Properties of soil

Properties of Soil

Case studies explaining the various properties of soil in more detail.

Before we can protect or manage soil, we need to describe it. The case studies here explain what soil is, how pH affects plant growth, the composition of soils across England and Wales, the nature of eroded sediments, soil texture and type, how soils form over time and what a soil profile reveals about a site's history.

Soil properties — colour, structure, mineral content, organic matter and moisture — determine how land behaves under cultivation, during rainfall and when built upon. Two neighbouring fields may look similar on the surface yet differ greatly once a profile is examined.

These topics provide the building blocks for much of the rest of Soil-Net. Whether you are investigating a garden plot or a national survey, understanding basic soil properties is the first step towards reading the landscape with an informed eye.