What influence does the soil texture have on the soil characteristics?

Question

If the soil is mostly: (is the sdrainage good/fair/poor)
-sand
-silt
-clay

If the soil is mostly: (is the water rentention high/fair/poor)
-sand
-silt
-clay

If the soil is mostly: (are the nutrients abundant/fair/poor)
-sand
-silt
-clay

Please help totally lost on these questions.
Thanks x

Also if anyone could tell me how the soil texture effects
- drainage (how waterlogging occus)
- nutrient avaliability
- root penetration

Answer 1

The best way to describe the different water infiltration rates for different soils, think of yourself as a drop of water and your bedroom as one cubic foot of soil. Sandy soil has large pore spaces between the particles and it would be like you having three of your friends over. It's easy for you to quickly go from one side of the room to the other. Silty soils would be like you having eight of your friends over and you'd have some difficulty getting to the other side. You could do it, but it would take a fair amount of time. Clay soils would be like having 25 of your friends over and you'd be packed like sardines. It would be difficult if not impossible for you to move about no matter how much time you had.

This will help explain your additional details. Roots have a harder time penetrating clay soils for the same reason as above. Some flat, level soils have what's called a hardpan, a very tight clay layer approximately a foot below the soil's surface. Water infiltrates the top layer of silt soil, hits the clay layer and doesn't go any futher. With enough rain, water will pond on the surface because it has no place to go. Very sandy soils are droughty because the water infiltrates through the soil too quickly, leaving the plants nothing to use.

Plants cannot use nutrients unless the nutrients are attached to the soil colloid (particle of soil). While it's true that the clay particles have many sites where nutrients can attach themselves, clay is like a magnet and hangs tightly onto the nutrient, making much of it unavailable. Kind of like having a refrigerator full of goodies but you can't get the door open. Low pH soils are the worst at this. Sandy soils have few sites for attachment and since water infiltrates easily through the soil, the unattached nutrients are readily leached away which contributes to surface and ground water nutrient loading (pollution). To reduce nutrient loss, nutrients have to be applied frequently in small amounts. Sandy soils are like having a nearly empty fridge but every day you go to the store, buy a couple of items and stick them in there.

Answer 2

1. sand, the drainage is good
silt, the drainage is fair
clay, the drainage is poor
2. sand, retention is poor
silt, retention is fair
clay, retention is high
3. sand, nutrients are poor
silt, nutrients are abundant
clay, nutrients are fair


im pretty sure im right.....but u shouldnt be getting help from a seventh grader.

Answer 3

1-sand good
silt fair
clay poor

2-sand poor
silt fair
clay good

3-sand poor
silt good
clay fair