Upon completing this course, participants will know how to:
- texture a soil
- dig a soil pit for description and interpretation purposes
- differentiate and describe horizons
- interpret soils and landscapes for possible land uses using a basic approach
Thanks to our mentors who generously teach the course content!
Registration
Please contact prsssemail@gmail.com if you are interested in a last-minute spot.
Cost
- $100 – students
- $200 – professionals
To attend the course you must be a 2019/2020 PRSSS member (membership fees are $10 for students and $20 for professionals).
Participant Information
Accommodations and Food
For participants who requested camping accommodation, a booking has been made at Gallagher Lake in Oliver. The cost will be $40 (arriving Monday August 5, leaving Thursday August 8). As we do not have a group site, we strongly encourage the sharing of larger (i.e. 4-person) tents rather than having many smaller (i.e. 1 or 2 person) tents.
Participants are responsible for their own meals for the duration of the trip. A group dinner on Wednesday August 8 will be available for of $10.
Please bring cash for payment or e-transfer prsssemail@gmail.com in advance. Bring extra cash if you’re interested in purchasing soil books or PRSSS merchandise!
Draft Schedule
| Monday, August 5 | ||
| Evening | Campground is booked for participants to arrive in the evening | |
| Tuesday, August 6 | ||
| 8:30 am – 12:00 pm | Introductory lecture and hand-texturing exercise | |
| 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm | Lunch | |
| 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm | Soil pit 1 (vinyard, Black Sage Road) | |
| Wednesday, August 7 | ||
|
8:30 am – 12:00 pm
|
Geology/material type overview (Anarchist summit lookout Soil pit 2 (Montane Spruce zone, Mt. Baldy Road) |
|
| 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm | Lunch | |
| 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm | Soil pit 3 (Engelmann Spruce Subalpine Fir Zone, Mt. Baldy) | |
| 5:30 pm | Group dinner at the campground ($10) | |
| Thursday, August 8 | ||
| 8:30 am – 12:00 pm | Soil pit 4 (Secrest Hill Road) | |
| 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm | Lunch | |
| 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm | Soil pit 5 (White Lake Road) |
Background Materials
Before arriving at the course it would be helpful if participants were familiar with the following documents:
- BC Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks and BC Ministry of Forests – Research Branch. 1998. Soil description. In Field Manual for Describing Terrestrial Ecosystems. Land Management Handbook 25. http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/pubs/Docs/Lmh/Lmh25.htm
- Canadian System of Soil Classification (3rd Edition) http://sis.agr.gc.ca/cansis/publications/manuals/1998-cssc-ed3/cssc3_manual.pdf
- Selections from The Soil Landscapes of British Columbia on the The Interior Plateau: http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/esd/distdata/ecosystems/Soils_Reports/Soil_Landscapes_of_BC_1986.pdf
- Soils of the Okanagan and Similkameen Valleys. Report No.52 . British Columbia Soil Survey: http://sis.agr.gc.ca/cansis/publications/surveys/bc/bc52/index.html