Soil Genesis and Classification

Soil Genesis and Classification reviews a spectrum of soil classification systems and presents the culmination of more than two decades of testing and revisions in the U.S. Soil Taxonomy, the most detailed and comprehensive system for soil classification. The classic textbook explains the function and use of soils, soil formation and categorization, and details how this dynamic natural entity evolves from natural factors and processes and interfaces with ecosystems and human endeavors.

For the fifth edition, the authors have included the new nomenclature and systematic structure of soil classification categories, as well as new analytical techniques to more quantitatively identify soil properties and define class limits in Soil Taxonomy.

This comprehensive work covers the diverse needs of soil science instructors, majors, minors, and graduate students, and serves as an outstanding reference for soil scientists, agricultural and natural resources engineers and economists, and others in related fields such as ecology, natural resources, and land use and planning.

Stanley W. Buol, Ph.D., is William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor of Soil Science and Alumni Distinguished Graduate Professor at North Carolina State University, Raleigh. Randal J. Southard, Ph.D., is Professor of Soil Genesis and Morphology and Associate Dean of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at the University of California, Davis. Robert C. Graham, Ph.D., is Professor of Soil Mineralogy and Pedology at the University of California, Riverside. Paul A. McDaniel, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Soil Genesis and Morphology at the University of Idaho, Moscow.