precipitation: all the forms of water that fall to earth; rain, snow hail, sleet, fog,mist,drizzle, and the measured amounts of each
rain shadow : Dry region on the leeward side of a mountain range resulting from a reduction in rainfall
Runoff: the draining away of water
Soil: soil is the medium for plant growth; the principle factor controlling the fate of water in terrestrial environments; natures recycling systems, which breaks down the waste products of plants and animals and transforms them into their basic elements; and a habitat to diversely of animal life from small mammals to countless forms of microbial life
short day plant: flowers only after being exposed to light periods shorter than a certain length early spring or fall
soil horizon:major zone or layer of soil, with its own particular structure and characteristics
surface tension: Elastic film across the surface of a liquid, caused by the attractive forces between molecules at the surface of the liquid
Temperature: measure of the average speed or kinetic energy of atoms and molecules in a substance
trade winds: Tropical easterly winds that blow in a steady direction from the subtropical high-pressure areas to the equatorial low pressure areas between the latitudes 30 and 40 north and south. Generally northeasterly in the northern hemisphere & southeasterly in the southern hemisphere transpiration: Loss of water vapor from a plant to the outside atmosphere
Weathering: physical and chemical breakdown of rock and its components at and below Earth’s surfaces
water cycle: movement of water between atmosphere and earth by the way of precipitation and evaporation
Weather:combination of temp, humidity,precipitation, wind, cloudiness, & other atmospheric conditions at specific time & place.
Westerlies: dominant east to west motion of the winds centered over the middle latitudes of both hemispheres
Andisols: volcanic parent material not highly weathered upper layers dark colored low bulk density
Aridisols: very dry environments low in oganic matter high in base content prone to the process of salinization
Entisols: immature soils that lack vertical development of horizons associated with recently deposited sediments
Histosols: high content of organic matter formed in areas with poor drainage bog and muck soils
Mollisols: surface horitzons dark brown to black with soft consistency rich in bases soils of semi humid regions prone to the process of calcifications
Oxisols: highly weathered soils with nearly featureless profile red yellow or gray rich in kalolinate iron dioxides and often humus in tropics and subtropics
Ultisols: intensely leached storng clay translocation low base content humid warm climate formed by process of laterization
pH influences the availability of nutrients and restricts the environment of organisms sensitive to acid situations