Soil Science

Scope : Soil science is a broad area of study including agriculture, biology, chemistry, engineering, and physics. This guide can be used as a starting point for research into these and other aspects of soil science, however the focus of the guide is on agriculture. Email the subject area specialist at daustin (@umd.edu) or call (301)405-9666 for more information.

Contents

• Locating Books and Journals using the Catalog
• Guides to the Literature
• Reference Resources
  • Bibliographies
  • Dictionaries
  • Directories
  • Handbooks, Manuals, and Encyclopedias
• Government Documents - Soil Surveys
• Databases
• Selected Journals
• Non-print Sources
• Internet Resources
• Societies and Associations
• Email Lists

Locating Books and Journals using the Catalog

To locate books on soil science and related topics use the UM Libraries' online Catalog . You will find books on aspects of soil science by entering any of the following terms:

To locate journals in the Catalog, Once in the catalog, click at the top of your screen on the word "journals" and then enter the name of the publication you are looking for into the catalog search box. Then choose (from the drop-down menu)"title beginning with" or "words in title". Then click "Search".

Example: Soil Science Society of America journal

For more specific searching instructions, please Ask Us!

Guide to the Literature

McDonald, Peter. The Literature of Soil Science. Ithaca, N. Y.: Cornell University Press, 1994.
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Reference Stacks, 1st floor
CALL NUMBER: S590.45.L58 1994

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Reference Resources

Bibliographies

Many of the following bibliographies are a part of the Quick Bibliography Series produced by librarians at the National Agricultural Library (NAL). These bibliographies were compiled by conducting searches on AGRICOLA (see Databases section below). To find other bibliographies in this series, search in the Catalog using the keyword QUICK combined with your other search words. Many of these and other bibliographies are available in full text on the NAL web site.

• Bailey, George D. Bibliography of Soil Taxonomy, 1960-1979. Wallingford, Eng.: CAB International, 1987.
  LOCATION(S): McKeldin Library Folio section.
  CALL NUMBER: S592.16.B25 1987; 7th floor East Wing.

• Miedema, Rienk, and Ahmet R. Mermut, eds. Soil Micromorphology: An Annotated Bibliography 1968-1986. Wallingford, Eng.: CAB International, 1990.
  LOCATION(S): McKeldin Library Folio
  CALL NUMBER: S593.2.S564 1990, 7th floor east wing.

• Schneider, Karl. Soil Organic Matter: Impacts on Productivity, January 1988 -February 1992. Beltsville, Md.: U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, National Agricultural Library, Quick Bibliography Series QB 92-37, 1992.
  LOCATION(S): Government Documents
  CALL NUMBER: SU DOC A17.18/4:92-37; 4th floor.

• Schneider, Karl. Soil Testing and Plant Analysis for Fertilizer Recommendations, January 1991 - June 1993. Beltsville, Md.: U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, National Agricultural Library, 1993. (Quick Bibliography Series, QB 93-54)
  LOCATION(S): Government Documents
  CALL NUMBER: SU DOC A17.18/4:93-54; 4th floor.

• Turner, Nancy LeBlanc. Soil Fertility and Crop Production 1895 -1930: January 1979 - April 1990. Beltsville, Md.: U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, National Agricultural Library, Quick Bibliography Series, QB 90-68, 1990.
  LOCATION(S): Government Documents
  CALL NUMBER: SU DOC A17.18/4:90-68; 4th floor.

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Dictionaries

• Dalal-Clayton, D. B. Black's Agricultural Dictionary. 2nd ed.
  Totowa, N. J.: Barnes & Noble Books, 1985.
  LOCATION(S): Mckeldin Reference Stacks & McKeldin Stacks
  CALL NUMBER: S411.D245 1985 1st floor and 7th floor East.

• Gregorich, E.G., ed. Soil and environmental science dictionary.
  Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2001.
  LOCATION(S): Engineering Reference & McKeldin Reference Stacks
  CALL NUMBER: S592.S59 2001; 1st floor

• Jongerius, A., and G. K. Rutherford, eds. Glossary of Soil Micromorphology.
  Wageningen: Pudoc, 1979.
  LOCATION(S): McKeldin Reference Stacks
  CALL NUMBER: S593.2.G65; 1st floor.

