Product Description

For Introduction to Soils or Fundamentals of Soil Science courses. Also for courses in Soil Fertility, Forest Soils, Soil Management, Land Resources, Earth Science, and Soil Geography.

Developed for Introduction to Soils or Soil Science courses, The Nature and Properties of Soils, 14e can be used in courses such as Soil Fertility, Land Resources, Earth Science and Soil Geography. Now in its 14th edition, this text is designed to help make students study of soils a fascinating and intellectually satisfying experience. Written for both majors and non-majors, this text highlights the many interactions between the soil and other components of forest, range, agricultural, wetland and constructed ecosystems.   

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #180480 in Books
• Published on: 2007-10-11
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 992 pages

Review

A Fun, Readable, and Thorough Introduction to Soil Science, June 11, 2002

Reviewer: Amber Kerr, Berkeley, CA, USA

My "Science of Soils" class at Stanford University (Autumn '01) used "The Nature and Properties of Soils" as our main textbook. It is clearly written, easy to read, and has lots of helpful figures (including graphs, diagrams, drawings, and black-and-white and color photos). The chapters are well organized, so that you can find exactly what you need to know. The authors include hundreds of websites for those who want more information, and make the book more readable by starting off each chapter with a quote and a "big picture" statement.

"The Nature and Properties of Soils" has a good mix of theoretical and practical information. Wherever possible, the authors do sample calculations and describe applications for agriculture, ecology, and engineering. They thoroughly cover every major topic in soil science, as well as delving into some more specialized ones (for example, symptoms of micronutrient deficiencies in plants).

In conclusion, I've found this textbook to be both very information-rich and very readable, and highly recommend it. (The other day I caught my boyfriend, who's a materials engineer, reading it for fun... that's about the highest accolade any textbook can get!)

From the Back Cover

For eighty years, The Nature and Properties of Soils has delivered a complete, current, and reliable introduction to the study of soils in a manner that is both fascinating and intellectually satisfying. Whether used as the core textbook for college courses introducing the fundamentals of soil science, or as a comprehensive reference on the professional soil scientist's bookshelf, the book is widely recognized as the authoritative source for all of the latest information related to this exciting field.

In this same tradition of excellence, this new Thirteenth Edition has been completely updated and expanded to provide fresh and essential new coverage of topics critically important to the future role of soils in natural resource sciences, including wetlands, septic drain fields, salt-affected soils, bioremediation, soil ecology, nutrient and irrigation management, soil hydrology, and new orders in Soil Taxonomy. More specifically, this new volume represents significant expansion to include valuable information with regard to all of the following:

• the pedosphere concept
• subaqueous soils
• ethnopedology
• x-ray diffraction
• non-silicate colloids
• inner/outer sphere complexes
• nuclear contamination
• effective CEC
• lead contamination
• acid and non-acid cation saturation
• human-influenced acidity
• calcium and magnesium in plants/soils
• irrigation water quality
• biomolecule binding
• soil food web ecology
• forest nutrient management
• phosphorus site index
• indicators of soil quality
• proton balance approach to soil acidity

Accompanying this book—and all new to this thirteenth edition—is a companion website containing many unique and engaging opportunities for further study. The URL is http://www.prenhall.com/brady.

About the Author

Dr. Raymond Weil, Professor, University of Maryland College Park

B.S. in Crop Science from Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 1970.
M.S. in Soil Science from Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 1973.
Ph.D. in Soil Ecology from Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 1977.

Elected Fellow in 2003 of both the Soil Science Society of America and the American Society of Agronomy.

Weil has been active in soil science research since 1972 and has made many contributions in the areas of nutrient cycling and management, environmental impact of soil management, and assessment of soil quality. His current research is focused on the assessment and improvement of soil quality and organic matter.  He has conducted research in several countries outside the United States, including Ethiopia, Chad, Brazil, Honduras, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Tanzania.  In addition to his teaching at the University of Maryland, he has conducted many training workshops for such agencies as the USDA, The World Bank, The Rodale Research Institute, and the International Food Policy Center.

Dr. Weil has authored or coauthored more than 100 scientific publications in soil science and related areas.

Dr. Nyle Brady

Dr. Brady has, since 1947, worked in education, research and research administration, focusing on both international and U.S. issues. He is past president of the SSSA and served six years as Editor-in-Chief of the SSSA Proceedings and is Emeritus Professor at Cornell University. He has served in leadership positions with Cornell University, the International Rice Research Institute, USAID, the United Nations Development Programme and the World Bank. He is recognized around the world as author and co-author of eleven editions of the world's most widely used soil science textbook, The Nature and Properties of Soils.

Customer Reviews

Useful soil-science textbook for agricultural science.
As a textbook for agricultural science HND in particular, there are several chapters which are extremely well worn, although there is a lot of material which hasn't been necessary. I believe a condensed version is available which might be more useful. Best textbook on soil -science I've found.

SOIL!
Do you like soil?

Then what are you waiting for?

This book is about soil!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!