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2.1: Soil Physical Properties

  • Page ID
    15258
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     1. Use the soil textural triangle to determine the textural class of the following soil samples:

    a. % Sand = 40, % Silt = 30, % Clay = 30        _______________________________

    b. % Sand = 10, % Silt = 55, % Clay = 35        _______________________________

    c. % Sand = 50, % Silt = 25, % Clay = 25        _______________________________

    d. % Sand = 25, % Silt = 30, % Clay = 45        _______________________________

    e. % Sand = 37, % Silt = 40, % Clay = 23        _______________________________

     2. What affect does organic matter have on soil color?

     

     

     

     3. What are redoximorphic features? What does gley mean?

     

     

     

     4. Why is soil texture important?

     

     

     

     5. What is the equation for Stoke’s Law? Define all the variables and explain how this equation is useful for determining soil texture.

     

     

     

     6. Assume you plan on purchasing a farm (either Farm A or B) after graduation. Farm A is dominated by sandy loams and loamy sands, while Farm B is dominated by clay loams and clays. List the potential advantages and disadvantages of each farm.

     

     

     

     7. Give five examples of “insight into other soil properties” that are derived from soil color.

     

     

     

     8. What are three main factors that influence soil color?

     

     

     

     9. What are three biological processes that influence soil structure?

     

     

     

     10. List eight different types of soil structure.

     

     

     


    This page titled 2.1: Soil Physical Properties is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Mark W. Bowen via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request.

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