Visual Evaluation of Soil Structure

Resource explained

Good soil structure is vital for crop germination, emergence, yield and quality, and soil health. It supports biological activity and helps regulate soil erosion and gaseous exchange rates, the movement and storage of water, soil temperature, respiration and nutrient cycling.

You can use this tool (a printable pdf) to carry out a simple quick test to assess soil structure. It is based on the appearance and feel of a block of soil.

It tells you the equipment you will need and when, where, and how to take a sample.

The method of assessment is broken down in to several steps; extracting the soil block, examining it, breaking up the block and the major aggregates, assigning a ‘score’ to your soil, confirming the score and calculating the block scores for two or more layers of differing structure. A chart to help you identify your soil structure and assign your score accompanies this.

 

Findings & recommendations

  • The chart on the second page of the pdf, designed to help you to identify your soil structure and assign scores, gives you options to choose from of:
    • Structure quality
    • Size and appearance of aggregates
    • Visible porosity and roots
    • Appearance after breaking up the soil
    • Distinguishing features
    • Appearance and description of fragments
  • The AHDB’s Healthy Grassland Soils – Four quick steps to assess soil structure’ has been based on this tool. Also in the form of a downloadable and printable pdf, this sward assessment tool accompanies the Healthy Grassland Soils Pocketbook. It takes you through the different steps of looking at your sward quality to identify potentially damaged areas, extracting some soil for closer assessment, assessing the soil block and soil aggregates, and assigning a score by matching what you see to the detailed soil structure and aggregate descriptions and photos.
  • The idea behind both of the tools is to help you identify whether the soil structure needs to be improved to maintain soil health and where changes in management are required.

 

Associated Agricology Partner Organisation(s):

Related articles

Healthy Grassland Soils pocketbook

A practical guide giving pictorial advice on assessing, maintaining and improving grassland soil structure and soil biology levels.

How do you test your soil health?

The importance of soil health is now well recognised. With warnings that the UK’s soils have only 100 harvests left, and with flooding a growing...

Soil assessment methods

Tips to help you choose the most appropriate methods to assess and manage your soil health - provided by the GREATSoils project team.

Simply Sustainable Soils

LEAF’s soil assessment tool to help you improve the soil on your farm and long-term sustainability of your land using ‘Six Simple Steps.’

Know your Soils #10: Soil Test Calendar

Which soil tests to do, when to do them, which fields and where on the fields to test to get a representative sample.

Know your soils #8: 3 key soil tests to understand your soil health

Spring and autumn are the best times to do soil tests. Try the three most important and easy soil tests you can do yourself on...

Testing the soil health scorecard (On-farm soil monitoring 2018–2019)

A  Soil Biology and Soil Health Partnership case study expaining the scorecard that has been developed to help farmers measure and manage soil health and detailing...

The Spade Test

A useful video with a detailed description of how to take a soil sample and interpret it using the spade test.

Know Your Soils #3: Monitor the impact of water run-off

How much topsoil and nutrients do you lose with rainwater run-off? This resource explains a test you can do to understand how much is running...
To top