Soil evaporation is the process by which moisture from the soil surface is converted into vapor and released into the atmosphere. This occurs primarily due to heat from sunlight, which warms the soil and promotes the transition of water from liquid to vapor. Factors such as temperature, humidity, wind speed, and soil moisture levels influence the rate of soil evaporation. It plays a crucial role in the water cycle and affects plant water availability and soil health.
Evaporation can dehydrate the soil, leading to the loss of moisture that plants need for growth. This can result in reduced soil fertility and affect the health of plants and soil organisms. Evaporation can also lead to the accumulation of salts in the soil, impacting plant growth and soil structure.
Moisture leaves the soil through processes such as evaporation, transpiration from plant roots, and drainage. Evaporation is the direct loss of water to the atmosphere from the soil surface, while transpiration involves plants absorbing water from the soil and releasing it through their leaves. Drainage occurs when excess water moves through the soil and eventually flows out of it.
Factors that affect evaporation include temperature, humidity, wind velocity, exposed surface area, porosity of soil, grain size of soil particles, soil water content, matric potential, and sun intensity.
The process of salinization can result from irrigation and evaporation in a desert. As water evaporates, salts in the water accumulate in the soil, leading to increased soil salinity. This can eventually make the soil unsuitable for plants.
First by soil-absorption, then by evaporation and photosynthesis.
The drying of soil due to surface residue.
Evaporation during summers leads to drought. During the process of evaporation soil salts move upward making the soil more saline and alkaline, which affect the plant growth. Evaporation of water from plant's leaf (transpiration) leads to wilting if the water lost by evaporation is not compensated by the process of absorption of water by the roots.
J. Grindley has written: 'The calculation of actual evaporation and soil moisture deficit over specified catchment areas' -- subject(s): Evaporation (Meteorology), Measurement, Soil moisture
evapoation and soil infiltration.
Evaporation
The process that can result from irrigation and evaporation in a desert is soil salinization. Irrigation water can carry salts, which accumulate in the soil as the water evaporates, leading to an increase in salinity levels. This can have negative impacts on plant growth and soil fertility.
- pollution from industrial wastes - evaporation of water from irrigation systems