Forces of Change

Color It Young or Old

Soil color reveals a soil’s recent and deep history and some of its properties. Over time clay, plant matter and other materials move up, down, and through soils, creating a great variety of patterns. Color tells us whether the soil is damp enough to support wetlands, fertile enough to easily farm, or stable enough to build upon.

Color Matching
Click here to play the Color Matching game and test your soil smarts.
Old, iron-rich
Old, iron-rich
John Kelley/USDA NRCS
Old, clay-rich
Old, clay-rich
John Kelley/USDA NRCS
Very old, very wet
Very old, very wet
Hari Eswaran/USDA NRCS
Young, lime-rich
Young, lime-rich
Hari Eswaran/USDA NRCS
Young, wet
Young, wet
Hari Eswaran/USDA NRCS
Young, plowed
Young, plowed
Rob Tunstead/USDA NRCS