nitrogen and Phosphorous Cycle in Soils.” (2016)
https://www.uaex.edu/publications/pdf/FSA-2148.pdf
This article explains how the
nitrogen and phosphorus cycles work in soil. It discusses soil organic matter
and the nutrients that are stored there. These nutrients include nitrogen,
phosphorus, sulfur, calcium, and magnesium. The article also touches on the
topics of mineralization, biological nitrogen fixation, leaching, volatilization
as NH3, denitrification. It also tells us that nitrogen and phosphorus are found
in both organic and inorganic soils. This article was good because there were multiple diagrams and charts to
help one further understand what was being discussed in the article. The website
is also easy to navigate and the headers for each section help readers to easily
find information on the topic that they are researching. As well as this, the
article touches on many different topics having to do with nitrogen and
phosphorus. The only complaint I have about this article is the fact that it is
quite lengthy, so while it is very informative, one may grow weary of reading it
quickly.
“The Nitrogen Cycle” (2001)
http://www.biology-pages.info/N/NitrogenCycle.html
This site not only offers a good amount of information about the nitrogen cycle. It is a general overview of how the nitrogen cycle works and it also offers links to other topics that are related to the nitrogen cycle. The page also has a useful colorful diagram that illustrates the different parts of the cycle. It explains how the nitrogen cycle effects the soil. This website had a lot of information but it would have been improved by using more diagrams to describe each step of the process instead all of the steps combined together.
"The Nitrogen Cycle." (2006)
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/Life/nitrogen_cycle.html&edu=high.
This site explains what the nitrogen cycle is and its importance to the health of the earth and its inhabitants. Lisa also goes on to divulge how plants and animals receive the nitrogen they need to survive, and paints a clear picture of the cycle. The picture alongside the text is also extremely easy to follow. Being a representative of the University of Michigan, Lisa Gardiner’s credentials are more than favorable and the site appears to be professional yet useful. There are also many links to other pages that would surely be helpful.
“Nitrogen in Soil and the Environment.” (January
2013)
http://extension.arizona.edu/sites/extension.arizona.edu/files/pubs/az1591.pdf
This article explains how nitrogen
is present in every ecosystem and that is crucial to life. It then goes into
detail about the different types of nitrogen. These types of nitrogen include
atmospheric nitrogen, organic soil nitrogen, ammonium nitrogen, nitrate
nitrogen. The article then proceeds to talk about how nitrogen analyses are not
difficult to perform, it can be strenuous to interpret the results of the
analyses. It then talks about the nitrogen analyses that are usually conducted
as well as how to conduct some of these analyses.
This article was good because
there were multiple diagrams and charts to help one further understand what was
being discussed in the article. The only complaint I have about
this article is the fact that it is quite lengthy, so while it is very
informative, one may grow weary of reading it quickly.
“Nutrient Management” (2014)
This website was created by the University of Minnesota. This particular
hyperlink is focused on nitrogen in the soil system. It discusses the nitrogen
process and the input of nitrogen for plant growth. Furthermore it goes over
nitrogen transformations and nitrogen soil loss from the system. Many factors
must go in to evaluating nitrogen such as the many different sources, its
mobility factor, and the soil type and climate. This hyperlink is very specific
with a lot of accurate information. It is helpful for understanding nitrogen's
role in soil chemistry.
“Soil Basics Part II: Chemical Properties of Soil” (2013)
https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable/fact-sheets/soil-basics-part-ii-chemical-properties-of-soil
This site explains the basic chemical properties that soil has. First the website discusses the physical characteristics of soil, such as the texture, structure, and the organic matter that makes up the soil. It then continues to talk about the chemistry inside of the soil and the chemicals and elements one can find there, as well as addressing soil pH and what that means. Each section is separated by a bold header and is organized in an understandable way. However, this website does lack some visual features and images that would be good to help further explain each section. But overall, this website is easy to navigate and reliable.