• Lipton, Kathryn L. Dictionary of agriculture: from abaca to zoonosis
  Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1995.
  LOCATION(S):McKeldin Reference Stacks and Online through NetLibrary
  CALL NUMBER: S411.L55 1995, 1st floor.
  WWW ACCESS: Dictionary of agriculture: from abaca to zoonosis
  Bibliographic record display . Access to this electronic book is available to students, faculty and staff at the University System of Maryland and other Maryland Digital Library institutions.

• Internet Glossary of Soil Science Terms.
  Madison, WI: Soil Science Society of America, 2001.
  LOCATION(S): McKeldin Reference Stacks
  CALL NUMBER: S592.G58 1997; 1st floor and available online at [http://www.soils.org/sssagloss/index.html]

• Glossary of Soil Microbiology Terms, compiled by David Sylvia, Soil and Water Science Department, University of Florida.
  Available online at [http://dmsylvia.ifas.ufl.edu/glossary.htm].

• Subsurface-Water Flow and Solute Transport: Federal Glossary of Selected Terms.
  Prepared by the Subsurface-Water Glossary Working Group, Ground-Water Subcommittee, International Advisory Committee on Water Data. Reston, VA: Dept. of the Interior, U. S. Geological Survey, Office of Water Data Coordination, 1989.
  LOCATION(S): Government Documents
  CALL NUMBER: SU DOC I19.74:989; 4th floor.

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Directories

Agricultural Research Centres : A World Directory of Organizations and Programmes. 12th ed. London: Cartermill, 1995.
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Reference Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S530.5 .F37 1995; 1st floor.
This directory and the one above are arranged alphabetically by research center within country. Each has an institution title and subject index.

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Handbooks, Manuals, and Encyclopedias

• Anderson, J. M. and J. S. I. Ingram, eds. Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility: A Handbook of Methods. 2nd ed.
  Wallingford, Eng.: CAB International, 1993.
  LOCATION(S): McKeldin Library Folio Section
  CALL NUMBER: S599.9.T76T76 1993, 7th floor.

• Arntzen, Charles J., and Ellen M. Ritter., eds.
  Encyclopedia of Agricultural Science.
  San Diego: Academic Press, 1994.
  LOCATION: McKeldin Library Reference Stacks
  CALL NUMBER: S411.E713 1994; 1st floor
  Look in Volume 4 under Soil topics.

• Fairbridge, Rhodes W., and Charles W. Finkl, Jr., eds.
  The Encyclopedia of Soil Science Part 1 : Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Fertility, and Technology.
  Stroudsburg, Pa.: Dowden, Hutchinson and Ross, 1979.
  LOCATION(S): Engineering Library Reference, Library Reference
  CALL NUMBER: S592.E52 Vol. 1

• Howard, Amster K. Unified Soil Classification System: Test Procedures. 3rd ed.
  Denver, Colo.: Geotechnical Branch, Division of Research and Laboratory Services, Engineering and Research Center, Bureau of Reclamation, 1988.
  LOCATION(S): Government Documents
  CALL NUMBER: SU DOC I27.72:88-8; 4th floor.

• Publications Handbook and Style Manual.
  Madison, Wisc.: American Society of Agronomy, 1988.
  LOCATION(S): McKeldin Library Reference Stacks
  CALL NUMBER: S494.5.A96P83 1988; 1st floor.
  

• Sumner, Malcolm E., ed. Handbook of Soil Science.
  Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press, 2000.
  LOCATION(S): McKeldin Library Reference Stacks
  CALL NUMBER: S591.H23 2000; 1st floor.

• World Reference Base for Soil Resources. Rome: FAO, 1998. (World Soil Resources Reports #84).
  LOCATION(S): Government Documents, LC DOC
  CALL NUMBER: S591.W875 No. 84, Available online at [www.fao.org/docrep/W8594E/W8594E00.htm].

• Yuste, MariPaz. Handbook of Agriculture.
  New York: Marcel Dekker, 1999.
  LOCATION: Mckeldin Library Reference Stacks
  CALL NUMBER: S493.Y88 1999; 1st floor.
  P. 1-120 cover soils, fertilizers, and organic matter.

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Government Documents - Soil Surveys

The Government Documents Unit, located on the 2nd floor of McKeldin Library, has an extensive collection of soil surveys ands related materials. These are county surveys and provide in-depth soil descriptions as well as information on the use, management, formation, and classification of soils. To find out whether the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly the Soil Conservation Service) has done a survey on a county, check the following publication, or the Monthly Catalog of Government Publications. The soil surveys are arranged in alphabetical order by county name, regardless of state, on the Government Documents Room shelves.

List of Published Soil Surveys.
Washington, D. C. : U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service. Annual.
LOCATION(S): Government Documents SuDoc and Government Documents Quick Reference(for latest edition)
CALL NUMBER: A57.38:List/Date

See the following book for an in-depth examination of the National Cooperative Soil Survey Program.

National Soils Handbook. Washington, D.C.: Soil Conservation Service, 1983.
LOCATION(S): Government Documents and Storage [Must place hold to obtain from storage]
CALL NUMBER: A 57.6/2:So 3/4 and storage Call Number: S591.A3U5

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Databases

The following databases index and abstract journal articles and other documents on soil science. Consult with a reference librarian to determine the best way to search your topic.

UM only Because of licensing agreements, most of these databases can be used only by current faculty, staff, and students of the University of Maryland, College Park. These users can access them only through the campus network or Research Port. Read more about remote access. Only those titles marked **** are freely available to anyone anywhere.

AGRICOLA UM only
LOCATION(S): NETWRK WWW (1970- )
Print version: Bibliography of Agriculture GOVDOC SU DOC A 17.18 (1942- )
Produced by the U. S. National Agricultural Library this is one of the major sources of literature about agriculture and allied fields. Citations are collected from national and international sources and include journal articles, pamphets, government documents, reports, proceedings, books,theses, patents, software, audiovisuals and state agricultural extension and experiment station publications.

Agrindex. 1975 - 1995.
LOCATION(S): Mckeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S18.A5
This index, issued monthly, is international in coverage with a major focus on developing countries. Coverage includes many aspects of soil science. Each issue contains a detailed subject index as well as personal and corporate author and patent and report number indexes. Although abstracts are usually not present, each record does contain keywords.

Agronomy Abstracts. 1955-1997.
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S590.A3
(continued by Annual Meeting Abstracts,1998 - .)
This title includes abstracts from the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and the Soil Science Society of America, which are arranged by subject and within subject, alphabetically by first author.

Biological and Agricultural Index UM only (1983-)
Print Version: Biological and Agricultural Index 1964 - .
(continues The Agricultural Index, 1916-1964 at same call number.)
LOCATION(S): Mckeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: Z5073.A45
Indexes a wide range of popular and professional journals about biology and agriculture.

BIOSIS Previews UM only
LOCATION: NETWRK WWW (1970-)
Information about articles in over 5,500 life sciences journals. Also covers content summaries, books and meeting abstracts, papers and posters.
Print version(s): Biological Abstracts.(1926-1997) MCK STACKS QH301.B37

CAB Abstracts UM only
1972-
Similar in scope to AGRICOLA but more comprehensive, nearly 10,000 international journals in over 35 languages are scanned for articles relating to all aspects of agriculture and related fields including soil science. Books, reports, proceedings, and patents are also included. Provides online access to the following print indexes:

Agricultural Engineering Abstracts. 1977 - 1998.
LOCATION: Mckeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S671.A317
This abstracting service, issued monthly, covers a number of soil/agricultural engineering topics including soil injectors, soil mechanics, and soil types.

