Soil properties key to predicting water availability in arid regions.
Researchers used a method called pedotransfer functions to estimate field capacity and wilting point of soil in a dry area in Iran. They found that the amount of sand and cation exchange capacity (CEC) in the soil can help predict field capacity, while silt and CEC can predict wilting point. CEC was shown to be more important than clay and organic matter in estimating these soil properties.