For soil resources, experience has shown that a natural system approach to classification, i.e. grouping soils by their intrinsic property (soil morphology), behaviour, or genesis, results in …

The Official Soil Series Description (OSD) database is a national collection of more than 20,000 detailed soil series descriptions. These descriptions, in a text format, serve as a national …

Where soils are configured in layers, i.e., where a layered geologic structure exists, the soil must be classified on the basis of the soil classification of the weakest soil layer.

Jan 2, 2026 · The two principal systems of soil classification in use today are the soil order system of the U.S. Soil Taxonomy and the soil group system, published as the World Reference Base …

Soil Classification concerns the grouping of soils with a similar range of properties (chemical, physical and biological) into units that can be geo-referenced and mapped.

Different systems have been developed in different countries, so in this section we will cover the basics of the classification system commonly used in the US, as well as the younger world …

Jul 22, 2025 · Soil classification systems, such as the USDA soil taxonomy, consider factors like soil texture, structure, pH, and nutrient content to group soils into distinct categories.

A taxonomy is an arrangement in a systematic manner; the USDA soil taxonomy has six levels of classification. They are, from most general to specific: order, suborder, great group, subgroup, …

Aug 4, 2024 · In this classification system, the soil is classified based on both the plasticity characteristics and the particle size of the soil. Each group is identified using a group symbol.

To ensure proper application of the criteria for classifying soils, the latest version of the “Keys to Soil Taxonomy ” is needed. In addition, this guide omits all information needed to classify soils …