110 1 km squares across Great Britain were sampled in 2021 for topsoil properties including pH, soil organic matter, carbon stock, nitrogen, and phosphorus. The UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology conducts this rolling monitoring program, which has been repeated every five years since 1978. This dataset allows for the detection of gradual changes in the UK's countryside over time.
Use Cases
- Model soil carbon sequestration potential based on derived carbon concentration and stock data.
- Analyze soil fertility and nutrient availability based on nitrogen and Olsen-phosphorus concentration.
- Assess soil physical structure and water retention based on bulk density and volumetric water content.
- Monitor long-term trends in soil acidity and organic matter content based on pH and loss on ignition measurements.
- Correlate vegetation species data with soil physico-chemical properties for ecological studies.
Strengths
- Data from 110 stratified random sample squares provides a systematic national coverage.
- The program has a longitudinal design, with surveys conducted in 1978, 1984, 1990, 1998, 2007, and 2021.
- Properties include multiple key soil metrics: pH, organic matter, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, bulk density, and moisture.
Limitations
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
Provenance
- Source
- UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH)
- Collection Method
- Sampled from a stratified random sample based on a 15 by 15 km grid using rigorous scientific methods.
- Time Range
- 2021 sampling, part of a program running from 1978 to present.
- Freshness
- Last updated 2026-03-19 07:35:30.480747; freshness should be verified.
- Geography
- Great Britain