The sheer volume of information on forest soils has probably increased by ten-fold since the previous edition of this book was drafted. Much of the information added new numbers to our understanding of the typical rates of soil processes. Other changes have been more fundamental, such as the shift in the conceptualization of humified soil organic matter: long-lasting soil organic matter may not depend so much on chemical recalcitrance as on intricate soil environments and ecological interactions (including aggregate formation).
A textbook cannot provide a systematic review for all the important topics addressed; authors need to pick and choose examples that have strong educational value. Compiling examples into representative tables and histograms is more powerful than any single example, but these compilations are intended to illustrate commonly observed situations rather than provide reliable conclusions about the population of all forest soils.
This edition retains many of the examples that illustrated important ideas in the earlier editions, for two reasons: many studies that are older than a decade still have as much educational value as more recent cases, and many studies that are older than two decades tend to be hidden from online Internet sites (particularly for studies not published in journals). Many historical studies have a great deal to offer, not just on a particular topic, but for the background value of gaining insights on how our understanding of forest soils developed from our community of inquisitive colleagues over long spans of time. We're sorry that we couldn't include more of the great examples of new forest soil studies from all our colleagues.
Forests and soils are whole systems, so it's very arbitrary to pull out any single feature, such as soil chemistry, to examine in a single chapter when it's actually relevant to every other chapter. For this reason, we consider chapter topics to be general themes, with diverse soil subjects entering each chapter, and with each topic arising in more than one chapter. For example, a chapter on soil organic matter relies, in part, on the subjects of soil chemistry and soil biota, but it also overlaps somewhat with a chapter on carbon sequestration. We hope readers will find the weaving of topics within and among the chapters to be helpful in stitching together a coherent, holistic understanding of forest soils.

Preface, ix

Acknowledgments, xi

In Memoriam, xiii

PART I INTRODUCTION TO FOREST SOILS, 1

1 History of Forest Soil Science and Management, 3

2 Global Patterns in Forest Soils, 8

PART II COMPOSITION OF FOREST SOILS, 21

3 Soil Formation and Minerals, 23

4 Soil Organic Matter, 39

5 Water, Pore Space, and Soil Structure, 58

PART III LIFE AND CHEMISTRY IN FOREST SOILS, 75

6 Life in Forest Soils, 77

7 Forest Biogeochemistry, 99

8 Chemistry of Soil Surfaces and Solutions, 138

PART IV MEASURING FOREST SOILS, 157

9 Sampling Soils Across Space and Time, 159

10 Common Approaches to Measuring Soils, 175

PART V DYNAMICS OF FOREST SOILS, 189

11 Influence of Tree Species, 191

12 Soil Management - Harvesting, Site Preparation, Conversion, and Drainage, 213

13 Fire Influences, 235

14 Nutrition Management, 254

15 Managing Forest Soils for Carbon Sequestration, 276

PART VI THINKING PRODUCTIVELY ABOUT FOREST SOILS, 289

16 Evidence-Based Approaches, 291

References, 305

Index, 343

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