Practice Flashcards
Flip to reveal answersWhat is contour ploughing and how does it reduce erosion?
Track your progress — Sign up free to save your progress and get smart review reminders based on spaced repetition.
All 10 Flashcards — Soil conservation methods
Sign up free to track progress and get spaced-repetition review schedules.
Question
What is contour ploughing and how does it reduce erosion?
Answer
Ploughing along the contour lines of a slope slows runoff, increases infiltration, and reduces soil being washed downhill.
💡 Hint
Across slope, not up/down.
Question
Name three erosion-prevention methods.
Answer
Contour ploughing, terracing, and windbreaks (also cover crops, mulching, no-till).
💡 Hint
Slow wind/water.
Question
How do cover crops help conserve soil?
Answer
They protect bare soil from rainfall impact and wind, reduce erosion, and add organic matter when incorporated or decomposed.
💡 Hint
Protect soil between seasons.
Question
Name three fertility-maintenance methods.
Answer
Crop rotation, intercropping, and composting/green manures (also nitrogen-fixing legumes).
💡 Hint
Nutrients + structure.
Question
Explain how no-till farming can reduce soil degradation.
Answer
No-till keeps soil structure intact and leaves residues on the surface, reducing erosion and improving organic matter and water retention.
💡 Hint
Do not plough.
Question
How do windbreaks reduce soil erosion?
Answer
They reduce wind speed at the surface, lowering the ability of wind to pick up and transport soil particles.
💡 Hint
Reduce wind speed.
Question
Why is explaining the mechanism important in soil conservation exam answers?
Answer
Because marks are awarded for how the method works (how it reduces erosion or improves fertility), not just naming it.
💡 Hint
Explain how, not just what.
Question
How does crop rotation maintain soil fertility?
Answer
Different crops use different nutrients, rotations break pest/disease cycles, and legumes can add nitrogen through fixation, improving fertility.
💡 Hint
Rotation benefits list.
Question
Give two methods used to restore degraded soil.
Answer
Add organic matter (compost/manure/biochar) and adjust chemistry/structure (liming for acidity, gypsum for sodic soils), plus reforestation or fallow periods.
💡 Hint
Restoration methods.
Question
Why is “prevention better than restoration” especially true for soil?
Answer
Because soil forms extremely slowly, while erosion and degradation can remove fertile topsoil quickly.
💡 Hint
Slow to form.
Read the notes
Full study notes for Soil conservation methods
Topic 5.2 hub
Agriculture and food
More from Topic 5.2
All flashcards in this topic
ESS exam skills
Paper structures & tips
Track your progress with spaced repetition
Sign up free — Aimnova tells you exactly which cards to review and when, so you remember everything before your IB exam.
Start Free