How To Identify Soil Types
If you have decided to go the green way, then the best way to start is to have your own organic garden, where you can grow pure and healthy vegetables. Your own vegetable garden has enormous benefits, the most important of which is the excellent effect it can have on your health. However, in order to plan your garden, you have to consider a couple of things and the most pressing is to know the soil type. Unless you do that, you won’t know the type of vegetables that you can grow in your garden and also if the soil is rich enough to provide nutrition to the plants. When you know how to identify the type of soil then only you can improve upon its condition. Identifying soil is no rocket science as the main ingredients of the soil are clay, silt, and sand. You only need to identify their proportions to determine their type. Once you have identified the soil type you can go about planting your organic vegetable garden. To know more, read the article given below on how you can identify the types of soil given below.
- First, note the color of the soil. The soil color can give you an idea of the organic matter of the soil, the biotic activity, and the fertility.
- To judge the color, dig a hole 4 inches deep, and gauge the color before it dries out.
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Condition
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Color
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Dark
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Moderately Dark
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Light
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Organic matter
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high
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medium
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low
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Erosion factor
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low
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medium
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high
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Aeration
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high
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medium
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low
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Nitrogen
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high
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medium
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low
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Fertility
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high
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medium
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low
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- A densely compacted soil does not allow the air to circulate and also absorbs little water. In densely compacted soil, there is less plant growth.
- Loosely compacted soil absorbs water and so is more productive.
- You can check the compaction of the soil by measuring the water infiltration.
- Different types of soil have varying amounts of moisture depending on the climate and organic matter on the soil.
- You can have an imprecise estimate of the soil moisture.
- The soil that has more moisture is more fertile.
- Organic matter in the soil can be determined by ignition.
- Take a soil sample and oven dry it to remove the moisture.
- Now weigh a covered container and place 10 grams of the soil sample in it.
- Cover the container and then weigh it along with the soil sample.
- Now, place the container in a stand and heat it with a propane torch allowing the fumes to escape. After the gases escape, heat the soil sample strongly until there are no fumes.
- After cooling, weigh and calculate the percentage of the organic material. You can calculate it by deducting the weight of the heated soil from the weight of the soil sample.
- A pH paper is very good in determining the pH of the soil.
- Put a small amount of water on the soil and then touch the pH paper to the sample. Then match the color of the paper to the pH color chart.
- A pH scale of seven is neutral. If it is less than seven then it is acidic and if is more, then it is basic.
- Most plants can grow in a soil pH of 6 to 6.5.
- The type of soil can be effectively determined by the texture.
- Sandy soil is porous with more space between soil particles.
- Loam soil is loose and porous but it can hold a little water.
- Clay soil is dense.