Aeration, Biology

Assignment Help:

Aeration

A well-aerated soil is one in which gases are available to plant roots and other soil organisms, in sufficient quantities and in proper proportions to support their normal respiratory activities. It is important that oxygen which is necessary for soil biota is continuously renewed to support metabolic activities.

A soil which is considered well aerated must have the following two characteristics. First, sufficient space for air movement should be present. Second, there must be ample opportunity for the ready movement of gases into and out of the soil. Soil aeration is an important factor having far reaching influence on the metabolic activity of plant roots and other soil organisms. Continuous supply of oxygen in the soil is necessary to sustain soil organisms.

One of the most apparent effects of poor soil aeration is the reduction in the rate of organic matter decomposition, which you might recall is an essential process to maintain soil fertility. The reduced rate of break down of organic matter is due to the lack of oxygen rather than from the built up of carbon dioxide. Accumulation of organic matter in swampy areas shows that the lack of oxygen retards the decomposition of organic matter.

Aerobic soil organisms are unable to survive in the absence of gaseous oxygen. For example, bacteria that are responsible for the oxidation of nitrogen and sulphur are relatively ineffective in poorly aerated soils. This is also true for the symbiotic nitrogen fixers and some of the free living nitrogen fixers such as azotobacter.

Higher plants are also adversely affected by poor soil aeration because the root growth is curtailed; nutrient and water absorption is adversely affected; and certain toxic elements accumulate in poorly aerated soils.


Related Discussions:- Aeration

Bovine ephemeral fever, Bovine ephemeral fever Ephemeral fever is commonly...

Bovine ephemeral fever Ephemeral fever is commonly known as 'three-day sickness'. It affects mainly cattle and occasionally sheep in India. Causative agent is a mosquito-borne vir

State about the importance of potassium, State about the importance of Pota...

State about the importance of Potassium  Potassium is the third major element required for plant growth, generally absorbed as K + ion. In soil 95 to 99 percent of potassium e

Adenosine diphosphate (adp), ADP is lower energy form of ATP, containing tw...

ADP is lower energy form of ATP, containing two (in spite of the three in ATP) phosphate groups attached to the adenine base and ribose sugar.

Explain spoilage of sweetened condensed milk, Q. Explain Spoilage of Sweete...

Q. Explain Spoilage of Sweetened condensed milk? The sweetened condensed milk contains about 8% milk fat, 23% total milk solids and sweetened with the addition of a sweetener,

Can you briefly explain about parasitism, Q. Can you briefly explain about ...

Q. Can you briefly explain about parasitism? The Parasitism is an inharmonious interspecific ecological interaction in which individuals of a species (the parasites) explore or

How do homeotic genes regulate development in drosophila, How do homeotic g...

How do homeotic genes regulate development in Drosophila? Homeotic genes code for regulatory proteins that are thought to control the rate of cell division in various body area

Indications for surgery- pulmonary stenosis, Indications for Surgery :  Co...

Indications for Surgery :  Congenital pulmonic stenosis is the most common lesion requiring relief. Very rarely it could be due to rheumatic involvement along with disease of othe

Types oligosaccharide linkages, In glycoproteins, two main parts of oligosa...

In glycoproteins, two main parts of oligosaccharide linkages exist: a) An O-linked oligosaccharides attached to the protein by O-glycosidic bonds, to the OH groups of serine or

Are the limbs modified into wings of bats, Are the limbs modified into wing...

Are the limbs modified into wings of bats and the wings of birds examples of evolutionary analogy or homology? What about whale fins compared to fish fins? Bat and bird wings h

What do you understand by arthropodization, What do you understand by Arthr...

What do you understand by Arthropodization? Many of the traits that we consider unique to the Arthropoda may not be independent traits. Instead, they may be the consequence of

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd