In Honor of Soilduck

In honor and congratulations of SoilDuck's awesome new job (!!!) (What is it again SoiDuck? Where?), I am sharing a few fungi pics.  I took them on my vacation to Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, my yearly summer mecca.

SoilDuck really likes fungi.  I don't know much about my vacation photo subjects, except that they are decomposers, of course.  And that they are located in an area that receives an average of 40-50 inches of rain per year.  Compare that ATX's measly-peasly 30-35 inches (No, I'm not mad we're living during an exceptional drought.  Yes, I am.).

By the way, don't forget that decomposition in general increases with increasing temperature and water.  Whooh!  On to celebrating SoilDuck...

Looking good in the forest.

Near Muddy Creek Falls at the Park.
Look: moss, fungi and lichen in one pic!
Which is- Plant kingdom (moss), Fungi kingdom, and symbiosis between the two kingdoms (lichen)!

Close-up of emerging 'shroom from the 2nd pic (above).

Close-up of the other one from the 2nd pic (above).

What's this?  I don't know.

Forest floor again.

Close-up of it's gills, or lamella.

Congratulations, Professor SoilDuck!  Go forth and inspire them with your knowledge and enthusiasm!

The latest obsession (genus Pogonomyrmex)

As you read this, you can enjoy the Henry Mancini "dead ant" Pink Panther theme song (1963).  Cuz I'm old.

For further evidence that science is everywhere (insert ghosty sounding, "ooooooh!" here), I submit to you, to the best of my knowledge, a red harvester ant nest outside my classroom at Eastside Memorial.  Here we are, addressing TEKS outside my window (you know, cuz they are part of the food web).  But more importantly, it is fun to engage in my favorite step of the scientific method, Observation, and watch my new favorite Formicidae (ant family) live their lives.

  

Untitled from TheDirtOnSoil on Vimeo.

Texas A&M, the school my alternate universe self attended, says that by removing the vegetation around their nest,  the ants allow the sun to dry out and warm the soil. They dig tunnels and chambers where the workers (wingless females) store seeds, which are their main food source, along with scavenged insects. They'll eat "alfalfa, burr clover, Johnson grass, oats, wheat, Bermuda grass, wild sunflower, mesquite, beans, and others."   

That looks like a seed.  Food!

Annoyed for the sake of educating us.  Thank you, kind Ant.

Hope I didn't squeeze you too hard, but you were trying to get away!

And to quote Texas A&M, 

Populations of the horned lizard and the harvester ant, on which it predominantly feeds, have declined in the eastern part of Texas. There are several possible factors contributing to the decline of these species.

• Red imported fire ants are believed to eliminate harvester ants and prevent new colonies from forming by preying on mated queen harvester ants.

• Red imported fire ants may prey directly on lizards or on hatching eggs of lizards.

• Many insecticides used to control or eliminate the red imported fire ant are toxic to the harvester ant, and eliminate the harvester ant more efficiently than they eliminate fire ants. Broadcast applications of fire ant bait products should be avoided in areas where harvester ants are found.

• Horned lizards normally inhabit flat, open, dry country with little cover. Urbanization, mowing, shredding, shallow discing and other land use practices can eliminate or reduce the production of weed seeds on which harvester ants feed. Harvester ants and horned lizards, which are dependent upon this ant species, cannot survive in these disturbed habitats.

Mostly, they only bite when harassed, but even when I was indubitably harassing them (see above pics for proof), their tiny mandibles never got a good enough grip to hurt me (and cuz I'm totally tough).  So they aren't pests (besides aesthetic issues), AND they are food for our threatened (state-listed) Texas Horned Lizard.  If you need more, the enemy of our enemy (Red imported fire ants) is our friend.  Yay Harvester ants!

Update: Buried Seeds Turn Into Plants!

Hello, everyone!  Long time no read and write!  I've missed you.  Lots of things have happened since we last e-spoke, but not much soil-oriented stuff.  Let's catch up?

Last year on October 31rst, 2010, many of us celebrated The Halloween.  Many of us bought, if not grew, a pumpkin.  I bet you even composted it!  My readers are so responsible.  And then there is yours truly, a different kind of responsible...I thought I'd keep my uncut pumpkin as front door decoration until it started to spoil.  Almost 5 months pass by and the loyal little pumpkin, exposed to the ATX elements, gets passed by us every day as we walk through our house entrance.  Enter MARCH 2011! The little pumpkin that could, gave up.  Ew.  Stinky.

Lazy, I contract my son to help me chop up the gooey mess and bury it in place.  Cuz, like, the compost bin is ALL THE WAY around my house, IN THE BACKYARD, so far away!!!!

