soil-AnnieM-ChristinaA

=What soil holds the most water?= by Christina and Annie

The purpose of this experiment is to find what soil holds the most amount of water. The hypothesis is that clay soil will hold the most amount of water. The data supported the hypothesis. Water is held against gravity in the pores of soil. The smaller the pores, the more water a plant can hold because there are more of them. Pores fill up about half way before they reach their maximum capacity. The hypothesis was correct because clay soil has the smallest pores of the soils being tested. Sand has very little clay, so it has very few small pores. Potting soil has no clay, so it has even fewer small pores than sand.Clay soil held the most amount of water with an average of 117 milliliters of water. While sand held an average of 77 milliliters. Potting soil held the least amount, 71 milliliters, which was less than clay and sand.

When you poor the water onto the soil, make sure that the soil will not stick to the container. Those who want to do a similar experiment could use different kinds of soil such as silt soil, loamy soil, or peaty soil. They might want to test these against clay soil. This project was a good experiment because it was quick and helpful. It told us what soil to use in wet areas.