Prerequisites:
PBIO 115 & CHEM 122 or 152
Taught Spring Quarter
Instructor:
Jared L. DeForest
Lecture: MW 10 to 11:30 Porter 417
Laboratory: TH 3 to 5 Porter 304
Office Hours: M from 11:30 to 12
Phone: 593-0742
(blackboard entrance)
We will have two Saturday field trips on April 5 (describing soils) and
April 26 (northern field trip).
In this course, you will learn the ecological significance of soil biotic and abiotic properties mediating plant community composition and ecosystem function. Emphasis will be placed on the role of soils in long-term ecosystem sustainability in response to human impacts such as clear-cut, plowing, and acid rain. Specific goals are to examine the (1) processes of soil formation and development; (2) relationships among the physical, chemical, and biological properties of soils and their impacts on soil fertility and function; (3) linkages between soil microorganism and their biotic and abiotic environment; (4) impact of human activities altering soil sustainability.
In
the lab section you will develop applied field and laboratory 'bench'
skills. In the field you will learn how to describe soils and field
analysis. You will describe soils in four different ecosystems in
southern and northern Ohio. In the laboratory you will analyze the
soils you collect to evaluate soil quality, fertility, function, and
biological activity.