And then...a week later.  A little biology reminder.

I feel like I'm at the very beginning of the Neolithic Revolution.

What I find most fun about this li'l situation, is that it is as if the pumpkin knew when to rot- it is the beginning (and almost the end) of pumpkin planting season in Travis County!

In other news, my son thanked me the other day, out of the blue.
I said, "For what?"
"For trees," he said.
I guess he was talking to his other mom (ahem, Mother Nature).

What is Science?

Science isn't being bored in class while someone lectures.
Science is the learning we gain through the scientific method.


Observation Hey, look!
Question Why is it like this?
Hypothesis Well one time, at band camp, this happened, so maybe ...
Prediction it would happen the same way here.
Testing No.  Hmm.  Wonder why.  Let's try this.

And that is all in the way of learning you will get from me today.  But you wanna see something cool (Doyle, did you post about this?  I forget where I first saw it, but THANKS to who did!)?  Look at this.

Wanna read something cool? Read how they did it.

Can you imagine how much sky-watching and tinkering they'd have to do before they'd come up with that system? Quite obviously, for at least a few people, staring out into space (and actually paying attention) was the thing to do.  Sweet.

And then there is this:

•   More outer space, but also really teeny tiny stuff. You must look.

And thanks to Classic Detritus, we get beautiful art, with an explanation of some of it's scientific limitations.

 In a nutshell, in "real life," the shell they have in the movie dons't match the math they are showing.  It is still a logarithmic spiral though.  But I can't confirm, I didn't do the measurements myself.

And of course, there is one of the reasons I wrote this whole post: I found some awesome shells on Galveston Beach on New Year's Day (To my hubs, these shells seemed much more fragile this year than he remembers.  Of course, his hands don't count as a scientific instrument.  We'd need something with more accuracy and precision.  But it got us thinking.  What would make them more fragile?  What happened between last year and this one?  The BP oil spill happened.  What was that dispersant again? But maybe these are just older, more worn shells than the ones you've crushed before?  No, he says.  Well, we know CO2 makes water more acidic.  And an increase of CO2 in the atmosphere would influence the dissolved CO2 in the ocean.  And acidity "eats away" at calcium carbonate.  And if they are made of calcium carbonate...but we don't know.  We weren't using the scientific method all the way through, you see?  No testing, no researching through peer review journal articles.  But observation, paying attention, and wondering and being curious will get you pretty far, but the tedious tinkering of the dedicated and hardworking may save us all.)

You see, science is everywhere.  All we have to do is pay attention.

All I got so far in my new room.  Don't judge.  We can go from here to the scientific method, no probs.

P.S. The way that my tutor groups are divided, I only get the same kids 9 times before my gig is up.  I got 9 80-minute sessions to inspire them to consider that Science is the way, the truth, and the life, and that they should never be discouraged from challenging themselves with it's study.  No pressure, right?  Send advice, now please, thanks.

See Roots in their Natural Habitat

Dearest soil enthusiasts,


¡Feliz año nuevo!  ¿Cómo fue su celebración?

To celebrate my new science teaching jobs that I mentioned on Twitter, I'm looking around for fun soil science ideas that address our Texas HS Science learning objectives, TEKS.  I found instructions for making a root viewing box where you can make lots of fun experiments.   I hope I can muster up the motor skills to make one.  Hammer, please avoid my fingers.  Thank you.  I found instructions here (horizontally oriented) and here (vertically oriented).  Mickey over at My Wisconsin Garden made a pretty one with cedar with some nice germination results.

Vertically oriented root viewing box by the NRCS

Of course, we can use root viewing boxes to learn about tropism*, like

• positive geotropism (grow towards the source of gravity), and 
• negative light tropism (grow away form the source of light), and 
• negative thigmatropism (growing away from obstacles touching them)  (activity details for all here)

You could

• see how the roots respond to different soil textures (sand, silt, and clay), and
• varying soil moisture at depth (water it for longer or shorter time periods)

You could

• compare the root lengths of different plants, like native Texan prairie grass to conventional lawn grasses, and then 
• think about what that means for facilitating erosion (Native is better! But find out for yourself).  

You could

• do so many things!  Heh, you though you were getting more, eh?

Also, the Capital Area Master Naturalist's Education and Outreach Committee has a learning activity on root length, and you can ask them to present it to your group.  Any age.

If I make this you'll soooo get pictures, hopefully in a classroom setting, administration-willing.


HUGS.


*Definiciones:
Tropism: A response to stimuli by plants is called a tropism (source).

