Soil Analysis
Soil Properties
What every value in the report is, the unit it's reported in, and how the Very Low to Very High classification works — including why the same number can mean something different in Bulgaria vs. Hungary vs. the European default. All values represent topsoil: the layer where root activity, microbial life, and most agronomic decisions actually happen.
Quick reference: what's measured
| Property | What it tells you | Default unit |
|---|---|---|
| Total Nitrogen (N) | Overall nitrogen in the soil | % |
| Phosphorus (P) | Plant-available phosphorus | mg/kg or ppm |
| Potassium (K) | Plant-available potassium | mg/kg or ppm |
| pH | Soil acidity / alkalinity | 0–14 |
| Soil Organic Matter (SOM) | Organic carbon content of the soil | % |
| Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) | Soil's ability to hold nutrients | mg/kg |
| Sand / Silt / Clay | Texture composition | % each |
| Organic Carbon (OC) | Raw organic carbon (export files only) | g/kg |
Total Nitrogen (N)
Nitrogen drives almost all crop growth. The report shows total nitrogen as a percentage in Lab mode, or 0–100 in Index mode.
| Band | Range | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Very Low | < 0.10% | Nitrogen-deficient; expect poor growth without input. |
| Low | 0.10–0.13% | Sub-optimal; will likely need supplementation. |
| Good | 0.13–0.20% | Healthy range for most arable crops. |
| High | 0.20–0.33% | Abundant; watch for excess application. |
| Very High | > 0.33% | Possibly over-fertilized; risk of runoff and lodging. |
Phosphorus (P)
The plant-available form of phosphorus, critical for root development and energy transfer. Thresholds vary by region because soil chemistry — and the lab methods used to validate it — differ from place to place:
| Region | Very Low | Low | Good | High | Very High |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| European default | < 8 | 8–15 | 15–25 | 25–40 | > 40 |
| Bulgaria | < 40 | 40–80 | 80–150 | 150–220 | > 220 |
| Hungary | < 50 | 50–150 | 150–250 | 250–400 | > 400 |
The system applies the correct scale automatically based on the field's location. You can switch between mg/kg and ppm in the report header — they're numerically equivalent.
Potassium (K)
The plant-available form of potassium, important for water regulation, disease resistance, and grain quality. Like phosphorus, it's regionally calibrated:
| Region | Very Low | Low | Good | High | Very High |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| European default | < 85 | 85–170 | 170–220 | 220–500 | > 500 |
| Hungary | < 50 | 50–150 | 150–250 | 250–400 | > 400 |
pH
Soil acidity on the standard 0–14 scale. Most crops grow best mildly acidic to neutral.
| Band | Range | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Very Low | < 5.5 | Strongly acidic; many nutrients lock up. |
| Low | 5.5–6.0 | Acidic; possible aluminium toxicity for sensitive crops. |
| Good | 6.0–7.5 | Ideal for most arable crops. |
| High | 7.5–8.5 | Alkaline; micronutrients like iron and zinc become less available. |
| Very High | > 8.5 | Strongly alkaline; often associated with sodicity. |
Soil Organic Matter (SOM)
The organic component of the soil — decomposed plant material, microbial biomass, humus — driving water retention, structure, and long-term fertility. SOM thresholds depend on clay content, since heavier clay soils naturally hold more organic matter than sandy ones; the system picks the right band automatically:
| Soil type | Very Low | Low | Good | High | Very High |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sandy soils (Clay < 15%) | < 0.8% | 0.8–1.5% | 1.5–2.5% | 2.5–4.0% | > 4.0% |
| Loamy soils (Clay 15–35%) | < 1.2% | 1.2–2.2% | 2.2–4.0% | 4.0–6.0% | > 6.0% |
| Clay soils (Clay > 35%) | < 2.0% | 2.0–3.5% | 3.5–6.0% | 6.0–10.0% | > 10.0% |
Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC)
A measure of how much nutrient charge the soil can hold and exchange with plant roots. Higher CEC means the soil retains nutrients better instead of leaching them. CEC shows up in the data table but not as a heatmap layer — it's most useful as context: a low-CEC sandy soil needs different management than a high-CEC clay soil even at similar nutrient levels.
Soil texture: Sand, Silt, Clay
These three components add up to 100% and together define the USDA texture class (Sandy Loam, Clay Loam, Silty Clay, and so on) — the Overview tab shows the dominant class with a pie chart. Texture is structural, not something management can change, but it sets the context for everything else: water retention, workability, nutrient holding capacity, and which SOM threshold band applies.
Organic Carbon (OC)
Raw organic carbon in g/kg. SOM is derived from OC (multiplied by 1.724, the standard conversion factor). OC appears in CSV and shapefile exports for anyone who prefers to work with the raw value.
Index mode vs. Lab mode
Every property is available in two modes, switchable from the header:
- Index mode (0–100): a unitless score compressing everything to a common scale — below 30 is Very Low, 30–80 is Good, above 80 is Very High. Useful for quick visual comparison and non-specialist audiences.
- Lab mode: the actual chemical readings with proper units — % for N and SOM, mg/kg or ppm for P and K, 0–14 for pH.
Both modes share the same underlying data — the index is simply a normalization of the lab values against the regional thresholds.
Why classification matters
A raw nutrient number on its own isn't always useful. The Very Low–to–Very High classification turns it into a decision-relevant signal: is this field deficient, on track, or over-supplied? The colour bands on heatmaps and distribution charts make spatial variability obvious at a glance — and when sharing a report with someone non-technical (a buyer, a partner, a manager), the index view plus labels usually communicates more clearly than raw chemistry.
Next steps
- The report — where each value shows up in the interface.
- AI Insights — a written interpretation that combines these properties.
- Methodology — how the values are derived from satellite data.