The Biosphere Blog

Did you know there is only one substance that absolutely must be available to all living things on planet Earth? It isn’t oxygen — while that’s essential for animals and for non-photosynthetic processes within a plant, it’s a poisonous… more »

Water leaves soil in three ways: evaporation from a surface; drainage; and movement through a plant. Evaporation is due to heat, drainage is due to gravity, and movement through a plant begins with root uptake and ends with evaporation through the… more »

Are you familiar with capillary tubes, the very thin rods with very narrow bores? When placed into water, the water is pulled into and up the tube, against gravity. This is capillary action. And the narrower the bore, the higher the column of water will… more »

Water on contact with a soil’s surface may do one of three things. Depending on the geography and soil, water may continue downhill, or pool on the surface, or soak in. Water that soaks into a soil is said to infiltrate it, and it follows that it… more »

As with soil, there’s more to water when it comes to plants (and soil) than is evident at first glance. Elsewhere in this blog I’ve mentioned water secondarily and where relevant, but now it’s time to give the subject of water the… more »