“Soil-Calcium Depletion Linked to Acid Rain and Forest Growth in the
Eastern U.S” (1999)
http://ny.water.usgs.gov/pubs/wri/wri984267/WRIR98-4267.pdf
This site is very understanding and easy to
comprehend with, it caught my eye immediately. It explains and shows calcium in
the forest, from the top of the trees to the bottom of the lake. It literally
sets everywhere. What I like about this site is how it specifically breaks down
the years in the 1990’s and explains what happens with calcium. It is slightly
different from the others it talks about acid rain growth linked to soil calcium
as appose to just the calcium and what it is. It specifies how the acidic rain
in our area increases and the relativeness to soil calcium. The images and
visual sources in this site are so very helpful and it makes the site just that
more interesting and better understanding. The references stood out as well
there were so many cited, which could really help a viewer. The color and
creativeness is user friendly. The length of the information and the information
itself seem to be accurate and very specific.
“Soil Calcium: Magnesium Ratios”(2003)
http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/icm/2003/4-21-2003/camg.html
This informative article explains the necessary role of calcium and magnesium in soil and the effects of their presence. It specifically focuses about the ratio between calcium and magnesium and gives the method for the calculation as well. The article also has charts that show the effects of the applied amount of potassium, calcium, magnesium, etc to further inform the readers about their result in being used in the soil. It also discusses crop production rates and problems and relates them to nutrients in the soil. This article would be ideal for researches that requires data with elements in soil such as calcium and magnesium.
“Soil
Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics.” (2011)
This site explains how soil is serves as a source
of carbon dioxide (CO2)
to the environment. It also displays the concerns that are present about how
soil is progressively becoming a CO2
source as the climate temperatures increase which leads to a rise in soil
disruption. The article proceeds to talk about the affect nitrogen has on
ecosystems. In ecosystems with mild climates, nitrogen often limits plant
growth. There is a possibility that nitrogen pollutes marine ecosystems as well
as drinking water. The article then discusses the research that is being done by
the writers of the article on soil carbon and nitrogen dynamics.
This website was good because
it is very easy to navigate as well as very professional. However, I wish the
authors had gone into more detail about the purpose of carbon and nitrogen in
the soil.
“Soil Chemical Properties” (Undated)
http://organiclifestyles.tamu.edu/soilbasics/soilchemical.html
This website is an excellent
source for the understanding of soil chemistry. The site is clear and very well
written. Topics covered on the page include “Major Elements,” “Cation Exchange,”
and “Soil pH.” Each topic that is covered is fully explained and examples are
given to ensure that the reader will understand what is being discussed. While
there are no links provided on the page, the site itself has links that allow
for easy navigation. The web page is simple and has minimal distractions if any
at all. It is a very professional website and excellent for research.
"Soil Chemistry" (undated)
http://lawr.ucdavis.edu/classes/ssc102/section1.pdf
This website gives very specific details
and in-depth information about general soil. There are advanced equations about
soil and it's components. There are things to know and things to remember also
clearly stated on the webpage. Even though the website contains many helpful
bits, it is 3 pages long and a little wordy at times. It is
not a simple document to understand because of the vocabulary, however it does
solidify the reliability of the website because it proves that the author knows
what he is talking about.
"Soil Chemistry
http://www.soils4teachers.org/chemistry
This site gives an overview of
different aspects of soil chemistry including soil pH, soil organic matter
interactions, and ion exchanges. This site has very useful visuals. The page has
a glossary link that contains many terms related to soil chemistry. This site
would be very helpful for high school or middle school research but may be too
brief in some topics for higher level research.
"Soil Chemistry" (undated)
http://web.njit.edu/~kebbekus/Soil%20chem%20notes.htm
Although there is a lot of information
thrown at you at once,
Soil Chemistry" (2016).
www.ars.usda.gov/pacific-west-area/pendleton/swcr/docs/soilchemistry.
This site talks about soil chemistry and different experiments done. The visuals are very good for this site. There is easy access to contact the researchers of the different projects done. This site was updated last year, so it is very recent.
“Soil
Chemistry" (2016)
http://www.encyclopedia.com/environment/energy-government-and-defense-magazines/soil-chemistry
In this website, there is a report on soil chemistry with an introduction, historical background, and impact. This is an overview of how soil chemistry can be affected and adds some vocabulary related to it. The outline of soil chemistry provides an overview of the information needed with useful links that relate to the topic. It is easy to navigate and there are several other pages within the website to use.