Field Crop Abstracts. Monthly. 1948 - 1995.
LOCATON(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: SB183.F5
Each issue contains subject and author indexes which cumulate annually. Use the subject index to look up the crop of interest and in many cases a soil related topic will be found.

Irrigation and Drainage Abstracts. 1975 -
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks (1984-1995,1998)
CALL NUMBER: S612.I73
Each issue contains subject and author indexes which cumulate annually. Many topics related to soil science are indexed including soil salinity, soil types (including chemical cultural, ecological, genetic, textural), and various subjects on soil/water interaction.

Soils and Fertilizers. Monthly. 1938-1998.
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S590.S67
This abstracting service is published monthly. Each issue contains subject and author indexes which cumulate annually. Many topics are covered including soil compaction, chemistry,classification, management, movement, and structure. It is the bureau's of Soil Science's bibliography of soil science, fertilizers and general agronomy, 1937/40- < 1940/44 > are indexes to v. 1- < 7 > of Soils and fertilizers.

Environment Abstracts. Annual. 1971 - .
LOCATION(S): Mckeldin Periodical Stacks (1974-1981) and McKeldin Reference Stacks (1974 only). Also: Engineering Library Reference, current issues held until Annual arrives.
CALL NUMBER: GF1.E553
(Continues the Environment Index MCK FOLIO GF1.E555 1971-1987)
This abstracting service is published monthly. Each issue contains the following indexes: subject, author, conference, geographic, source, and industry. Approximately 800 journals are indexed. Soil science topics covered include soil management, moisture, sampling, and temperature.

Environmental Periodicals Bibliography. 1972 - 1995.
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: Z7171.E6
This bibliography is published six times each year. It reproduces the table of contents pages of approximately 350 journals covering the environmental sciences. Author and subject indexes arecumulated annually. Use the detailed subject index to look up your topic. Although there is some overlap with Environment Abstracts above, this bibliography covers many unique journals.

Environmental Sciences Collection (Cambridge) UM only
Abstracts and citations from over 4000 scientific journals plus reports, conference proceedings, monographs, and government publications.

GeoRefs UM only
LOCATION(S): NETWRK WWW (1970- )
Information about materials on geology and earth science.

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Selected Journals

The following titles are a representative selection of journals on soil science held by the UM Libraries. They are indexed in many of the indexes and abstracting services listed above. To see where these (and other) journals in the UM Libraries are indexed, search the Catalog for the title, and press F and "return" for the full record. Information on coverage in abstracting services and indexes is found in the second half of each full record display.

Canadian Journal of Soil Science
LOCATION: Online and McKeldin Periodical Stacks
Access: [http://www.nrc.ca/aic-journals/anicontents.html]
CALL NUMBER: S590.C25

Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis. 20 per year. 1970 - .
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S590.C54

European Journal of Soil Science. Quarterly. 1994- .
(continues Journal of Soil Science 1949/50-1993, S590.J6)
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks CALL NUMBER: S590.J61

Geoderma. Quarterly. 1967 -.
LOCATION(S): Engineering Library Periodical Stacks and McKeldin Periodical Stacks (MCK has 1967 to 1975)
CALL NUMBER: S590.G3

Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. Bimonthly. 1946 - .
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S622.S6 (1948 - )

Plant and Soil. 18 per year. 1949 - .
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: SB13.P55

Soil and Sediment Contamination Bimonthly. 2002- .
LOCATION: Online and McKeldin Current Periodicals
Online Access: [http://www.crcjournals.com/ejournals/issues/issue_archive.asp?section=1057]

Soil and Tillage Research. 16 per year. 1981 - .
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S590.S48
Online access: [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01671987]

Soil Biology and Biochemistry. Monthly. 1969 - .
LOCATION(S): Online and McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S590.S577
Online Access: [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00380717]

Soil Science. Online: 1996- Present.
Print: Monthly. 1916 - .
Storage: v.1-16,v.18-136 (1916-1983)
LOCATION(S): Online [UM Only] & McKeldin Periodical Stacks and some duplicate volumes in Storage
CALL NUMBER: S590 .S6

Soil Science Society of America Journal. Bimonthly. 1936 - .
LOCATION(S): McKeldin Periodical Stacks(1976 - .) Will soon be available electronically.
CALL NUMBER: S590.S64A131

Soil Technology. Quarterly. 1988 - 1997.
LOCATION(S): Online and McKeldin Periodical Stacks
CALL NUMBER: S590.S687
Online Access: [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/09333630]

See also Electronic Journals by Subject for Agriculture.

