Organic Matter Content of Soil
National Park Service: Thomas Colson. 2015. Organic Matter Content of Soil
Organic matter is the plant and animal residue in the soil at various stages of decomposition. The estimated content of organic matter is expressed as a percentage, by weight, of the soil material that is less than 2 millimeters in diameter. The content of organic matter in a soil can be maintained by returning crop residue to the soil. Organic matter has a positive effect on available water capacity, water infiltration, soil organism activity, and tilth. It is a source of nitrogen and other nutrients for crops and soil organisms. An irregular distribution of organic carbon with depth may indicate different episodes of soil deposition or soil formation. Soils that are very high in organic matter have poor engineering properties and subside upon drying. For each soil layer, this attribute is actually recorded as three separate values in the database. A low value and a high value indicate the range of this attribute for the soil component. A "representative" value indicates the expected value of this attribute for the component. For this soil property, only the representative value is used.
- Type
- Geospatial Dataset
- Authors
- National Park Service: Thomas Colson
- Date of Issue
- 2015-01-17
- Units
- GRSM
- Keywords
- APHN, Appalachian Highlands Network, Blockhouse TN, Blount County, Bryson City NC, Bunches Bald NC, Cades Cove TN, Calderwood TN, Clingmans Dome NC, Cocke County, Cove Creek Gap NC, Dellwood NC, Environment, Fines Creek NC, Fontana Dam NC, Gatlinburg TN, Graham County, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, GRSM, Hartford TN, Haywood County, Jones Cove TN, Kinzel Springs TN, Luftee Knob NC, Mount Guyot TN, Mount Le Conte TN, National Standards for Spatial Digital Accuracy (NSSDA), Natural Resource Inventory And Monitoring Program, NC, Noland Creek NC, None, North Carolina, NRIM, Organic Matter, Pigeon Forge TN, Richardson Cove TN, SERO, Sevier County, Silers Bald NC, Smokemont NC, Soil Survey, Soil Survey Geographic, Soils, Southeast Region, SSURGO, Swain County, Tallassee TN, Tapoco NC, Tennessee, Thunderhead Mountain NC, TN, Tuskeegee NC, U.S., United States, US, USA, Waterville TN, Wear Cove TN, Whittier NC
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Geology and Soils | Soil Quality | Soil Function and Dynamics