The three favourite soil science books of:

Martin H. Gerzabek (Austria)

My below selection is based on the frequency I use these books, including two more general books and a highly specialised title. My most frequently used book is a German title, the Lehrbuch der Bodenkunde (Textbook of soil science; first published by Scheffer and Schachtschabel in 1937, at present the 15th edition 2002, Spektrum Akademischer Verlag Heidelberg, 593 pages). This book provides both, an excellent overview of all disciplines of soil science and in-depth scientific explanations supported by a good selection of general and specific references, which help in entering a new field in soil science. The book itself is written by app. 20 German authors. This group authors is constantly enlarged to ensure top quality of the different chapters. In the field of soil chemistry I like very much the book of Garrison Sposito The chemistry of soils (1989, Oxford university press, 304 pages; in German: 1998, Ferdinand Enke Verlag, Stuttgart). 16 years old, this book provides still an excellent overview of all important topics in soil chemistry. The author describes soil minerals and organic matter in soils and the soil solution, and provides in-depth coverage of important chemical processes, including solubility reactions, oxidation-reduction phenomena, adsorption, and ion exchange. For teaching purposes the app. 200 exercises are of high value. A very specialized book I frequently use is Molecular Modelling Theory: Applications in the Geosciences edited by R.T. Cygan and J.D. Kubicki (Reviews in Mineralogy & Geochemistry Volume 42, Geochemical Society and Mineralogical Society of America, 531 pages). The application of molecular modelling in soil research is a young but exciting discipline.This book was the basis for a short course in molecular modeling theory and contains 14 chapters covering a broad spectrum of molecular modelling applications from simulating mineral structures to the calcualtion of complexes, interactions on mineral surfaces and vibrational properties of minerals. Thus, it provides a good overview of the options to apply these new methods in soil science.