1 / 12

Physical Properties of Soils

Physical Properties of Soils. Introduction to Agriculture. Soil Texture. Minerals in the soil come in many sizes and are generally classified as: Coarse particles - anything in the soil larger than 2 mm Fine particles - less than 2 mm SAND 2.0-0.05 mm SILT 0.05-0.002 mm

dior
Download Presentation

Physical Properties of Soils

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Physical Properties of Soils Introduction to Agriculture

  2. Soil Texture • Minerals in the soil come in many sizes and are generally classified as: • Coarse particles - anything in the soil larger than 2 mm • Fine particles - less than 2 mm • SAND 2.0-0.05 mm • SILT 0.05-0.002 mm • CLAY Less than 0.002 mm

  3. Textural Classes • Soil texture is the percentage of sand, silt and clay in the soil • Sandy Soils – 70% sand or more • Silty Soils – 80% silt or more • Clay Soils – 40% clay or more • Loam Soils – perfect mix of sand, silt and clay, most desirable for growing crops

  4. Soil Triangle • A soil triangle is a chart that shows the soil texture class based on the percentage of sand, silt and clay • How to read a soil triangle: • Must know % of at least two particle sizes • Read along lines to where two % meet • CLAY (across) → • SILT (down) ↓ • SAND (up) ↑

  5. Soil Color Black-Brown Yellow-Red White-Light Grey Bluish-Grey

  6. Soil Structure • Soil structure is the arrangement of particles in the soil • Structure affects aeration, water movement, heat transfer, and root growth • Granular is ideal for agriculture, allows for maximum pore space

  7. prismatic granular columnar blocky platy single grained massive

  8. Soil Tilth • Soil tilth is the workability of the soil based on texture, structure and some other factors • Soil moisture and compaction play a role • Often due to over-working the soil and preventing root penetration

  9. Review Questions • Name the 3 soil texture particles. Which is the largest? Which is the smallest? • What is soil texture? • What affects does soil structure have? • Define soil tilth. Why is good soil tilth important?

  10. Review Questions • Which soil type (particle) has the best drainage and density? Why? • A soil that is 20% sand, 30% silt, and 50% clay has what texture? • A soil that is 10% sand, 55% silt, and 35% clay has what texture? • A soil that is 60% sand, 10% silt, and 30% clay has what texture?

More Related