This is the third of a series of blog posts where I will describe some of the interesting features of each of the 12 soil orders in Soil Taxonomy – the soil classification system developed for the US by the United States Department of Agriculture. Each order will be “profiled” (forgive the bad soils pun)Continue reading “The Soil Orders – Spodosols”
Category Archives: Terminology
Sizing Up Soil Structure
Today’s post will focus on soil structure. Previously, soil texture was defined as the relative proportion of soil particles (sand, silt, and clay). Soil structure is the arrangement of those soil particles into aggregates, or peds. Soil structure is important because it has a direct impact on many soil physical properties, but especially on theContinue reading “Sizing Up Soil Structure”
Getting a Feel for Soil Texture
One of the most important characteristics of soils is soil texture. Soil, by definition, consists of particles less than 2 mm in diameter. Soil texture is the proportion of sand, silt, and clay particles that are of soil size (2 mm or less). The US Department of Agriculture classifies soil particle sizes as the following: sandContinue reading “Getting a Feel for Soil Texture”
The Soil Orders – Gelisols
This is the first of a series of blog posts where I will describe some of the interesting features of each of the 12 soil orders in Soil Taxonomy – the soil classification system developed for the US by the United States Department of Agriculture. Each order will be “profiled” (forgive the bad soils pun)Continue reading “The Soil Orders – Gelisols”
The Art of Soil Color
Soils from around the world differ greatly. One reason for that is color, as evidenced in the header of this website. Colors were first standardized by Professor Albert H. Munsell on a system with three components: hue, value, and chroma. It was standardized primarily for industry. As an example, the orange thread used in theContinue reading “The Art of Soil Color”
A Spade is a Spade… or Sharp Shooter
I’ve been in grad school at NC State for almost 4 straight years now. Ever since I’ve arrived in North Carolina, I’ve thought that the use of the word “sharp shooter” to describe a tile spade (what I’ve always refferred to as a spade; see picture on right) has been kind of weird. I neverContinue reading “A Spade is a Spade… or Sharp Shooter”
“Soil” vs. “Dirt”
As a soil scientist I often hear non-soil scientists refer to soil as “dirt”, or people even ask me if there’s a difference. In my mind there is. The simple difference is this: “dirt is soil where it’s not supposed to be”. For example, if your dog goes outside and plays in your backyard, he’llContinue reading ““Soil” vs. “Dirt””
Colby Digs Soil 