and Using Knowledge on Pedo-Transfer Functions

Abstract: Soil data availability for modelling purposes is often insufficient for the application of physical or semi-empirical models simulating soil hydrology. Standard soil surveys frequently do not include hydrological characteristics of the soil, such as either parameters of water retention and conductivity functions or, simpler than the former, estimates of soil water content at field capacity and wilting point. Even when at least part of such data is available, a quality control is needed to ensure not only that values fit within expected ranges, but also to check for consistency across parameters in a specific soil. The use of pedotransfer functions (PTF) allows estimating “what we need from what we have”, that is, it allows estimating soil hydrological parameters from soil data often available. The literature makes available a large number of PTF, and new ones are being proposed. Such PTF range from very simple empirical functions, to complex soil physical models. Users must select a PTF to be used based on both available data and their a-priori knowledg