Spring 2020

Env 107L

Soil Texture, Colour and Porosity

 Soil Texture
• The soil is composed of small particles. These small particles are weathering
(Weathering describes the breaking down or dissolving of rocks and minerals on the
surface of the Earth) product of massive rocks of different minerals. Soil particles
vary in size, shape and chemical composition. Some are so small that they can be
seen only with a microscope.
• Three categories for soil particles have been established — sand, silt and clay. These
three groups are called soil separates.

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Texture

Sand
•Exhibit little plasticity and cannot retain large
amounts of water or nutrients.
•They have large voids between the particles
and can readily transport water and air.
Texture
Silt
•The properties of silt are intermediate between
sand and clay.
•Silty soils can retain large amounts of water
but tend to have moderately slow permeability
(Soil permeability is the property of the soil to
transmit water and air).
•Soils high in silt can present problems for
engineers since they will shift under stress and
slide and flow when wet.
Texture
Clays
•Clays exert a great influence on soil chemical
and physical properties.
•Clay particles are chemically active and the
proportion of clay-sized particles greatly
influences soil physical properties, including
aggregation, porosity, water movement and
storage, aeration and workability of the soil.
 Soil texture analysis
• The three groups are divided by their particle size. 
• Clay particles are the smallest
• Sand particles are the largest.
• In comparison to spheres we know and understand, a sand particle may be
equivalent to a basketball; a silt particle to a golf ball; and a clay particle to the
head of a pin.

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 Soil texture analysis (contd..)
• For example, if most particles are large and coarse the soil is called sand. It
looks and feels sandy.
• A silt soil is dominated by medium-sized particles and feels like flour.
• Small-sized soil particles primarily make up a clay soil which feels slippery or
greasy when wet. The laboratory procedure used to identify soil separates is
known as mechanical analysis.

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Soil texture analysis (contd..)
• A textural triangle can be used to determine soil textural class from the results
of a mechanical analysis
•  Often 100 units of soil are used in the analysis, so that the sum of the
weights of the three soil separates total 100 and can be easily converted to
percentages. The textural triangle represents all possible combinations of
soil separates.

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 Soil texture analysis (contd..)
Diameter limits (mm) Diameter limits (mm)
Name of soil separate
(USDA classification) (other classification)

Clay less than 0.002 less than 0.002

Silt 0.002 – 0.05 0.002 – 0.063

Very fine sand 0.05 – 0.10 0.063 – 0.125

Fine sand 0.10 – 0.25 0.125 – 0.20

Medium sand 0.25 – 0.50 0.20 – 0.63

Coarse sand 0.50 – 1.00 0.63 – 1.25

Very coarse sand 1.00 – 2.00 1.25 – 2.00

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 Soil texture analysis (contd..)
A sample on the triangle that is 70% sand, 15% clay, and 15% silt

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 Soil texture analysis (contd..)
• The three sides of the textural triangle represent increasing or decreasing
percentages of sand, silt and clay particles.
• The textural triangle is easy to use once it is understood.
• Assume that you have a soil that is 60 percent clay, 20 percent silt and 20 percent
sand. The percent of clay is identified on the left side of the triangle. From the lower
left corner to the top of the triangle, the percent clay increases from 0 to 100
percent. Move along the left side of the triangle until you reach 60 percent clay.
Then draw a line at 60 percent clay that is parallel to the bottom of the triangle. The
percent silt is identified along the right side of the triangle. From the top of the
triangle to the lower right, the percent silt increases from 0 percent to 100 percent.
Move along the right side of the triangle until you reach 20 percent silt. Now draw a
line at 20 percent silt that is parallel to the left side of the triangle. The bottom of the
triangle identifies the percent sand. From the lower right corner to the lower left
corner, the percent sand increases from 0 percent to 100 percent. Move along the
bottom of the triangle until you reach 20 percent sand. Draw a line at 20 percent
sand that is parallel to the right side of the triangle. The point at which these three
lines intersect will define the soil’s texture.

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 Soil Color
• Organic matter (humus), manganese and iron are the primary coloring agents
in soil.
• The dark color of many productive soils is due to organic matter. The dark soil color
from organic matter at the soil surface aids in the absorption of heat from sunlight
to warm the soil.
• Soil shades of red, yellow and gray are due to the amount and chemical form of
iron and manganese present. Red soils contain oxidized iron. Oxidized iron is also
observed on metal objects that have been exposed to the atmosphere. We call it
rust. Yellow soils contain hydrated iron.
• Gray soils indicate chemical reduction of iron and/or manganese due to wetness and
lack of oxygen. Yellow and gray coloration remain wet for some portion of the
year. These subsoil colors serve as an important indicator of natural drainage
conditions.
• Sloping land that has been eroded excessively may expose subsoil horizons that are
lighter in color and possess little organic matter.

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 Porosity
Porosity or void fraction is a measure of the void spaces in a material, and is a
fraction of the volume of voids over the total volume, between 0 and 1, or as a
percentage between 0% and 100%. 
Loose, porous soils have lower bulk densities and greater porosities than tightly
packed soils. Porosity varies depending on particle size and aggregation. It is
greater in clayey and organic soils than in sandy soils. A large number of small
particles in a volume of soil produces a large number of soil pores. Fewer large
particles can occupy the same volume of soil so there are fewer pores and less
porosity.

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