hopgoodm41
Tanyosho Pine Tree & Soil Compaction
(Marina Hopgood) This photo was taken on 03/21/2019 at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. This tree is a non native species. The species name is Pinus densiflora. The common name is Tanyosho pine. This pine tree is native to japan. It is a smaller version of the red pine trees commonly found in Japan. The reason I chose this photo was because it had a rope blocking it off. I did not picture the rope or the sign that it contained. The sign said not to walk over the roped off area due to potential compaction of the soil. Compaction of soil is part of soil degradation. The compaction of soil caused by humans causes water to be unable to infiltrate the soil properly. Water is important because it makes up approximately 20-30% of soil. The rest of the soil is made up of minerals, air, organisms and organic matter. Compaction of the soil also reduces the amount of air that is able to get in. The organisms living under the surface also need water and air to live so if soil gets compacted too much then the organisms that live within the soil will die. When humans or heavy machinery put stress on soil they cause compaction. Humans cause compaction by foot traffic, bikes and automobiles.Compaction of soil means there is less space between particles of soil which causes the soil to be non porous. Porosity is important because if there is too much compaction not enough water or air will be able to penetrate which will lead to increased stress on the tree as well as the roots. Roots are important because they take in water and nutrients for the tree. Roots take up water and nutrients by a process called capillary action. Water is then given off by evapotranspiration in the water cycle as well. Trees and plants in general make up part of the water cycle.Trees and plants take in carbon dioxide and water in order to give off oxygen. Oxygen is essential to life. Without trees and plants there would be no oxygen which means that soil compaction is a big environmental issue. Compaction is more of a problem with agriculture and construction however, some soil around our homes can be impacted by soil compaction as well. Parking bikes, boats, cars or playing sports on the grass causes soil compaction due to the pressure from the foot traffic on the soil. Compaction of soil also causes an increase in runoff water. The increase in runoff water occurs because the excess water is unable to infiltrate the soil.Runoff water can cause flooding as well as transportation of chemicals if weed killer had been sprayed which can harm other organisms around. There are many ways to decrease the amount of compaction caused by humans. One solution is to have designated narrow walking paths. The walking paths show where it is safe to walk where no harm would be caused. Another solution is to rope off the areas that are more susceptible to compaction. The Morton Arboretum used a rope to discourage walking on the soil in order to preserve the tree roots and prevent compaction of the soil. Lastly if it is necessary to continuously go to the same spot use different routes to get to that spot. Using different routes helps the soil by giving it time to recover rather than continuously being compacted down tighter.
Tanyosho Pine Tree & Soil Compaction
(Marina Hopgood) This photo was taken on 03/21/2019 at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. This tree is a non native species. The species name is Pinus densiflora. The common name is Tanyosho pine. This pine tree is native to japan. It is a smaller version of the red pine trees commonly found in Japan. The reason I chose this photo was because it had a rope blocking it off. I did not picture the rope or the sign that it contained. The sign said not to walk over the roped off area due to potential compaction of the soil. Compaction of soil is part of soil degradation. The compaction of soil caused by humans causes water to be unable to infiltrate the soil properly. Water is important because it makes up approximately 20-30% of soil. The rest of the soil is made up of minerals, air, organisms and organic matter. Compaction of the soil also reduces the amount of air that is able to get in. The organisms living under the surface also need water and air to live so if soil gets compacted too much then the organisms that live within the soil will die. When humans or heavy machinery put stress on soil they cause compaction. Humans cause compaction by foot traffic, bikes and automobiles.Compaction of soil means there is less space between particles of soil which causes the soil to be non porous. Porosity is important because if there is too much compaction not enough water or air will be able to penetrate which will lead to increased stress on the tree as well as the roots. Roots are important because they take in water and nutrients for the tree. Roots take up water and nutrients by a process called capillary action. Water is then given off by evapotranspiration in the water cycle as well. Trees and plants in general make up part of the water cycle.Trees and plants take in carbon dioxide and water in order to give off oxygen. Oxygen is essential to life. Without trees and plants there would be no oxygen which means that soil compaction is a big environmental issue. Compaction is more of a problem with agriculture and construction however, some soil around our homes can be impacted by soil compaction as well. Parking bikes, boats, cars or playing sports on the grass causes soil compaction due to the pressure from the foot traffic on the soil. Compaction of soil also causes an increase in runoff water. The increase in runoff water occurs because the excess water is unable to infiltrate the soil.Runoff water can cause flooding as well as transportation of chemicals if weed killer had been sprayed which can harm other organisms around. There are many ways to decrease the amount of compaction caused by humans. One solution is to have designated narrow walking paths. The walking paths show where it is safe to walk where no harm would be caused. Another solution is to rope off the areas that are more susceptible to compaction. The Morton Arboretum used a rope to discourage walking on the soil in order to preserve the tree roots and prevent compaction of the soil. Lastly if it is necessary to continuously go to the same spot use different routes to get to that spot. Using different routes helps the soil by giving it time to recover rather than continuously being compacted down tighter.