WHAT IS SOIL?
From a general perspective, “soil” is a very broad term and refers to the loose layer of earth that
covers the surface of the planet. The soil is the part of the earth’s surface, which includes disintegrated
rock, humus, inorganic and organic materials. For soil to form from rocks, it takes an average of 500
years or more. The soil is usually formed when rocks break up into their constituent parts. When a
range of different forces acts on the rocks, they break into smaller parts to form the soil. These forces
also include the impact of wind, water, and salts’ reaction.
There are three stages of soil:
● Solid soil
● Soil with air in the pores
● Soil with water in the pores
Various types of soil undergo diverse environmental pressures. Soil is mainly classified by its texture,
proportions and different forms of organic and mineral compositions.
Stated by the The United States Department of Agriculture the definition of the twelve major soil
texture classifications ( sand, loamy sand, sandy loam, loam, silt loam, silt, sandy clay loam, clay
loam, silty clay loam, sandy clay, silty clay, and clay). Soil textures are classified by the fractions of
sand, silt, and clay in a soil. Classifications are typically named for the primary constituent particle
size or a combination of the most abundant particle sizes (e.g. sandy clay, silty clay). Loams are soils
having roughly equal proportions of sand, silt, and/or clay in a soil sample.
Texture affects many soil properties, such as infiltration, structure,
porosity, water holding capacity, and [Link] soil texture
triangle is based on grain size, that is the distribution of sand, silt, and
clay in a soil.
The inorganic material in soil is called mineral matter. Mineral matter
began as rock that was weathered into small particles. Most soils have
different sizes of mineral particles. These particles are labeled sand,
silt, or clay, based on their size. Sand is the largest of the mineral
particles. Sand particles create large pore spaces that improve
aeration. Water flows through the large pore spaces quickly. Soils with
a high percentage of sand are generally well drained. Sandy soils lack
the ability to hold nutrients and are not fertile. Sandy soils also feel gritty to the touch.
DIFFERENT TYPES OF SOILS
● Sandy soil
The first type of soil is sand. It consists of small particles of weathered rock. Sandy soils are one of
the poorest types of soil for growing plants because it has very low nutrients and poor water holding
capacity, which makes it hard for the plant’s roots to absorb water. This type of soil is very good for
the drainage system. Sandy soil is usually formed by the breakdown or fragmentation of rocks like
granite, limestone and quartz.
● Clay Soil
Clay is the smallest particle among the other two types of soil. The particles in this soil are tightly
packed together with each other with very little or no airspace. This soil has very good water storage
qualities and makes it hard for moisture and air to penetrate into it. It is very sticky to the touch when
wet but smooth when dried. Clay is the densest and heaviest type of soil which does not drain well or
provide space for plant roots to flourish.
● Silt Soil
Silt, which is known to have much smaller particles compared to sandy soil and is made up of rock
and other mineral particles, which are smaller than sand and larger than clay. It is the smooth and fine
quality of the soil that holds water better than sand. Silt is easily transported by moving currents and
it is mainly found near the river, lakes and other water bodies. The silt soil is more fertile compared to
the other three types of soil. Therefore, it is also used in agricultural practices to improve soil fertility.
● Peat Soil
Peat soil refers to a type of soil that is formed through the accumulation and decomposition of organic
materials under waterlogged conditions with a lack of oxygen. It has a high organic content, typically
above 75%, and exhibits a dark brown to black color with a spongy consistency.
● Loamy Soil
Loam is the fourth type of soil. It is a combination of sand, silt and clay such that the beneficial
properties of each are included. For instance, it has the ability to retain moisture and nutrients; hence,
it is more suitable for farming. This soil is also referred to as agricultural soil as it includes an
equilibrium of all three types of soil materials, being sandy, clay, and silt, and it also happens to have
humus. Apart from these, it also has higher calcium and pH levels because of its inorganic origins.
● Chalk Soil
Chalky soils are derived from chalk or limestone and, as a result, are alkaline in nature. Suitable plants
need to be able to tolerate these alkaline conditions. Chalky soils can be very variable, from solid,
pure chalk or limestone, to gravelly to good, deep, alkaline clay soils. They may contain large
numbers of flints and large stones, and even good chalky soils can contain lumps of chalk or
limestone of varying sizes. The actual topsoil depth may be shallow, and soils without clay may be
very free draining and lack nutrients, resulting in a dry, impoverished soil.
SOIL TYPE COMPARISON AND LOCATION
Soil Type Feel Composition Location Pictures
Sand Gritty Weathered rock Desert, beaches,
riverbeds
Example:
Southern Africa
(Kalahari Desert)
Clay Sticky Small Particles Various
adhering to each
other Example:
Fortune,
Marikina City,
and Pasig City
Silt Crumbly-slippery Medium-sized Sediment in
like flour mineral particles riverbeds
Example: Nile
and Niger River
deltas
Peat Compressible Decaying organic Bogs, areas
material where water is
retained by
organic matter
failing to
decompose
Example: Alder
forests, Europe
Loam Loose Sand, silt, and Various
clay mixture
Example: Sharon
Farm, Quezon
City
Chalk Various colors, Alkaline (basic) Below the topsoil
white to brown soil with mineral
stones Example: South
Downs, Chiltern
Hills, and
Salisbury Plain in
the UK
THE TWELVE SOIL ORDERS
● Alfisols are moderately leached soils that have relatively high native fertility. These soils have
mainly formed under forest and have a subsurface horizon in which clays have accumulated.
● Andisols (from Japanese ando, "black soil") are soils that have formed in volcanic ash or
other volcanic ejecta. They differ from those of other orders in that they typically are
dominated by glass and short-range-order colloidal weathering products such as allophane,
imogolite and ferrihydrite.
● Aridisols (from Latin aridus, "dry") are CaCO3-containing soils of arid regions that exhibit
subsurface horizon development. They are characterized by being dry most of the year and
limited leaching.
● Entisols are soils of recent origin. The central concept is soils developed in unconsolidated
parent material with usually no genetic horizons except an A horizon.
● Gelisols (from Latin gelare, "to freeze") are soils of very cold climates that contain permafrost
within two meters of the surface.
● Histosols (from Greek histos, "tissue") are soils that are composed mainly of organic
materials. They contain at least 20-30% organic matter by weight and are more than 40 cm
thick.
● Inceptisols (from Latin inceptum, "beginning") are soils that exhibit minimal horizon
development. They are more developed than Entisols, but still lack the features that are
characteristic of other soil orders.
● Mollisols (from Latin mollis, "soft") are the soils of grassland ecosystems. They are
characterized by a thick, dark surface horizon. This fertile surface horizon, known as a mollic
epipedon, results from the long-term addition of organic materials derived from plant roots.
● Oxisols (from French oxide, "oxide") are very highly weathered soils that are found primarily
in the intertropical regions of the world.
● Spodosols (from Greek spodos, "wood ash") are acid soils characterized by a subsurface
accumulation of humus that is complexed with Al and Fe.
● Ultisols (from Latin ultimus, "last") are strongly leached, acid forest soils with relatively low
native fertility. They are found primarily in humid temperate and tropical areas of the world,
typically on older, stable landscapes.
● Vertisols (from Latin verto, "turn") are clay-rich soils that shrink and swell with changes in
moisture content. During dry periods, the soil volume shrinks and deep wide cracks form.