Soil Hydraulic Properties and Management Practices
Summary
Soil hydraulic properties describe how water moves into, through and out of the soil matrix and are fundamental to ecosystem functioning, agricultural productivity and water security. Key parameters include hydraulic conductivity, which governs flow rates under varying moisture conditions, and the soil water retention curve, which defines the relationship between water content and matric potential. These properties are strongly influenced by pore size distribution, soil texture, organic matter content and bulk density. Management practices such as tillage intensity, crop rotation, cover cropping, organic amendments and vegetation restoration can alter soil structure and porosity, leading to either enhanced infiltration and storage or increased runoff and erosion. Understanding these dynamics supports sustainable land use, informs hydrological modelling and guides interventions to optimise water availability and minimise environmental impacts.
Research from Nature Portfolio
High-resolution spatial mapping of saturated hydraulic conductivity at regional scale has demonstrated pronounced variability in relation to textural fractions, organic carbon and bulk density, with cross-variogram techniques extending insights across tens of kilometres. Such studies have highlighted how intrinsic soil properties and relatively stable variables can predict conductivity patterns over broad landscapes. Complementary work on land-use transitions in semi-arid environments has shown that conversion from grassland to shrubland and forestland significantly enhances soil water holding capacity and available water by improving porosity and reducing bulk density in the upper soil profile, underscoring the hydrological benefits of vegetation restoration for local water resources and ecosystem resilience.
Soil Hydraulic Properties and Management Practices publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in soil hydraulic properties and management practices across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Hydraulic conductivity: Rate at which water moves through soil under a given pressure gradient, reflecting pore connectivity and size distribution.
Field-saturated hydraulic conductivity: Hydraulic conductivity measured under near-saturated field conditions, capturing macropore flow pathways.
Soil water retention curve: Relationship between soil water content and matric potential, describing water availability to plants and movement through the matrix.
Matric potential: Energy status of water in the soil relative to free water, expressed as suction and driving capillary flow.
Bulk density: Mass of dry soil per unit bulk volume, inclusive of pore space; inversely related to porosity and influences infiltration and root growth.
References
- How does soil structure affect water infiltration? A meta-data systematic review. Soil and Tillage Research (2023).
- Impacts of soil management and climate on saturated and near-saturated hydraulic conductivity: analyses of the Open Tension-disk Infiltrometer Meta-database (OTIM). Hydrology and Earth System Sciences (2023).
- Determinants of Field‐Saturated Soil Hydraulic Conductivity Across Sub‐Saharan Africa: Texture and Beyond. Water Resources Research (2024).
- Spatial variability of saturated hydraulic conductivity and its links with other soil properties at the regional scale. Scientific Reports (2021).
- Why We Should Include Soil Structural Dynamics of Agricultural Soils in Hydrological Models. Water (2018).
- Changes in soil water holding capacity and water availability following vegetation restoration on the Chinese Loess Plateau. Scientific Reports (2021).
About these summaries
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