NATURE’S SOIL-CONSERVING OPERATIONS 179 
Study 23. Observations on Leaf-mold and Woodland Soil 
For this study, digging tools of some sort for individual use 
should be provided; light brick-layers’ hammers will do. 
Vials or other containers, in which to keep specimens pending 
identification, will also be useful. 
The program of work will consist of: 
1. Uncovering the soil in a leaf-bed in the woods, noting 
the materials of its composition and their condition at differ- 
ent depths; also its population, as evidenced by the presence 
of some animals and the “‘signs’’ :of others. 
2. Digging two holes down into the subsoil, one in the 
woods and the other in the open field, carefully noting the 
color condition and contents of the strata encountered. 
3. Observing the agencies concerned in the mixing of the 
soil in the woods. 
The record of this study will consist of: 
1. Notes on the leaf-bed as to: 
(a). Its components and their state of preservation. 
(b). Its population and the relative size and abun- 
dance of its resident organisms. 
2. Comparative diagrams of vertical soil-sections in woods 
and in field, with notes on such differences as the diagrams do 
not show. 
3. Diagrams of soil disturbance: 
(a). At the mouth of an animal’s burrow (section). 
(b). At the root of an overturned tree. 