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Internet Resources

You can begin your search of the World Wide Web at the Yahoo Soil Science Subject Guide [http://dir.yahoo.com/Science/Agriculture/Crops_and_Soil/Agronomy/Soil_Science/]
The Soil Science section of Yahoo includes links to many other soil science sources including institutes, government agencies and universities.

A Compendium of on-line Soil Survey Information
[http://www.itc.nl/~rossiter/research/rsrch_ss.html]

Global Soil Moisture Data Bank (Rutgers - The State University of New Jersey), [http://climate.envsci.rutgers.edu/soil_moisture/index.html]

Keys to Soil Taxonomy [http://soils.usda.gov/technical/classification/tax_keys/]
Soil Survey Staff. U.S. Department of Agriculture. Natural Resources Conservation Service. 10th edition.

FAO Natural Resources Soil and Soil Resources Page (WAICENT)
[http://www.fao.org/waicent/]
Resources are global in scope with emphasis on less developed countries and regions.

Natural Resources Conservation Service from the USDA.

• Electronic Field Office Technical Guide. The guide contains "technical information about the conservation of soil, water, air, and related plant and animal resources."
  
• Soils Technical Guide

 

National Society of Consulting Soil Scientists
[http://www.nscss.org]

National Soil Erosion Research Laboratory
[http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/]
From the USDA Agricultural Research Service is "the focal point for the U.S. Government's national research program in soil erosion by water. Major program thrusts of the NSERL include fundamental erosion process research, erosion control research, and delivery of improved erosion prediction technology."

National Soil Survey Handbook, [http://soils.usda.gov/technical/handbook/]

Soil Science Society of America [http://www.soils.org/].

Virtual Library on Soils and Substrates
[www.metla.fi/info/vlib/soils/old.htm]
Provides links to soils research and organizations, soils data, and books and journals.
No longer updated.

WorldWide Portal to Information on Soil Health
[http://mulch.mannlib.cornell.edu/]

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Non-Print Sources

Several videorecordings related to soil science are available in Nonprint Media Services. To find more items in this collection, do a keyword search in the Catalog. In the advanced search screen, you can add a format designation to your search. To limit your search to videorecodings, select format type: videos/films in the advanced search screen.

Introduction to soil science: soil forming factors Los Osos, CA : San Luis Video Publishing, 1999. (24 Minutes)
LOCATION: Nonprint media services
CALL NUMBER: S591.I583 1999

Granada Television International. Soils: Profiles and Processes. Princeton, N. J.: Films for the Humanities, 1982. (20 minutes)
LOCATION(S): Nonprint Media Services (Hornbake Library)
CALL NUMBER: S591.S7576

Save the Earth, Feed the World. Santa Barbara, Calif.: Intellimation, 1990. (57 minutes) LOCATION(S): Nonprint Media Services (Hornbake Libary)
CALL NUMBER: TD174.R33 1990 pt. 7

Soil biology. Los Osos, CA.: San Luis Video Publishing , 2002. (50 minutes)
SUMMARY: (from the Catalog) "Looks at invertebrates, microbes, and other soil life forms, and explains how their biology affects the physical and chemical properties of soil. Also discusses how these soil life forms affect human daily life and the conservation of soil." LOCATION: Nonprint media services (Hornbake Library)
CALL NUMBER: QH84.8.S62 2002

Soil Testing. Kansas City, Mo.: Farmland Industries, 1984. (25 minutes)
LOCATION(S): NonPrint Media Services (Hornbake Library)
CALL NUMBER: S593.S7429 1984

Societies and Associations