Notes on behavior focus on the current and foreseeable uses of the important soils in an area. Where range is the primary use of a survey area, information on range production may be needed for all of the soils of the area. Notes on the performance of soils under irrigation, however, would probably be needed as well where the soils are irrigated. Information on probable forest growth might be pertinent to the purposes of the survey even though it comes from the experience of only a few individuals or a few kinds of soils. Valuable information about soils can be obtained from observations made in the field while surveying.
Soil scientists can see poor crop growth on a wet soil or on an eroded area.
They note the failure of a road subgrade or of an onsite waste-disposal system in specific kinds of soil. On the other hand, data on yields and management practices for specific crops usually come from farm records or experimental fields. Similarly, information on forest growth is usually derived from observations made by others, but can be supplemented by information recorded by the soil scientist. Most information on the engineering performance of a soil comes from people who work with structures and soil as a construction material. During field work, a special effort should be made to obtain this kind of information from knowledgeable people.