Soil Quality Management

Grazing Lands

The following documents require Adobe Acrobat.
Go to the Publications page for a complete list of NRCS Soil Quality documents, including Technical Notes, Information Sheets, and Conservation Briefs.

Grazing Lands Soil Quality Flyers

Print to raise awareness about the importance of soil quality on rangelands.

Pastureland Soil Quality (PDF, 8.8MB)

Rangeland Soil Quality (PDF, 230KB)

Contact the Soil Quality Webmaster for additional image options.

Grazing Lands Soil Quality Information Sheets

Soil Quality Information Sheets describe soil properties that change in response to management and provide information that is related to the indicators used in soil health assessments. They support inventories and monitoring and provide management strategies for conservation planning. Accompanying posters can be used to promote the Information Sheets and soil quality for the landuse.

Pastureland

1. Pastureland Soil Quality -- Introduction (PDF, 120KB)
2. Pastureland Soil Quality -- Indicators for Assessment and Monitoring (PDF, 170KB)

Rangeland

Rangeland Soil Quality Information Sheets Flyer
1. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Introduction (PDF, 1MB)
2. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Indicators for Assessment and Monitoring (PDF, 1MB)
3. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Aggregate Stability (PDF, 2MB)
4. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Compaction (PDF, 1.5MB)
5. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Infiltration (PDF, 1MB)
6. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Organic Matter (PDF, 2MB)
7. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Physical and Biological Soil Crusts (PDF, 1MB)
8. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Soil Biota (PDF, 2MB)
9. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Water Erosion (PDF, 2MB)
10. Rangeland Soil Quality -- Wind Erosion (PDF, 2MB)

Printed copies of the Soil Quality Information Sheets can be ordered from the NRCS Landcare office by phone (toll-free) at 1-888-LANDCARE or by e-mail at landcare@usda.gov.

Example citation for Soil Quality Information Sheets:

USDA-NRCS. 2001. Rangeland soil quality: Introduction. Soil Quality Information Sheet: Rangeland Sheet 1. NRCS Soil Quality Institute, NRCS Grazing Lands Technology Institute, NRCS National Soil Survey Center, ARS Jornada Experimental Range, and USDI Bureau of Land Management. Available online with updates at http://soils.usda.gov/sqi/range.html#SQIS (verified 15 Jan. 2003).

Additional Resources

State and Transition Models and Dynamic Soil Properties Databases

The following document provides information on state and transition models and their application to rangelands of the western United States. How the model can provide a framework for an information system that includes dynamic soil properties is included.

State and Transition Ecosystem Models (PDF, 145KB)

Citation for the proceedings is: Tugel, A.J. and J. R. Brown. 2001. State and transition ecosystem models: Application to soil survey and dynamic soil properties. p194-201. In Building for the future: Science, new technology & people. Proc. National Cooperative Soil Survey Conf., Ft. Collins, CO. 2001. USDA-NRCS, Washington, DC.

Microbiotic Crusts

This pamphlet discusses microbiotic crusts, including what they are, where they occur, what their role is, and how they are affected by disturbances.

Introduction to Microbiotic Crusts (2MB)