The Queen City Nursery manufactures bags of potting soil from compost and topsoil. Each cubic foot of compost costs 12 cents and contains 4 pounds of sand, 3 pounds of clay, and 5 pounds of humus. Each cubic foot of topsoil costs 20 cents and contains 3 pounds of sand, 6 pounds of clay, and 12 pounds of humus. Each bag of potting soil must contain at least 12 pounds of sand, 12 pounds of clay, and 10 pounds of humus. Explain how this problem meets the conditions of a linear programming problem. Plot the constraints and identify the feasible region. Graphically or with corner points find the best combination of compost and topsoil that meets the stated conditions at the lowest cost per bag. Identify the lowest cost possible.
Anatomy of a Foot
Bones of the foot
Josiah Wedgwood, Queen's Ware dinner service (detail).
Slide fist over foot bottom.
Soil as a system
Regional differences affect soil fertility