Use the squeeze and ribbon test for soil texture

Take a golf-ball-sized handful of soil, add water drop by drop until it has the consistency of putty, and squeeze it into a ball. If it falls apart, the soil is sand-dominant. If it holds, squeeze it between thumb and forefinger to push out a flat ribbon. Sand-dominant soil ribbons less than 1 inch; moderate clay ribbons 1-2 inches; heavy clay ribbons over 2 inches.

Why It Works

Clay particles are plate-shaped and sticky when wet, allowing them to form longer ribbons. Sand particles are round and coarse, preventing cohesion. This is the same method formally taught by the USDA, Colorado State University Extension, and the FAO for field soil assessment. With practice, experienced practitioners can identify texture class within one category of laboratory analysis.

Tips

• After ribboning, rub wet soil between fingers: gritty = sand, silky/smooth = silt, sticky = clay
• Colorado State Extension publishes a detailed flow chart for classifying texture using this method
• Takes less than a minute once you learn it — useful for quickly assessing different spots in your garden
• Combine with the jar test for more confidence in your texture assessment