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Ingenium Canada Agriculture and Food Museum

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Try It At Home: #MySoilRecipe

Hours and Location

Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 7 days a week
Address
901 Prince of Wales Drive, Ottawa, ON
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Browse all Visitor Information for Canada Agriculture and Food Museum
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Try It At Home: #MySoilRecipe

#MySoilRecipe
Download PDF

Are all soils the same? Can you figure out the recipe for the soil in your garden?

Soil is made up of three ingredients: 1. Sand, 2. Silt and 3. Clay.

  1. Sand is made of round particles of rocks and minerals and are the largest particles in the soil. Sand is important because it creates spaces in the soil for water and air flow. If there is too much sand, though, water will drain away quickly and plants will need more water and nutrients.
  2. Silt is also made of particles of rock and mineral but these particles are smaller (less than 0.005 cm).
  3. Clay is made of tiny flat mineral particles that fit closely together. Clay is important because it helps store nutrients and water, but if there is too much clay it can make the soil hard to dig, too wet, and too cold.

The ideal garden soil recipe is made of 40% sand, 40% silt, and 20% clay. This type of soil is called loam. Loam soil is great for plants because it holds more nutrients and moisture, allows good water flow, and is easy to dig.

Here’s an easy way to discover the recipe for your garden soil!

What you will need:

  • A jar
  • A spade or spoon for digging up some soil
  • Water
  • Marker

Instructions:

  1. Choose an area in your garden and dig up some soil. Make sure to set any worms back in the ground.  Fill the jar about half full with garden soil
  2. Add water and fill nearly to the top. Tighten the lid.
  3. Shake! Shake! Shake! Do this for several minutes so that the soil and water are well mixed!
  4. Set your jar aside for a few hours. The particles will slowly separate into layers. The bottom layer is the sand, the middle layer is the silt, and the top layer is the clay. Any organic matter will float to the top.
  5. With your marker, draw lines on the jar to mark the 3 layers.
  6. Compare you jar to the chart below to find out your soil’s recipe

soilmasonjars

Share your Soil Recipes with us on Twitter @AgMuseum, Instagram @AgFoodMuseum, or Facebook @AgMuseum #MySoilRecipe

Program Details

AGRICULTURE
Canada Agriculture and Food Museum
Grade Level:
JK - Grade 12 (Ontario), Kindergarten - Secondary Cycle 2 (Quebec).
Program Location
Online
  • View all programs at the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum
  • View other programs related to Agriculture, Sciences
  • View other programs for: JK - Grade 12 (Ontario) or Kindergarten - Secondary Cycle 2 (Quebec)

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About Canada Agriculture and Food Museum

Canada Agriculture and Food Museum
Located on a national heritage site, the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum is the world’s only working farm in the heart of a capital city.
Read More about the Museum

Contact Us

Canada Agriculture and Food Museum
901 Prince of Wales Drive
Ottawa ON K2C 3K1
Canada

613-991-3044
1-866-442-4416
contact@IngeniumCanada.org
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  • Plan Your Visit
    • Health and Safety
    • Hours
    • Admission
    • Location and Directions
    • Accessibility
    • Browse All Visitor Information
    • Buy Tickets
    • Online Resources for Science at Home
    • About the Museum
  • What's On at the Museum
    • Events
    • Exhibitions
    • Spaces and Studios
  • Bookings and Rentals
    • School Programs
    • Birthday Parties
    • Summer Camps
    • Venue Rentals
    • Travelling Exhibitions
    • Virtual Field Trips
    • Group Visits
  • Educational Programs
    • School Programs
    • Host a Program
    • Virtual Field Trips
    • Program Location
      • At the Museum
      • At Your School
      • Online
      • Browse all Educational Programs
    • Popular Links
      • 3D Educational Resources
      • Online Resources for Science at Home
      • Digital Learning Kits
      • Games and Apps
      • Recipes
      • Try This Out
  • Collection and Research
    • Research Institute
    • Research Projects
    • Collection Resources
      • Ingenium Collection
      • Collection Highlights
      • Conservation and Collection Services
    • Library and Archives
      • Library and Archives Services
      • Library Catalogue
      • Digital Archives
    • Open Access
      • Ingenium APIs
      • Open Data
      • Open Documents
  • Projects and Initiatives
    • Ingenium Channel
    • Aquaculture Initiatives
    • Soil Superheroes
    • Draw with Rob Canada
    • Canola! Seeds of Innovation
    • Food for Health