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PRINCIPLES OF SOIL SCIENCE

PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION
FIRST NAME
SURNAME
MIDDLE NAME YEAR/SECTION
I.D. NUMBER SCORE/RATING

I. MULTIPLE CHOICE: Directions: Determine the correct answer from the given alternatives. Then write the corresponding letter of your
choice on the space provided before each number. All answers must be CAPITALIZED. No erasures/unrelated remarks/signs or symbols shall be
allowed to indicate a certain answer. (20pts)

______ 1. The total land area of the Philippines is

A. 30 million square kilometer C. 30 million square miles
B. 30 million hectares D. 30 million acres
______ 2. Every 5 seconds around one soccer field of soil is eroded. It is an alarming state and so to increase awareness
regarding about soil loss, World Soil Day is celebrated annually every
A. December 5 C. March 21
B. March 22 D. August 9
______ 3. The original source of most organic matter in soil is
A. plant residues C. bodies of dead animals and insects
B. soil inhabiting microorganisms’ D. rocks
______ 4.
______ 5. Generally speaking, the availability of nutrients in the soil is a function of
A. soil conservation C. soil management
B. soil fertility D. soil reaction
_____ 6. Any set of measurement intended to control or prevent soil erosion to maintain soil fertility
A. soil conservation C. soil management
B. soil improvement D. soil survey
_____ 7. The changes that take place in minerals and rocks at or near the surface of the earth in response to the atmosphere,
water, plant and animal life
A. nitrification C. evaporation
B. metamorphism D. weathering
_____ 8. . The study of soil which puts more emphasis on its origin, characteristics, classification and description

a. edapology
b. entomology
c. pedology
d. soil morphology

_____ 9. The study of soil which is more concerned with the practical utilization of soil and the principles of maintaining its fertility

a. edapology
b. pathology
c. pedology
d. soil morphology

_____ 10. The movement of soil by natural forces like wind, water, waves and gravity

a. evaporation
b. leaching
c. soil erosion
d. surface run-off

_____ 11. A loose covering on the surface of the soil, usually consist of organic residues but may be loose soil produced by cultivation
or other organic materials
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a. compost
b. farm manure
c. mulch
d. top soil

_____ 12. A civil engineer is a:

a. edaphologist c. petrologist
b. pedologist d. anthropologist

_____ 13. The capability of the soil being molded by hands is

a. stickiness c. tilth
b. plasticity d. cracking

_____ 14. The most abundant elements in the earths crusts are
a. Fe, AL, Mn, N, P c. N, P, K, Ca, Mg
b. O, Si, Al, Fe, Ca d. C, H, O, N, P

_____ 15. Soil texture can be described effectively in the field

a. Touch method c. Hydrometer
b. Pinch method d. Feel and roll method

_____ 16. The state when the body absorbs less food than it needs. This designates a state of long-term undernourishment arising
in connection to poverty.
A. Hunger C. Acute hunger
B. Chronic hunger D. Hidden hunger
_____ 17. This refer to the amount of food that is physically present in a country or area through all forms of domestic
production, stocks, commercial imports and food aid. This is when all people have sufficient quantities of food of appropriate
quality.
A. Food security C. Food availability
B. Food affordability D. Food Adequacy
_____ 18. In many cases, expiration dates are important indicators of how safe the food is to consume. Some products that are
fine to eat past its given expiry date are the following except:
A. Cookies, cracker and chips C. Dry Pasta
B. Canned goods D. Milk
_____ 19. Debris: ___________ ; __________: Soil Chemist
A. Mining engineer; Storehouse C. Mining engineer; Powerhouse
B. Highway engineer; Seedbed D. Highway engineer; Roadbed
_____ 20. Farm field left unsown or uncultivated for a period of time to restore its fertility.
A. Follow B. Fallow C. Shallow D. Wallow
_____ 21. Runoff from agriculture and development, pollution from septic systems and sewers, and other human-related activities
increase the flux of both inorganic nutrients and organic substances into terrestrial, aquatic, and marine ecosystems. This can lead to a
great concentration of algae and microscopic organisms that can prevent
_____ 22. Russian Botanist who developed a theory of the historical centers of origin of cultivated plants. 
A. Charles Darwin C. William Baetson
B. Nicolas Vavilov D. Nikolai Vavilov
_____ 23.
______ 24.
_____ 25.

TRUE OR FALSE

1. Most food is still edible after expiration date.

2. A product that has passed its shelf life might still be safe, but the quality is no longer
guaranteed.
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3. Human activities can accelerate the rate at which nutrients enter ecosystems.
4. Soil cannot hold nor purify water.
5. Carbon concentration in the soil is higher than carbon concentration in the air.

