soil conditioner
- noun
- /sɔɪl kənˈdɪʃənər/
- Specialized
:
mejorador de suelo
- Traditional markets for compost products in Norway are as soil conditioners in public green areas, municipal landscaping, and cover material for landfill closures.
- soil conditioner and fertilizer
- compost as a soil conditioner
- used as a soil conditioner
Examples
-
Composting is the primary treatment option for transforming biowaste into a soil conditioner.
Academic text (1998) -
In Norway, compost products are regarded as either organic fertilizers or soil conditioners.
Academic text (1998) -
Compost is used as a soil conditioner on paddy fields.
Academic text (1998) -
Other providers are looking for additional methods to convert the residuals into fertilizer or soil conditioner with a higher economic and social value.
Academic text (2002) -
Some of the compost products are sold to tourists, and the balance is used as soil conditioner for landscaping the grounds.
Academic text (1998) -
The marketing effort got a late start in 1995 because most of the garden centers purchase compost and soil conditioners in the winter, Rutala says.
Academic text (1995) -
"We have approval from the Georgia Department of Agriculture to sell the compost as a soil conditioner and from the Department of Environmental Protection to use it as landfill cover," says Accortt.
Academic text (1999) -
Communities that face severe landfill disposal problems may prefer the mixed waste option because of its considerable waste diversion potential while placing less emphasis on potential revenue through the sale of finished soil conditioner or surplus energy.
Academic text (2001) -
Because of the lime stabilization process, the compost "is a little low on nitrogen," says Schon, which is why it is marketed as a soil conditioner (versus for fertilization).
Academic text (1999) -
To improve the soil's drainage, many gardeners use a bountiful amount of soil conditioner to enhance its structure.
How Effective
Surface Forms
Morphology
soil + conditioner
The meaning is directly compositional: 'soil' (earth) + 'conditioner' (a product that conditions or improves something), so a learner who knows 'soil' and the verb 'condition' (or the agent/instrument suffix -er) can infer it is a substance used to improve soil properties. This form of product naming is common cross-linguistically and follows regular English word-formation, so it should be immediately understandable to a B1 learner.
Etymology
The term soil conditioner comes from the idea of a 'conditioner' that makes things better, like hair conditioner making hair softer. Gardeners add a conditioner to soil to help it hold water, let air reach the roots, and make it easier for plants to grow, so the phrase means 'a substance added to improve the soil'.