ABSTRACT
Revegetation of any disturbance depends on an understanding of the chemical and physical properties of the material in which the plants will be rooted. Therefore, regulatory agencies usually require that numerous soil parameters be determined before the site is disturbed. Certain soil parameters are particularly important to the revegetation scientist. This chapter reviews these major soil parameters and a few additional soil characteristics of importance in semiarid or arid regions. One critical soil characteristics is the hydrogen (H) ion concentration. This parameter is normally recorded as the pH or the negative log of the hydrogen ion concentration. Organic matter by any definition increases soil porosity, infiltration, CEC (cation exchange capacity), water-holding capacity, and nutrient reserves. The aggregation of primary soil particles into larger fragments contributes to a soil property referred to as soil structure. Soil porosity refers to that part of a soil volume that is not occupied by soil particles or organic matter.