ENUMERATE and EXPLAIN

1-5 Types of food wastage

A. B. Define and Contrast

a. Soil Fertility vs Soil Microbiology

b. Food Loss vs Food Waste
c. Pedological vs Edaphological
d. Mineral Matter vs Organic Matter

On December 5, 2002, the world first celebrated World Soil Day, recognizing the importance of soil to
the natural environment and human development. With soils pivotal role of in the agricultural industry,
how can Soil Science help improve food security?

What is eutrophication?
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THE SOIL TEXTURAL TRIANGLE

Directions: Using your soil texture chart and example, determine the following soil textures using the
percentages given.

% sand % silt % clay Soil Texture

example 75 10 15 sandy loam

a) 42 _____ 37 __________________

b) ______ 52 21 __________________

c) ______ 35 50 __________________

Now for a challenge:

d) 36 ______ ______ Clay Loam

e) _____ ______ 42 Silty Clay

f) _____ ______ ______ Loamy sand

 ____________________________________________________________________________

Essay: What is the difference between sand, silt and clay?

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SAND, SILT AND CLAY

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely

divided rock and mineral particles. The composition of sand is highly
variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the
most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and
non-tropical coastal settings is silica (silicon dioxide, or SiO2),
usually in the form of quartz.

The second most common type of sand is calcium carbonate, for

example aragonite, which has mostly been created, over the past half
billion years, by various forms of life, like coral and shellfish. It is,
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for example, the primary form of sand apparent in areas where reefs have dominated the ecosystem for millions
of years like the Caribbean.

Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar.
Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment (also known as suspended load) in a surface water body. It
may also exist as soil deposited at the bottom of a water body. Silt has a moderate specific area with a typically
non-sticky, plastic feel. Silt usually has a floury feel when dry, and a slippery feel when wet. Silt can be visually
observed with a hand lens.

Clay minerals are typically formed over long periods of time by the gradual chemical weathering of rocks,
usually silicate-bearing, by low concentrations of carbonic acid and other diluted solvents. These solvents,
usually acidic, migrate through the weathering rock after leaching through upper weathered layers. In addition
to the weathering process, some clay minerals are formed by hydrothermal activity. Clay deposits may be
formed in place as residual deposits in soil, but thick deposits usually are formed as the result of a secondary
sedimentary deposition process after they have been eroded and transported from their original location of
formation. Clay deposits are typically associated with very low energy depositional environments such as large
lakes and marine basins. The distinction between silt and clay varies by discipline. Geologists and soil
scientists usually consider the separation to occur at a particle size of 2 µm (clays being finer than silts),
sedimentologists often use 4-5 μm, and colloid chemists use 1 μm.

Primary clays, also known as kaolins, are located at the site of formation. Secondary clay deposits have been
moved by erosion and water from their primary location

Sources: Wikipedia

Particle Size: http://www.google.com/imgres?sa=X&biw=1192&bih=491&tbm=isch&tbnid=hV_K7q5UNXnVnM

%3A&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.meted.ucar.edu%2Fhydro%2Fbasic_int%2Frunoff
%2Fprint.htm&docid=boX84zgM8SdaTM&imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.meted.ucar.edu%2Fhydro%2Fbasic_int
%2Frunoff%2Fmedia%2Fgraphics
%2Finf_all.jpg&w=497&h=246&ei=MJgCU_y7LMewyQHflYCYBw&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=370&page=3&start=26&ndsp=1
5&ved=0CKsBEK0DMBs

Particle size:
http://www.google.com/imgres?sa=X&biw=1192&bih=491&tbm=isch&tbnid=yNvGVYTy_rx1wM%3A&imgrefurl=http%3A
%2F%2Fwww.oshatrain.org%2Fcourses%2Fmods%2F802m3.html&docid=O6vDkhEHLCvEFM&imgurl=http%3A%2F
%2Fwww.oshatrain.org%2Fcourses%2Fmods
%2F802%2Fclay_sand_silt.png&w=392&h=265&ei=MJgCU_y7LMewyQHflYCYBw&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=270&page=1&
start=0&ndsp=11&ved=0CF0QrQMwAw

Soil Texture Worksheet Key

Directions: Using your soil texture chart and example, determine the following soil textures using the
percentages given.

% sand % silt % clay Soil Texture

 ____________________________________________________________________________

example 75 10 15 sandy loam

g) 42 21 37 clay loam

h) 27 52 21 silt loam

i) 15 35 50 clay

j) 64 30 6 sandy loam

k) 50 10 40 sandy clay

Make your own!!

90 9 1 Sand

20 20 60 Clay

For anyone who is up for a challenge:

l) 36 30 34 Clay Loam

m) 10 48 42 Silty Clay

n) 85 10 5 Loamy sand

o) 30 60 10 silt loam