• 1 The Soils Around Us
• 2 Formation of Soils from Parent Materials
• 3 Soil Classification
• 4 Soil Architecture and Physical Properties
• 5 Soil Water: Characteristics and Behavior
• 6 Soil and the Hydrologic Cycle
• 7 Soil Aeration and Temperature
• 8 The Colloidal Fraction: Seat of Soil Chemical and Physical Activity
• 9 Soil Acidity
• 10 Soils of Dry Regions: Alkalinity, Salinity, and Sodicity
• 11 Organisms and Ecology of the Soil
• 12 Soil Organic Matter
• 13 Nitrogen and Sulfur Economy of Soils
• 14 Soil Phosphorus and Potassium
• 15 Calcium, Magnesium, Silicon, and Trace Elements
• 16 Practical Nutrient Management
• 17 Soil Erosion and Its Control
• 18 Soils and Chemical Pollution
• 19 Geographic Soils Information
• 20 Prospects for Soil Health in the Anthropocene
• Appendix A World Reference Base, Canadian, and Australian Soil Classification Systems
• Appendix B SI Units, Conversion Factors, Periodic Table of the Elements, and Plant Names
• Glossary of Soil Science Terms
• Index

The Nature and Properties of Soils presents a comprehensive approach to soils with a focus on six major ecological roles of soil including growth of plants, climate change, recycling function, biodiversity, water, and soil properties and behavior.
Bring the subject to life and facilitate learning

• NEW! Engaging full-color art program support today’s visual learner
• • Vibrant full-color photographs (over 500) illustrate concepts and make the text come alive.
  • Hundreds of new figures have been added or revised in this edition, highlighting applications and field situations relevant to many different areas of study.
  • Line drawings, graphs, and diagrams use consistent color coding throughout the text to make them more readily and intuitively understood.
  • High-quality color plates illustrate nutrient deficiencies, soil landscapes, and soil management practices.
• Make reading, studying, and content mastery easier.
  • NEW: New applications boxes and case study vignettes bring important soils topics to life. Examples include “Subaqueous Soils—Underwater Pedogenesis,” “Practical Applications of Unsaturated Water Flow in Contrasting Layers,” “Soil Microbiology in the Molecular Age,” and "Where have All the Humics Gone?”
  • NEW: Calculations and practical numerical problems boxes help students explore and understand detailed calculations and practical numerical problems. Examples include “Calculating Lime Needs Based on pH Buffering,” “Leaching Requirement for Saline Soils,” "Toward a Global Soil Information System,” “Calculation of Nitrogen Mineralization,” and “Calculation of Percent Pore Space in Soils.”
  • UPDATED: End-of-chapter study questions (10-15 per chapter) help students review the topics and their interactions.
  • Chapter introductions illustrate the importance of the chapter topic and its relationship to other soil topics and ecosystem components.
  • Several cross-referencing chapters reinforce the interconnectedness of soil systems and allow instructors flexibility when teaching the course.
  • Special topics are treated in boxes so instructors can use the boxes to highlight topics that are covered in their classroom structure.
  • A comprehensive glossary provides a useful reference and review tool for students.
• NEW/UPDATED: Updated and new discussions keep students engaged with the most current information available. Chapter-by-chapter changes include:
  • Chapter 1 includes new vignettes and discussions on soil health, soil ecosystem services, soil effects on human health, geophagy, soil as a building material, and soil resilience and resistance to ecological disturbance. Eight Grand Challenges for future soil scientists are also presented.
  • Chapter 2 places increased emphasis on human influences and urban soils, with a new section devoted to the genesis and properties of urban soils. New information and illustrations are provided for rock weathering, profile development, and subaqueous soils.
  • Chapter 3 reflects the latest Keys to Soil Taxonomy and now includes new taxa reflecting human influences and urban soils.
  • Chapter 4 presents new concepts dealing with soil structure and other soil physical properties, including a practical flow chart for conducting texture by feel. New management approaches for soil structure and compaction in urban, forest and agricultural setting are described.
  • Chapter 5 includes an updated discussion of basic soil-water principles, as

• A comprehensive approach to soils with a focus on six major ecological roles of soil including growth of plants, climate change, recycling function, biodiversity, water, and soil properties and behavior.
• New full-color illustrations and the use of color throughout the text highlights the new and refined figures and illustrations to help make the study of soils more efficient, engaging, and relevant.
• Updated with the latest advances, concepts, and applications including hundreds of key references.
• New coverage of cutting edge soil science. Examples include coverage of the pedosphere concept, new insights into humus and soil carbon accumulation, subaqueous soils, soil effects on human health, principles and practice of organic farming, urban and human engineered soils, new understandings of the nitrogen cycle, water-saving irrigation techniques, hydraulic redistribution, soil food-web ecology, disease suppressive soils, soil microbial genomics, soil interactions with global climate change, digital soil maps, and many others
• New applications boxes and case study vignettes. A total of 10 new application and case study boxes bring important soils topics to life.

· “Dirt for Dinner”

· “Subaqueous Soils–Underwater Pedogenesis”

· “Practical Applications of Unsaturated Water Flow in Contrasting Layers”

· “Char: Is Black the New Gold?”

· “Where have All the Humics Gone?”

· “Tragedy in the Big Easy–A Levee Doomed to Fail”

· “Costly And Embarrassing Soil pH Mystery”

· “Gardeners’ Friend not Always so Friendly

· “Soil Microbiology in the Molecular Age”

· “The Law of Return Made Easy: Using Human Urine”

• New calculations and practical numerical problems boxes. Eight new boxes help students explore and understand detailed calculations and practical numerical problems.

· “Estimating CEC and Clay Mineralogy”

· “Calculating Lime Needs Based on pH Buffering”

· “Leaching Requirement for Saline Soils”

· “Calculation of Percent Pore Space in Soils”

· “Calculating Soil CEC From Lab Data”

· “Toward a Global Soil Information System”

· “Calculation of Nitrogen Mineralization”

· “Calculating a Soil-Quality Index for Plant Productivity”