Soil Characterization or Properties

Soil structure refers to the natural shape of groups of soil particles or aggregates (peds) in the soil. The structure affects how big the spaces will be in the soil through which roots, air, and water may move.

Soil Texture is how the soil feels and is determined by the amount of sand (2.00- 0.05 mm), silt (0.05-0.002 mm), and clay (<0.002) particles in the soil, each of which is a different size. The actual amount of sand, silt, and clay size particles in a soil sample is also called the particle size distribution.

The relative distribution of sand, silt, and clay particles determines soil texture.