Soil Texture and Ciliate Observation
November 16, 2018
Soil Texture and Ciliate Observation:
The purpose of this lab was to determine soil texture of the soil collected earlier this semester around campus. This was also the last time to
Description: Soil Sedimentation Test
- Take the soil collected earlier this semester.
- Put 4 mL of it in a falcon tube.
- Put 6 mL of water in the falcon tube.
- Put one drop of a dispersing agent into the falcon tube.
- Shake until muddy and mixed enough.
- Measure in cm each level of sediment (sand, clay, silt).
- Find the percentage by dividing the number of cm of one of the three by the number of cm for all three.
- Label everything and record measurements.
Soil Texture Measurement:
- Find the tube that was prepared in an earlier lab
- Measure the height of the sediment layers with differing densities in the tube in cm
- Calculate the percentages of each layer out of the whole
- Use the soil texture spectrum to make conclusions about which type of soil the sample
Description: Observation of Ciliates:
- Using the dissecting microscope, place the petri dish with wet soil under the lens.
- Move the soil to the outskirts of the dish and look for ciliates in the center of the dish in the water.
- Once ciliates are found, use a pipette and place a drop on a concave microscope slide with a cover slip.
- Observe this under the compound microscope and look for ciliates.
- If any are found, take pictures and/or videos.
Data:
Sand: 40.9%
Clay: 9.1%
Silt: 50%
The Soil Texture for my soil is on the line between silt loam and loam.
Next Steps:
The next steps would be to use this information to put together a presentation discussing ciliates found in the soil on campus.