Nebraska soils range from less than 1 percent to 5 percent organic matter. Changes in environment, erosion and, cultural practices can change soil makeup. The relative amounts of mineral and organic matter determine the physical properties of soil. Soil Texture Soil texture is determined by the relative amounts of three groups of soil particles. The three soil separates are sand, silt, and clay.
Texture provides a means to physically describe soil by feel.
A coarse soil has a relatively large amount of sand. A silt soil has the texture of flour. A loam soil has nearly equal amounts of sand, silt, and clay. The relative sizes of the three soil separates are compared in Figure 2 . Sand particles can be seen by the naked eye.