Why is soil texture important?
In general, sandy soils are usually not as fertile. Sandy soils have a harder time retaining moisture and nutrients (water and nutrients just run right through it). Crops can grow in sandy soils, but probably would require more water and fertilization. Sandy soils are typically good for building roads and buildings. The majority of the time, finer textured soils are more fertile and are able to retain moisture and nutrients more efficiently. However, some soils that are really fine textured become too sticky when wet and too hard when dry to grow crops. They also may shrink and swell too dramatically, which isn’t very desirable if you want to build a road or building. References Brown, R.B. Soil Texture. University of Florida. Available at: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/SS169 Singer, M.J. and D.N. Munns. Soils and Introdcution. 1999. Prentice-Hall, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey. Soil Texture Experiment Identifying Texture by Feel (courtesy of Colorado State University, Cooperative Ext
