Soil Quiz – Cultivating Connections

How well do you know Healthy Soil?

Take our quick 12-question quiz to find out and maybe discover something new along the way!

A single teaspoon of living and healthy soil can contain how many microorganisms (tiny living things)?

Deselect Answer

Around 100

Around 10,000

Billions - more than there are people on Earth

Why might digging up a garden bed every year actually do more harm than good?

Deselect Answer

It brings weed seeds to the surface, where they are more likely to grow

It breaks apart the fungal threads and tunnels that soil life relies on to move and feed

It makes the soil too loose, so rain washes nutrients away faster

What is 'organic matter' in soil?

Deselect Answer

Any living or once-living material in the soil, such as decomposed plants, animals, and microbes

The mineral particles, like sand and clay, that make up the bulk of the soil

Fertiliser that has been added to the soil to help plants grow

If healthy topsoil is destroyed, roughly how long would nature need to rebuild just 1cm of it?

Deselect Answer

About 1,000 years or more

About 10 years

About 100–200 years

Why might a gardener leave fallen leaves on a flower bed instead of raking them away?

Deselect Answer

Leaves attract birds, which then eat any insects that might damage the plants

As the leaves break down, they protect the soil and slowly feed the organisms living in it

A layer of leaves reflects sunlight, helping plants underneath stay cooler in summer

What is the main reason earthworms are good for soil?

Deselect Answer

Their tunnels let air and water reach plant roots, and their waste adds nutrients

They eat the roots of weeds, stopping them from spreading

They keep the soil cool in summer by burrowing deep underground

What is compost actually made from?

Deselect Answer

Chemicals that are mixed with soil to make plants grow faster

A mix of sand and clay collected from riverbanks

Food scraps and garden waste, broken down by tiny organisms into a rich material for soil

Why is organic matter in soil important for reducing the impact of climate change?

Deselect Answer

It reflects sunlight away from the earth's surface, which has a cooling effect

As it breaks down, it releases greenhouse gases, which speeds up climate change

It stores carbon in the ground, helping to take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere

Why does healthy soil help reduce flooding after heavy rain?

Deselect Answer

It turns rainwater into vapour more quickly than concrete or paved surfaces do

It contains tiny air pockets that pop and release pressure when it rains

It can soak up and hold a lot of water, like a sponge, rather than letting it run straight off

Besides water, what is the main thing plant roots take in from the soil?

Deselect Answer

Nutrients and minerals that help build new leaves, stems, and roots

Sunlight that has been absorbed and stored by the soil during the day

Oxygen, which they breathe in a similar way to animals

Why might vegetables grown in healthy, living soil sometimes be better for us than those grown in poor soil?

Deselect Answer

They may contain a wider range of vitamins and minerals, taken up from a more biologically active soil

They tend to grow larger, so each vegetable contains more vitamins overall

They ripen more slowly, which gives them time to develop more flavour

What does "rotating crops" mean in a vegetable garden?

Deselect Answer

Growing a different type of vegetable in a spot each year instead of the same one repeatedly

Moving pots and containers around the garden to follow the sun through the seasons

Turning each plant slightly every few days so it grows evenly on all sides

How well do you know Healthy Soil?

Take our quick 12-question quiz to find out and maybe discover something new along the way!

Well done for completing the quiz!

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