Sandy, low organic matter soils often lack structure. Crusting often occurs when bare soils are subjected to intense rainfall. The intense rain destroys the surface structure by washing away the clay particles and organic material holding the soil particles together. Without the binding agents, the particles clog up the natural drainage of the surface layer and make it impervious to water coming in and gases going out. Tell me more about soil organic matter.
Organic matter is the remains of plants and animals in the soil.
Their digestive processes convert the fresh residue in humic substances and nutrients. The nutrients in fresh organic residue are largely unavailable to plants before this conversion. The organic matter ranges from very simple to very complex chemical compounds. These includes sugars, starches, carbohydrates, nucleic acids, etc. Living organisms are also included in organic matter considerations.