The Dirt on Enchanted Rock, TX

An honor to be climbing with The Prez of the Texas Invasive Plant and Pest Council and The Lady that is responsible for my love of science (and wavy hair)

So, me and some lovies went to Enchanted Rock, Texas.  It reminded me of my last trip to Enchanted Rock, wayyyy too long ago with a precious godmother, or madrina, who was visiting for a baptism circa the spring equinox.  I also have many a memory of camping here during college.  Ergo, during this hike, I was twice filled with The Love: the lovies of the present, and the lovies of the past.    I will spare you the relevant Sesame Street video, but let's all agree, climbing Enchanted Rock is fun.

What is Enchanted Rock?  It is a big granite intrusion.  It's most common minerals, I believe, are microcline, plagioclase, quartz, and biotite.  You can follow a geological tour up the hill, it's nice.

Schmanyways, obvs there are associated soil photos, but first (!!!) here is what Enchanted Rock looks like from the road.

Since Texas is unfairly known for being quite flat, this is kindof a big deal.  Look, a protuberance!

A closer peek...

We climbed to the top and had some cool views.  

Forgive me because I have lots of pictures I want to share about an obsession I didn't really know I had: plants appearing to grow out of rocks (!!!).  

People in the know are calling them vernal pools.  Vernal pool ecology is created by pioneer species: they are the first to colonize a mostly abiotic area.

I like this pic: this is a vernal pool - the first inklings of entisol soil formation.

I think  that is an oak tree.  Sorry for my photo smidge on the right.  

Looking uphill, presumably native grass.

Same area.

Some cactus.

Spatial distribution.

The top.

According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the plants and animals that live here are "uniquely adapted to a harsh environment."

In fact, by studying weather pits, ecologists learn: (1) how plants and animals colonize a newly formed habitat;  (2) how those organisms modify their environment and help develop soils; and, (3) how plant and animal community structure and composition change over time.

In other words, they are super neat.

At Enchanted Rock you can see the progressive development from bare rock-bottom pits, to annual plant establishment, to miniature prairies with grasses like little bluestem and even trees like live oak. Vernal pools also support an interesting species of invertebrate, the fairy shrimp. These tiny animals survive total desiccation as fertilized eggs, and hatch into larvae and grow into adults each time water collects after sufficient rainfall.

Since these things are super cool, and their ecosystems are so fragile, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department wants to make sure visitors are aware of their significance and asks them to back off. 

"STAY ON THE ROCK," they say.  And, 

"Thank you for protecting an important part of the Enchanted Rock experience."  

Look at the length of the root compared to the height of the above-ground portion (green leaves only).  This was on the bank of a dry creek bed.

Have a great visit!

P S.  Natural resources of Enchanted rock found here.

ATX: Your poo promotes birdwatching. Indirectly.

Birdwatching at Hornsby Bend (Photo credit: Meredith O'Reilly)

Hornsby Bend, Austin’s premier birding location, is a biosolids recycling facility.  

Say what? Your beatific contribution to the sewer system via flushing toilet travels through pipes and goes to a wastewater treatment plant. After treatment, the biosolids (or, if you want to sound like a nerd, primary and secondary waste-activated sludges) go to Hornsby Bend, where they are manipulated again ultimately composted with yard trimmings collected from Austinites to make Dillo Dirt (Read page 3 of this doc for more details on how this is done.)  The liquid waste portion of the biosolids make outdoor ponds, whose waters irrigate onsite fields.  

The birds love Hornsby Bend.  They like the ponds, the drying basins, woods and fields:

The biodiversity is present both because of the nutrient rich biosolids treatment  processes used by the facility and because of the diversity of habitats at the site stretching along 3 miles of the Colorado River. (source)

We built it, so they came, enjoyed, and returned.  And now we can go watch them. Meredith at GreatStems wrote a very nice blog post on Honsby Bend's birdwatching and history.

If you haven’t had a chance to visit Hornsby Bend's neat avian-friendly ecosystem, you should fer reals go. 

Here are some visiting tips:

Hornsby Bend Map

Location Descriptions: Where to see What

Seasonal Guide

You can go by your lonesome or join the group activities as listed on The Dirt on Soil's calendar, which include:

• A monthly bird survey every 2nd Saturday of the month @ 7am,
• Birder led "field trips" every 3rd Saturday of the month, and
• Eco-literacy day every 4th Saturday of the month @ 9am -1pm
• 3 hours of outdoor volunteer work; 1 hour of ecological education

Also, Hornsby Bend is open daily to the public from sunrise to suneset.

My favorite maggots

The adult soldier fly.  Photo credit: Rock Hill high School

Howdy neighbors!  How is your soil today!?

