soil

12 soil orders of the world

Soils

"The dominant soil orders in this MLRA are Ultisols, Inceptisols, and Alfisols. The soils in the area dominantly have a thermic soil temperature regime, a udic soil moisture regime, and kaolinitic or mixed mineralogy. They are shallow to very deep, generally well drained, and loamy or clayey. Hapludalfs (Enon and Wilkes series), Hapludults (Badin, Nason, and Tatum series), and Kanhapludults (Appling, Cecil, Georgeville, Herndon, Madison, Pacolet, and Wedowee series) formed in residuum on hills and ridges. Dystrudepts (Chewacla series) formed in alluvium on flood plains. Udults in the Rhodic subgroup (Davidson, Hiwassee, and Lloyd series) formed in old alluvium on stream terraces or in residuum derived from mafic rocks."

(http://www.ga.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/soils/mlra136.html)

Ultisol

Inceptisol

Alfisol

munsell soil color chart

extremophiles

extremophile: an organism that lives under extreme environmental conditions (merriam-webster)

thermophile: an organism living at a high temperature (merriam-webster)

acidophile:  preferring or thriving in a relatively acid environment (merriam-webster)

halophile: an organism that flourishes in a salty environment (merriam-webster)

geology

Igneous Rocks: relating to, resulting from, or suggestive of the intrusion or extrusion of magma or volcanic activity; formed by solidification of magma (Merriam-Webster)

obsidian: a dark natural glass formed by the cooling of molten lava (Merriam-Webster)

pumice: a volcanic glass full of cavities and very low in density that is used especially in powder form for smoothing and polishing (Merriam-Webster)

Metamorphic Rocks: a change in the constitution of rock; specifically : a pronounced change effected by pressure, heat, and water that results in a more compact and more highly crystalline condition (Merriam-Webster)

coquina: a soft whitish limestone formed of broken shells and corals cemented together and used for building (Merriam-Webster)

limestone: a rock that is formed chiefly by accumulation of organic remains (as shells or coral), consists mainly of calcium carbonate, is extensively used in building, and yields lime when burned (Merriam-Webster)

Sedimentary Rocks: formed by or from deposits of sediment (Merriam-Webster)

gneiss: a foliated metamorphic rock corresponding in composition to a feldspathic plutonic rock (Merriam-Webster)

coal: a black or brownish-black solid combustible substance formed by the partial decomposition of vegetable matter without free access of air and under the influence of moisture and often increased pressure and temperature that is widely used as a natural fuel (Merriam-Webster)

the diary of timmy the tomato (seed)

Tuesday 2/15/11

Today was my first day out of my carton and into soil.  It was also my first experience with water and college!  After the Environmental Biology class, I went to French, some singing class, and on an adventure with the class in which this all began.  I have been all over Mercer's campus today helping my human looks for different kinds of rocks and soil.  There were a couple of steep places and hot moments, but I made it!  After that we went to listen to some more music that wasn't all singing, so that was nice.

I now have a home on my human's window sill..

..near a friendly aloe plant as well as a prickly winter cactus :)  

I hear my human has trouble with keeping plants and even fish alive so I'm kind of worried, but I'm sure she'll do the best she can.

Sunily yours,
                         Timmy

2/16/11

Today was very uneventful but very sunny.  No water but in the window sill all day so that was lovely.  I pretty much look exactly the same as yesterday, but I'll come out soon :)

<3 Timmy

2/17/11

Today I got some water, but I look the same.

2/18/11

Lots of sun today but still no physical change.

2/21/11

I'm kind of worried because I am not growing.  I am getting a lot of sunlight and just enough water every couple days.  I hope I'm going to survive..

Timmy

2/22/11

I have sprouted!

2/23/11
A little water and lots of sunlight goes a long way - I'm growing!

February 25, 2011

I am growing!

March 5, 2011

I just keep growing!

April 10, 2011

just keep growing, growing, growing..

April 28, 2011

Last day of class :(

Geocaching Galore!

Geocaching is an international hobby that involves seeking out places all around the world. You can participate locally as well. All you have to do is go to geocaching.com to find the cache's latitude and longitude to put into your GPS device. When you reach the location, you will have to search carefully for it, and sign the log book. Now replace what you find in the cache with something special for the next person to find, then put the cache exactly where you found it. When you return from your journey, log your findings and experiences on the geocaching website. Make it a communal experience with the world!

our geocaching journey

GPS and mapping can be helpful within the Environmental Biology field in many ways. It can help locate and target areas to focus the environmental community's effort on improving particular environments for living things. For example, mapping the annual rainfall for places would help scientists know where water is more needed.

Go to geocaching.com today!