内容简介：
It's the ground we stand on, the earth we mine, the land that produces food, fiber, and shelter, and yet few of us can even define soil, let alone explain how it works, what it does, or how it changes. This book is a tool for understanding our greatest natural resource. For the teacher or student of earth science, agriculture, or land management; for the farmer with a thousand acres; or for the gardener with one precious plot, it offers a look at soil - its formation, components, chemistry, fertility, and erosion. From the complexities of how water, temperature, and soil fertility affect the life of plants to the technical aspects of soil classification, engineering, surveying, and management, all of soil science is clearly laid out in this fourth edition. The authors have expanded their discussions of soil water, temperature, and engineering and have updated their account of soil classification.