"Soil Chemistry" (undated)
http://www.edu.pe.ca/agriculture/soil.pdf
This site was very easy to read through; however, a bit of interpretation is needed because it was originally intended to be a textbook. The information seems fairly accurate although it is slightly dated. The pdf contains information on soil pH, liming, nutrients (including chemicals), organic matter, and the cation exchange. The author is not provided, but this pdf does direct you to its original website and provides additional resources and cites its sources. It is given a +8 out of 10.
"Soil Chemistry: Acidic and Basic Soils - Buffering" (undated)
http://lawr.ucdavis.edu/classes/ssc102/Section8.pdf
This website is very useful because it gives basic information about soil chemistry and illustrations. They include pre-assessment questions, formulas, and reading about each topic. This is very easy to navigate and a good resource.
"“Soil Chemistry and Fertility.” (undated)
This PDF document gives an introduction to the basics of soil chemistry, and explains how soil chemistry is related to soil fertility. The document comes from the Center for Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems, which is a Center within the Social Sciences Division at UC Santa Cruz. The document is 30 pages long and reads like a textbook; there is a table of contents which guides the reader to specific pages for the topics they want to learn about. The information is well structured and detailed. It’s organized so that there is always a paragraph’s worth of information to describe a term related to the topic of the chapter. One potential setback of this source is that there are no links attached. However, there are several references at the bottom of the document. This source would be great for someone who wants to learn the basic components of soil chemistry and how it connects to agriculture.
“Soil Chemistry and Nutrition of North American Red
Spruce-Fir Stands: Evidence for Recent Change” (1992)
http://digitalcommons.usu.edu/wats_facpub/24/
This article discusses how, in the eastern area of North America, the
effect of
acidic deposition on the soil may affect nutrient availability and root
function.
This has also caused the decline of red spruce. The soil data that was taken
shown acid came with plant take up, which contributed to the loss of cations.
This website is a trusted source because the information was given from a
university. This website has everything labeled and clearly visible.
“Soil and Soil Solution Chemistry” (1994)
This website talks about chemical reactions in the soil and how they affect the concentrations of the large amount of solutes in stream water. A positive critique is that it uses soil ecology vocabulary. It is also very specific and talks about reactions with different chemicals in soil. However it is sometimes hard to follow what the page is talking about because it can be very detailed. It also doesn’t explain the unfamiliar words it is using.
Soil pH
http://soilquality.org/indicators/soil_ph.html#
There are many tabs and links to browse through
all relating to properties of soil and giving an understanding for them. There
are appropriate visuals spaced throughout the website, but the website could be
improved if there were more. Some topics the website covers that could be useful
for understanding soil chemistry are soil quality basics, value of soil,
biodiversity, soil functions, and nutrient cycling. This websites main focus is
on the quality of soil, and it has data tables to show how certain crops grow in
certain soil.
“Soil pH and Salinity.”
http://ag.arizona.edu/pubs/garden/mg/soils/ph.html#ph
This site had some good visuals and provided some important information about soil chemistry regarding pH and salinity. It explained the importance of soil pH to plants. The site did not have a bibliography, but it was easy to follow and provided a lot of information. It was connected with a university, so the information was very reliable. It was a very good site overall.
"Soil pH: What it Means." (1993)
http://www.esf.edu/pubprog/brochure/soilph/soilph.htm
This website has two aims: a) to explain what pH is in terms of soil and b) to explain the effect of different pH's on the soil ecosystem. The website offers a good explanation of the pH scale, instructions on how to test for soil pH, and a lengthy description of the effect of pH to nutrients, minerals, and growth -focusing specifically on the pH’s effect to the solubility of phosphorus, aluminum, iron, and manganese. Also mentioned in the site, though briefly, are how well different acidities suit plants and the influence of soil pH on microorganisms. This site is a suitable introduction to soil pH. It covers a variety of information concerning pH and is therefore a great starting point for research. However, due to the amount of information present, the content felt more like a detailed outline than a thorough description of this topic. Though the information was accurate, it was not comprehensive enough. Along with this, it did not provide many preferable traits such as links, references, or a contact address.