I need to tell you about my new favorite pet, the soldier fly larvae.  I'm being totally serious.  I worry about their health!  When I go to my compost tumbler to drop off a new gift, and see hundreds of them chewing on my food scraps, I get so relieved. Yay, they are still there!  Phew! Now that I have them, I don't know what I'll do without them.  Well, I do- I'll actually have to exert myself and turn my compost instead of just gawking at it lovingly.  Don't leave me, maggots!  I love how your efficiency enables my laziness!

 See them in their gross glory here (click play):

Look at the smiles on those happy Hermetia illucens.  That was once an avocado, by the way.

The best part about my maggots is that I pretty much do nothing to keep them around.  They are lower maintenance than chickens!!  My compost tumbler system is set up well to house them, because I can keep fresh kitchen scraps on the top of my pile, inside the tumbler, and attract the soldier flies without attracting rodents. 

Factoids about my new Friends

• Heterotrophes*, and detritivores*, these baby solider flies eat rotting things (like my kitchen scraps) like it is their mission in life.  They'll take big uncut (read: lazy compost style) chunks of whatever and turn it into homogenous poo so it can further decompose into awesome humus.  Ergo, they help me make compost faster.  A lot faster.  For example, before these guys, we called my tumbler "the preserver" since we wouldn't get but one binful of humus a year. Now I'm depositing pretty-smelling bug poo on my soil that was food just a few weeks prior.
• They are voracious and will likely  eat scraps before they have a chance to smell badly (even big compost no-nos like dairy, shhhh).
• Their poo is a nice smelling soil amendment. Mmmmm bug poo smells like actinomycetes.
• The adult soldier flies do not eat.  This means that unlike the maligned cockroach and house fly (yuk!), they don't come into your house looking for food! If they are in your house, they are lost; they don't want to be in there!  Unless you have rotting food in your house, but that is another discussion (you should clean your house *cough*).
• The flies inoculate the compost with beneficial bacteria.
• They are native.
• They don't bite or carry disease (source)!
• They outcompete houseflies for habitat, reducing your housefly population.  

Gratuitous macro lense house fly pic:  I am not a fan of this diptera (Diptera is the order that characterizes both flies).

Soldier flies have so many interesting positive attributes, that Dr. Watson and others are looking into utilizing them for large scale animal waste  management.  

Yay!!!  Tell me about the bugs in your soil that YOU are grateful for!

*Definiciones:
Autotroph: "The acquisition of metabolic energy from the fixation of inorganic carbon, for example, by photo- or chemosynthesis (source)."
Heterotroph: "An organism that depends on complex organic substances for nutrition (source)."
Detritivore: "An organism that feeds on dead organic debris (source)."

As the soil turns.

Hello dear readers! I went on a quick trip to Swallow Falls State Park in Maryland.  Swimming in the waterfall was so much fun!  I took a few pictures as I thought about the difference between rocks and soil.

There are 5 factors that work together to form soil:

1. Parent material - It can be mineral and/or organic (i.e. decomposing plants).
2. Climate -  Different environmental factors (i.e. temperature and precipitation) affect chemical and physical weathering
3. Living organisms - Among other things, they help organic matter biodegrade, and can mix soil layers/horizons into each other.  Their chemical reactions can cause chemical weathering.
4. Topography - For example, valleys accumulate soil and water, hilltops shed them.  This affects the type of soil created. 
5. Time - Neat factoid: sometimes a very chronologically old soil won't be very developed, and vice versa.

For more, there are quick explanations at NASA and the NRCS.

The Soil Science Society of America gives us a two part definition of soil. This is the first part: 

 "The unconsolidated mineral or organic material on the immediate surface of the Earth that serves as a natural medium for the growth of land plants."

Below, I'm sharing with you my pictorial exploration of a plant's contribution to soil development.

Plant pioneers.  This guy might trap tiny rock fragments or organic debris which will grow his soil pile.  To be honest though, erosion is high here.  It was on a slope.  This soil might not develop further.

These guys have a small part in a very big process.  I imagine their roots will help make this crack a little bigger, making it able to hold even more soil, allowing even bigger plants to grow here in the future.

Growing sideways out of a crack between two rock layers.  Not much opportunity for soil development here, but don't tell her!

This shrub (tree?) has chutzpah.  It looks like it is growing out of the rock.

It looks like these guys are the furthest along in helping to develop soil, but they still have a looooong way to go!  When these plants die, they will contribute organic matter to the soil for new plants.  

Even if these little bits of soil are chronological Methuselahs, environmental factors prevent them from developing horizons.  Mayhaps erosion rates are faster than the rate of soil development.  If so, the soil would be characterized as an Entisol.  Entisols are the youngest (meaning least developed) of the 12 soil orders. 


And let's end on a lithologic music note...

I am a rock. I am an island!