Information on soil and land resources is a prerequisite for informed decisions on land use and management. Procedures for acquiring and using this information are introduced and  emphasis is given to a balanced approach with elements of mapping, modelling and monitoring within the broader context of environmental change. The conceptual basis for a range of approaches to survey is introduced along with an assessment of strengths and weaknesses. A framework for dealing with scale in measurement and prediction is then introduced.

Laboratory data are critical to the understanding of the properties and genesis of a single pedon, as well as to the understanding of fundamental soil relationships based on many observations of a large number of soils. The development of laboratory methods, the analytical database, and the soil relationships based on those data are the cumulative effort of several generations of scientists.

The word “clays” was assigned early to fine grained material in geological formations (Agricola 1546) or soils (de Serres 1600). Clays have been identified as mineral species in the begining of the 19th century in the production of ceramic materials (Brongniart 1844). Then Ebelmen (1847) carefully analyzed the decomposition of rocks under chemical attack and the way that porcelain can be commonly made. Since this pionner works, the definition of clays has varied.

В учебном пособии в интерактивной форме представлены современные представления о теории и методах геостатистики и их применении в почвоведении и экологии для решения актуальных экологических и агроэкологических проблем. Основное внимание уделено вопросам построения семивариограмм и расчета их основных характеристики подбору моделей. Рассматривается понятие кригинга и дается описание некоторых его разновидностей.

This entry explains the use of emergy analysis to evaluate systems and compare resource use, environmental loading, and sustainability. This method allows the free contributions of the environment to be compared directly with the purchased inputs from the economy. Results summarized from agriculture and forestry systems indicate that extensive amounts of indirect energy were dissipated to yield agricultural and forest products and that timber typically requires less indirect energy than crops.

In this chapter, the subject of ground improvement is introduced along with a discussion of the engineering parameters that can be addressed and a brief history of ancient practices. An overview of the objectives of designing a ground improvement plan is provided with a description of how ground improvement methodsmay be implemented into a project.The general categories and objectives of ground improvement techniques are also described. <...>

Minerals make up about 50% of the volume of most soils. They provide physical support for plants, and create the water- and air-filled pores that make plant growth possible. Mineral weathering releases plant nutrients that are retained by other minerals through adsorption, cation exchange, and precipitation.

Precise descriptions of the features seen in soils or regoliths as examined under the microscope require a specific set of concepts and terms because the microscope reveals features that simply cannot be seen with the naked eye. Microscopic features can of course be described using common words, but this would lead to very tedious and lengthy descriptive texts that are time consuming both to write and to read and not always unambiguous. Moreover, it would be difficult to translate such descriptions without losing information or committing errors. By using a comprehensive terminology, descriptions would be not only shorter, but also easier to compare and to store in databases <...>

В пособии обосновывается историко-генетический подход к изучению субтропических и тропических почв, противопоставляемый формально-прагматическому американскому, основанному преимущественно на учете морфологии почв. Вместе с тем отдается должное и прогрессивным школам почвоведения других стран. Книга является одним из первых специализированных пособий по тропическим почвам и их сельскохозяйственной оценке

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The crust of the Earth is made up of rocks and soils, the latter produced by the weathering of rocks. Therefore, rocks and soils contain the same chemical elements, and their mineral composition is also similar. In addition, soils contain organic matter.
Rocks are defined as incoherent, naturally formed substances, mostly composed of minerals. They can be classified as igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic, depending on their origin.