Soil Health

Why should consumers care about soil health?

• We need healthy soil to grow food for our increasing population

• Healthy soil helps in the creation of fossil fuels

• To help prevent another Dust Bowl

• Healthy soil makes food taste better

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Which of the following are steps or practices farmers are using to improve soil health? (pick all that apply)

• Keeping the soil covered with the use of cover crops

• Tilling the soil on a yearly basis to mix things up

• Increasing biodiversity using crop rotation

• Adding fertilizer to the soil

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What types of organisms are present in a healthy soil ecosystem?

• Arthropods (bugs)

• Bacteria

• Fungi

• All the Above

What is a benefit of using cover crops?

• Increase organic matter and balance of soil organisms

• Help with soil compaction to hold in nutrients

• Keep soil warm for plants to grow

• Less insects to destroy crops

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Why should we increase carbon content and build soil organic matter?

• To increase carbon content in the atmosphere that way

• It holds the soil together during times of drought and severe weather

• It help water pass through the soil more easily

• None of the above

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What temperature do most soil organisms prefer?

• 50-60 degrees Fahrenheit

• 60-70 degrees Fahrenheit

• 70-80 degrees Fahrenheit

• 80-90 degrees Fahrenheit

How do cover crops and improved soil health relate to water quality? (Pick all that apply)

• Cover crops help trap the water so nutrients stay in the soil and don't run off

• Water goes thru the soil so it filters the water as it goes

• Rain washes away pesticides so the water is not contaminated when it goes in the soil

• If the water is filtered by healthy soil it is more beneficial for the plants

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Can soil health improvements be beneficial for all types of crops? How?

• Healthy soils have fewer pesticides that only affect our food crops

• Healthy soils provide nutrients and water to all crops

• Improving soil is only beneficial for commercial crops (those that are sold for a profit)

• All the above

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What are ways that farmers could be motivated to use cover crops and other healthy soil practices?

• education

• incentive payments

• networking

• all the above

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Why do plants excrete carbohydrates from their roots?

• Because they can't use them to grow

• They are on a Keto diet

• To feed organisms in the soil that give them nutrients

• As part of photosynthesis

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