Soil Types and Their Properties

Topic Content:

Types of Soil:

There are three main types of soil.

These are;

• Sandy Soil
• Loamy Soil
• Clayey Soil

Sandy Soil:

Soil is said to be sandy if the proportion of sand particles in a sample of soil is very high. The particles are mainly quartz: (SiO₂ ) and have a size of 0.02 mm – 2.0 mm (diameter).

Properties of Sandy Soil:

• It has a brownish or grey colour.
• Coarse, grained and gritty.
• Loose with large pores spaces
• Absorbs and loses water easily
• Not sticky when wet, therefore, it cannot form a cast or ribbon.
• Well aerated with low water holding capacity.
• Does not support water-logging.
• It supports leaching and is therefore low in plant nutrients.
• Because it is low in plant nutrients, it does not support crop cultivation.
• It does not support erosion.
• PercolationPercolation is the downward movement of water through soil layers due to gravity and capillary forces. More is high, capillarity is low.

Percolation in the soil is simply the movement of the water through the soil and a soil percolation test is the means to measuring this movement.
Capillarity can be measured by the speed at which water rises in the soil

Methods of Improving Sandy Soil:

1. Planting