Usda Soil Texture Triangle
Larger particles will have less surface area per volume of soil.
Usda soil texture triangle. Use this online tool to calculate a single point texture class based on percent sand silt and clay. Including the optional sand fractions will refine the calculation. Click here for a high resolution version of the graphic texture class is one of the first things determined when a soil is examined. Soil texture triangle showing the 12 major textural classes and particle size scales as defined by the usda.
Guide to texture by feel. Or download a microsoft excel macro enabled spreadsheet to develop total sand silt and clay low representative and high values using an interactive texture triangle with textures that toggle on and off. These percentages are based on the usda definition of sand. The soil texture triangle is one of the tools that soil scientists use to visualize and understand the meaning of soil texture names.
A common soil science and agricultural tool the soil texture triangle uses the percentages of sand silt and clay in the soil to assign it to one of 12 textural classes. In the united states twelve major soil texture classifications are defined by the united states department of agriculture. Journal of agronomic education. A flow diagram for teaching texture by feel analysis.
The soil triangle is a commonly used visual representation of the possible soil type combinations based on soil particle size. The textural triangle is a diagram which shows how each of these 12 textures is classified based on the percent of sand silt and clay in each.