“Soil pH Effects on Nutrient Availability in the Everglades Agricultural Area” (2009)
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/SS500
This site makes a connection between pH and plant nutrients. Specifically, it uses the"Soil Physical Damage: Summary of Issues." (undated)
http://www.macaulay.ac.uk/aweg/soilphysicaldamage.pdf
This website is very useful because it is easy to navigate, and includes a lot of important information about soil chemistry. It is very informative and explains summaries of harmful things that damage the soil. This can be used to expand knowledge and prevent from damaging the soil and keeping it healthy.
Soil Physical and Chemical Properties (2014)
http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/nj/home/?cid=nrcs141p2_018993
This website contains very detailed descriptions and explanations of
both physical properties and chemical properties of soil. There are many
detailed sections with diagrams and pictures, but there are not many links and
references. The subjects of this website include: soil structure, soil texture,
cation exchange capacity, and soil reaction (pH).
Soil Pollution (2009)
http://www.environmentalpollutioncenters.org/soil/
This source is very informative relating to the topic of soil pollution.
It includes information about topics such as, soil pollution construction, soil
pollution and its effects, soil pollution and its causes, soil pollution facts
and soil poisoning prevention, and soil pollution examples. This site is very
detailed and covers many topics, but lacks pictures and diagrams.
“Soils- Nitrogen as a Nutrient” (undated)
This website gives information about the role and effects of nitrogen in the soil. It tells the reader about the forms in which nitrogen in soil is found, the nitrogen cycle, the effects of nitrogen on the surrounding plant life, etc. It gives links to other websites that give information about nitrogen and soil, including many about nitrogen and its role in crops and agriculture. This is a good resource if you are looking for specific information about nitrogen in soil.
“Soil quality – A critical review” (2018)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0038071718300294
This website discusses soil quality as well
as tests and indicators of the quality of the soil. It speaks of how to measure
and analyze data collected from soil. Additionally, evaluates common threats to
the quality of the soil. It is part of a larger research paper split up into the
abstract and introduction, however this covers most of the important
information. The website is rated 8.2+ because it is reliable in terms of the
credibility of the author and the use of explanatory visuals. However, the
length and intense vocabulary drag the website down.
“Sources and Impacts of Contaminants in Soils” (2009)
http://cwmi.css.cornell.edu/sourcesandimpacts.pdf
This website focuses on soil contaminants and their impact on soil and
people. It explains what is effected by soil contaminants. This website is a
reliable source from the Cornell Waste Management Institute. There are
references located on the bottom of the website where more information on
certain topics can be found. The website is easy to follow and organized by
topic.
“Understanding Nitrogen in Soils” (2018)
https://extension.umn.edu/nitrogen/understanding-nitrogen-soils
This site is about how nitrogen behaves in the soil, and explains ways to manage the nitrogen to have better crop production. The Site is from the University of Minnesota Extension. For every topic on this page, there are sub-topics for the reader to click on to reveal more detailed information about that topic. The information is detailed and clear, and the way the sub-topics are set up makes it easy for the reader to navigate through this page. The page goes over the basics of nitrogen, as well as how nitrogen is incorporated into the soil for plant growth, the transformations nitrogen undergoes in the soil, and the ways in which nitrogen levels can decrease in the soil. The site would be great for anyone seeking a better understanding of the role nitrogen plays in the soil, with a focus on how it influences crops and agriculture.
This page is about phosphorus (P) fertilizers. It comes from the University of Minnesota Extension. The site explains how the P fertilizers are manufactured, the different types of P fertilizers, it compares organic P fertilizers to inorganic P fertilizers, and it talks about how crops respond to the P fertilizers. For every topic on this page, there are sub-topics for the reader to click on to reveal more detailed information about that topic. The information is concise and to the point, and the way the sub-topics are set up makes it easy for the reader to navigate through this page. Sometimes the topic titles aren’t easily comprehensible for someone who has never learned about P fertilizers before, but it makes sense if the reader reads through everything. This is a great site to look at for someone who is curious to learn about agriculture and the chemicals that humans put into the soil
"What Makes
Soil, Soil?" (2014)
This website contains information about the texture, structure, and color of soil. The information is easy to read and comprehend, and there are many useful links. This website would have been better if there was more information. The available information is useful, but some information could be added.