Dirt or soil?

Sheal

Well-known member
Location
Ross-shire Scotland
Hardiness zone
8a
I've been having a debate with my daughter who lives in Canada. In both Canada and America what we British refer to as soil (not to be confused with compost) is called dirt. She of course is adamant that it's dirt, but my argument is that dirt is something messy we get on hands or clothes for example. However, something that is soiled can be referred to the same way.

What are your thoughts on this? Should we give garden dirt/soil a completely different name to cover both ways of reference and use dirt/soil only for something that needs to be cleaned?
 
It's one of those words that didn't cross the Atlantic or changed it's meaning when it got there.

Mind you, we use soil to mean dirty as well, as in soiling your underpants :eek:😁

We could use the word humus, although that's really the organic components that get mixed with soil (soil being broken down minerals/rocks.)

It's an interesting one as soils vary depending on what their origins are, clay soils, glacial soils, chalk and sand. Peat that forms in lowland bogs and in mountain lakes.

Those are just ones I thought of off the top of my head, I'm sure the members will come up with a few more too :)
 
You make an interesting point about the distinction between "dirt" and "soil." In everyday language, "dirt" is often used to describe something unclean or messy, like the stuff we get on our clothes or hands. "Soil," on the other hand, is more specific and refers to the natural resource that supports plant life.

In gardening and agriculture, "soil" is the term most commonly used because it emphasizes its role in plant growth and its composition. In contrast, "dirt" can carry a negative connotation of being unwanted or out of place.
Spot on @EvaMorison, and welcome to the forum. It would be really useful if you could update your profile so that we can see where you are. It's a good easy way to understand your climate better for starters, and helps when we may want to answer a question. We are a bit multi-national. 😊
 
Welcome to the forum @EvaMorison :)

Not quite the same subject but many years ago I drew a cartoon called Underground Antelopes. Just the horns of the antelopes poking out of the ground with a trail of soil behind them.

The American cartoonist Gary Larson drew a similar cartoon at the same time called "Dirt Buffalos"

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