This text, aimed at upper-division undergraduate students, begins by defining the relationship among soil chemistry and other fields, such as plant science and pollution science. A detailed description of the components of soils follows, including inorganic, mineral, and organic matter. The book addresses cogent issues, such as soil fertility and soil pollution. The concluding chapter reviews future analytic advances in the study of soil chemistry, emphasizing the importance of the soil chemist in equitable and sustainable land use and agricultural policy.

Soil Ecology is designed to meet the increasing challenge faced by today's environmental scientists, ecologists, agriculturalists, and biotechnologists for an integrated approach to soil ecology. It emphasizes the interrelations among plants, animals, and microbes, by first establishing the fundamental physical and chemical properties of the soil habitat and then functionally characterizing the major components of the soil biota and some of their most important interactions. The fundamental principles underpinning soil ecology are established and this then enables an integrated approach to...