Texture of Soils

Since the texture of soils affects how easily roots can penetrate the soil, how well water drains through the soil and how available air and nutrients are in the soil,  it is most important that once you have found the perfect location for your garden, you  identify its texture so that you can begin getting your soil ready for planting.

You should do this testing for soil structure as early in the spring as possible, as soon as the ground is dry enough,  so that you will have at least a month for the amendment product (especially manure) to settle in before it’s time to plant.

Your aim is to have a healthy garden soil, in other words, a soil structure which is roughly  half solid material (mineral particles and organic matter) and half pore space (occupied by water, air, living creatures and plant roots).

Three Basic Soil Textures:

Soil comes in three basic textures: heavy clay, silt, or sand.  Clay has the finest mineral particles and sand has the  coarsest.

Clay: Clay soils drain poorly or not at all and tend to crust over as it dries, blocking air and water.  When pure clay soil is extremely dry, you will hardly be able to make a dent in it even with a shovel.  When extremely wet, it becomes soggy, slippery,  and slimy looking.   It’s difficult to walk through it, for you sink a little with each step you take; the soil seems to want to keep you stuck in it.

However, clay soil is very rich; actually potato farmers prefer this type of soil (amended of course with manure) since clay soil stays moist longer than sandy soil.  The one advantage to clay soils is that because  it drains slowly,  nutrients don’t get leached out as quickly.

On the other hand because  it compacts easily,  it has very little space for air, and plant roots don’t always survive because of this lack of oxygen. Thus it is necessary to add amendments to permit more air and oxygen go get to the plant roots.

Silt:  High- silt soils tend to compact, preventing deep root penetration.

Sand:  On the opposite end of the texture spectrum is the sandy soil.   Sandy soil generally drains quickly so tends to lose nutrients quickly.

The aim is to recognize your soil texture and then choose the proper amendment so that your soil structure allows  your plant roots to get the  oxygen, water, and nutrients  conducive to lush growth.

To reiterate — soil structure refers to the texture of the soil (the way soil particles are bound together)  and to the proportion of solids and pore space.

This video will illustrate quite clearly the three different textures of soil.

Testing for Texture

Texture Test 1: Basic Test

The most basic test is to pick up a handful of moist soil, roll it into a ball, and squeeze the ball lightly.

A.  If the soil feels slippery and your fingers leave an impression in the surface, you are dealing with clay soil.

B. If the soil feels gritty and forms a loose ball when you squeeze it, there’s  significant sand content.

C. If the soil feels greasy, then you’re dealing with a high proportion of silt.

D. Finally, if the soil crumbles into large particles or is difficult to roll into a ball, it has a well-balanced texture characteristic of loam.  In that case you’ve hit pay dirt, for loamy soils are excellent for gardening.

Texture Test 2: Visually Compare

Another test which will help you determine the texture of your soil is to visually compare the proportions of sand, silt, and clay.

To do this, you first half fill an ordinary mason quart jar with your soil then add water to the top of the jar. Securely close the jar with a cover and shake until the water and the soil have become thoroughly mixed. Then set it somewhere for 24 hours.

After 24 hours, check the layers:  the sand proportion will be at the bottom, the silt will hover in the middle, and the clay will be towards the top.  By seeing what you have the most of, you can get a rough idea of whether you are dealing with mostly clay, silt, or sandy soil.

Texture Test 3: Soil Drainage Test

If you click on the article Determining Soil Drainage which is on the blog PlantsAndGardeningTips.com, you will learn a third method which was often used by seasoned gardeners. This method is a quick and sure way to determine whether you should add a lot of  compost or amendments or you can get away with only a little more to get proper drainage.  Please be patient when loading this file.  It might take time to load.

Tags:soil,soil analysis,soil information,soil structure,soil textures,soil type,soils,testing for texture,texture of soils,textures,textures of soil

Related posts

• Soil Amendments – Organic (2)
• Home Vegetable Garden Basics: Soil (0)