USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

Indicator Test Function

P L/O D

Soil Quality Indicators

Available Water Capacity 4

Available water capacity is the maximum amount of plant

Inches of water / ft. soil depth

available water a soil can provide. It is an indicator of a 3

soil’s ability to retain water and make it sufficiently

c ity
pa
Ca

available for plant use.

ld
2
Fie Available Water

Available water capacityis the water held in soil between

its field capacity and permanent wilting point. Field
1 t
iltin g Poin
nent W

capacity is the water remaining in a soil after it has been

Perma Unavailable Water

thoroughly saturated and allowed to drain freely, usually

0

for one to two days. Permanent wilting point is the

Sand Loamy Sandy Fine Loam Silt Silty Clay Silty Clay
sand loam sandy loam clay loam clay

moisture content of a soil at which plants wilt and fail to

loam loam

recover when supplied with sufficient moisture. Water Figure 1. General relationship between soil moisture and texture.
Fineness of texture

Ohio Agronomy Guide, 14th edition, Bulletin 472-05

capacity is usually expressed as a volume fraction or
percentage, or as a depth (in or cm).
Dynamic - Available water capacity is affected by
Factors Affecting organic matter, compaction, and salt concentration of the
Inherent - Available water capacity is affected by soil soil.
texture, presence and abundance of rock fragments, and
soil depth and layers. Organic matter increases a soil’s ability to hold water, both
directly and indirectly. When a soil is at field capacity,
Available water capacity increases with increasingly fine organic matter has a higher water holding capacity than a
textured soil, from sands to loams and silt loams. Coarse similar volume of mineral soil. While the water held by
textured soils have lower field capacity since they are high organic matter at the permanent wilting point is also
in large pores subject to free drainage. Fine textured soils higher, overall, an increase in organic matter increases a
have a greater occurrence of small pores that hold water soil’s ability to store water available for plant use.
against free drainage, resulting in a comparatively higher Indirectly, organic matter improves soil structure and
field capacity. However, in comparison to well-aggregated aggregate stability, resulting in increased pore size and
loam and silt loam soils, the available water capacity of volume. These soil quality improvements result in
predominantly clay soils tends to be lower since these soils increased infiltration, movement of water through the soil,
have an increased permanent wilting point (see Figure 1). and available water capacity (see Figure 2).

Rock fragments reduce available water capacity of soil Compaction reduces available water capacity through its
proportionate to their volume, unless the rocks are porous. adverse affects on both field capacity and permanent
Soil depth and root restricting layers affect total available wilting point. Compaction reduces total pore volume,
water capacity since they can limit the volume of soil consequently reducing water storage when the soil is at
available for root growth. (Restrictive layers may be field capacity. Compaction also crushes large soil pores
naturally occurring or a result of management activities.) into much smaller micropores. Since micropores hold
Plant rooting characteristics must be considered for a water more tightly than larger pores, more water is held in
practical understanding of the effects of soil depth and soil at its permanent wilting point.
restrictive layers on water available for plant growth. A
restrictive layer at 20 inches might have little consequence Salts in soil water result from fertilizer application or
on the water requirements of a shallow-rooted crop. naturally occurring compounds. Salt concentration
However, this layer might severely limit the volume of soil increases as soil water decreases. For soils high in soluble
a deep-rooted crop can explore for moisture. salts, moisture stress results when plants cannot uptake

Helping People Help the Land...

water across an unfavorable salt concentration gradient.
Soils with high salt concentration tend to have reduced
0.50

available water capacity because more water is retained at

the permanent wilting point than if water was held by
0.40

soil water ft3 / ft3 soil

acity
Cap
Field

physical factors alone. These effects are most pronounced

0.30
Available Water

in soils in dry regions where salts accumulate because of

0.20

irrigation or natural processes.

entage
0.10 Permanent wilting perc

Relationship to Soil Function

1 2 3 4 5 6 7
% soil organic matter by weight

Figure 2. Effect of increasing organic matter on available water

Soil is a major storage reservoir for water. In areas where capacity of silt loam soils. Adapted from Hudson, SWCS, 1994.
rain falls daily and supplies the soil with as much or more
water than is removed by plants, available water capacity
residue to protect and increase soil organic matter to make
may be of little importance. However, in areas where
improvements in a soil’s available water capacity. When
plants remove more water than is supplied by precipitation,
feasible, tillage, harvest, and other farming operations
the amount of water held by the soil may be critical. Water
requiring heavy equipment can be avoided when the soil is
held in the soil may be necessary to sustain plants between
wet to minimize compaction; and compacted layers can be
rainfall or irrigation events. By holding water for future
ripped to break them and expand the depth of the soil
use, soil buffers the plant – root environment against
available for root growth.
periods of water deficit.
For soil high in soluble salts, management activities that
Available water capacity is used to develop water budgets,
maintain salts below the root zone can be used. These
predict droughtiness, design and operate irrigation systems,
include irrigation to leach salts below the root zone and
design drainage systems, protect water resources, and
practices that promote infiltration, reduce evaporation,
predict yields.
minimize disturbance, manage residue, and prevent mixing
of salt-laden lower soil layers with surface layers.
Problems with Poor Function
Lack of available water reduces root and plant growth, and Conservation practices resulting in available water capacity
it can lead to plant death if sufficient moisture is not favorable to soil function include:
provided before a plant permanently wilts. A soil’s ability • Conservation Crop Rotation
to function for water storage also influences runoff and • Cover Crop
nutrient leaching. • Prescribed Grazing
• Residue and Tillage Management
Agricultural land management practices that lead to poor • Salinity and Sodic Soil Management
available water capacity include those that prevent
accumulation of soil organic matter and/or result in soil Developers can incorporate the use of permeable parking
compaction and reduced pore volume and size: areas, green roofs, and other practices that minimize the
• Conventional tillage operations, impact of development on soil water storage.
• Low residue crop rotations, and burning, burying,
harvesting, or otherwise removing plant residues, Measuring Available Water Capacity
• Heavy equipment traffic on wet soils, and
Reference: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural
• Grazing systems that allow development of livestock
Resources Conservation Service, 2005. National Soil
loafing areas and livestock trails.
Survey Handbook, title 430-VI. Soil Properties and
Qualities (Part 618), Available Water Capacity (618.05).
As natural areas are permanently converted to homes,
Online at: http://soils.usda.gov/technical/handbook/
roads, and parking areas, the overall amount of water that
can be stored in the soil is reduced. This leads to higher
total runoff, increased pressure on storm water drainage Specialized equipment, shortcuts, tips:
systems, a higher likelihood of flooding, and generally Determination of permanent wilting point moisture content
poorer water quality in streams and lakes. requires a pressure membrane apparatus.

Improving Available Water Capacity Time needed: One to two days is required for free
Farmers can grow high residue crops, perennial sod and drainage and to allow soil to reach field capacity.
cover crops, reduce soil disturbing activities, and manage

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