Soil loam soil with a small amount of organic material is considered "ideal", inasmuch as fertilizers or manure are currently used to mitigate nutrient losses due to crop yields in the long term. The mineral constituents of a loam soil might be 40% sand, 40% silt and the balance 20% clay by weight. Soil texture affects soil behaviour, in particular, its retention capacity for nutrients (e.g., cation exchange capacity) and water. Sand and silt are the products of physical and chemical weathering of the parent rock; clay, on the other hand, is most often the product of the precipitation of the
Serpentine soil tolerant of extreme soil conditions, including: Physically these areas are characteristically steep, rocky, and vulnerable to erosion, which results in shallow soils. The shallow soils and sparse vegetation lead to elevated soil temperatures and dry conditions. Serpentine is a unique classification of soils as they are relatively rare, and exhibit distinct chemical properties. The soil in appearance is often reddish, brown, or gray in color. The parent material for serpentine soil is mostly derived from the rock serpentine, noted for its waxy greenish-silver to bluish-silver appearance. The rock has white streaks of mineral running through it that contain naturally occurring