SOIL SERIES AND SOIL TAXONOMY

Soil series are the lowest and most narrowly defined units in Soil Taxonomy. They have from the beginning been the primary vehicle through which information gained from experience with and research on soil performance has been accumulated, organized, and presented to assist with land-use and management decisions. Soil series are defined according to the kind, sequence, and thickness of soil horizons and the physical and chemical properties of each horizon. The occurrence of a soil series is limited to unique kinds of geologic formations, landscape positions, and climates. Most soil series are subdivisions of soil families in which specific ranges in composition, thickness, structure, or other properties are narrower than they are for the soil family. Some soil series include the full range of the soil family. Among the soil properties used to define each horizon of soil series are those that determine the performance of the soil as an engineering material. Important in situ properties such as density and seasonal moisture content have narrow ranges in each horizon of soil series. /Author/